The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1879-03-25
THE COURTS.
Cause Of the Explosion Of the Steamer
Adelphi's Boiler.
A FISHING EXPEDITION.
Efficient Member of Nan the Newsboys
Life Saving Corps

The suit brought against the Columbia Steam
Navigation Company for $1,000 account of the
death of Miss Sarah Leonard. through the explosion
of Norwalk. Conn.,, on the 28th OF last September
of the boiler Of the steamer Adelphi was continued
yesterday before Judge Barrett and jury. Mr.
Dennis Mcmahon, counsel for the defendants. called
Mt John A. fease. who testified that he was by edu-
cation mechanical engineer and had been such about
twenty nine years; had learned tho trade of boiler
making and had run various large steamboats, as
chief engineer over twenty years; had also been
licensed by the government as inspector; he was the
experimenting engineer of the defendants line. and
also a stakeholder in the company. lie confirmed
Mr. McMahon's opening to the original examine
ton of the boiler in question. and the work done
the boat and it's boiler and machinery. 1t was
put in perfect order. He gave it az his
Judgment that the explosion the result
Of laminated sheet being originally put in the
boiler. which had become disintegrated by constant
action of the boiling water the steam and the salt in
II, which. in the course of three years, wore away
the iron boiler plate at the point of fracture to tho
thin space it presented after the explosion. This
witness showed tho jury the large sheet Of boiler
iron which Mr. Mcmahon had brought into court
and which was annexed to tho fractured sheet points
wherein that sheet also appeared to be lalninatcd
He thought that after this unsound sheet of iron,
which exploded apart had been incorporated
even by the closest scrutiny From the outside the
only mode of detection would have been the testing
by hammer struck the outside, but even then
That test could not be successfully applied here in
Ismuch the point of fracture was too near the
zap OF the sheets The witness crossexamincd
at great length by Mr. Christopher Fine counsel for
the plaintiff but his testimony did not materially
vary from his direct. Mr.. Mcmahon then called Mr..
Bromley, the superintendent of the Quintard Iron
Works. who said he had had an experience of thirty
five years mechanical engineer and draughts-
OF boilers aud gave very important testimony
the pressure such boiler was able to bear Assum-
ing its diameter of shell to be Us feet and the
tensile strength OF the iron used i'll it to be 5O0O0
pounds. it could, he said, stand the pressure OF
forty five pounds and fraction to the square inch
OF surface. He agreed with Mr. Pease that the
OF explosion defective laminated sheet having
been used the boiler in its original construction
After the sheet had got into the boiler it could only
be detected in three waysby the hydrostatic press
ure being put on it, by internal examination and
by external hammering. On looking at the
plan of the boiler he thought no one could get i'll
that part of the boiler and examine it from the in
side; it could only be done by outside hanmering;
he was of the opinion on being shown the sheet of
heller in court that hammer could not be applied
it and detect the difference of sound, at that
point of the boiler it too well braced to admit of
the necessary sound being made by hammer. Tho
testimony or this Witness which, as will be seen,
was very important as bearing upon the point ut
issue, will be resumed this morning.