New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1880-11-20
HINH ND LECIATHAN.


The torpedo boat has been from the begin
ming a peculiarly American idea. century
ago an army engineer launched in New YoIl;
IIarbor the FIST device of the kind, and now,
afCer several of Our greatest inventors, Robert
Fulton and Samuel Colt among thcm have
made a close study of torpedo mechanism,
| Captain John Ericsson is experimenting IN the
same harbOr with the most formidable engine
of death known in naval warfare. The in
ventor of the Monitor is one of the most mod
| est and unpretentOus mcchaniclaDs OF the
age, and is not likely to exaggerate the merits
of his own work. He is entirely satisfied with
| the results of the recent experiments with ms
| torpedo boat, and some of the most experienced
naval officers in the United States service 90
not hesitate to pronounce it an unCquiyOcal
| success.
For the first complete account of this won
derful piece of marine mechanism we refer
our readers to the news columns Of this issue.
1t will be seen that Captain Ericsson has in
vented three thlngs--a beat, a gun and
proiectile. The boat is submcIged Ike a
Monitor. with all the machinery below an in
termedilte deck of plate iron, which is
strongly ribbed and supports inclined amor
plates. The deck house above water has
no ports at the sides and can be shot
away without the vessels being dis
ablcd II'ayy wood backing gives
additional protection 10 the wheel and the
electric battery, and the steering ger Is Ten
feet below the water line. Attacking bows
on and defyin2 with her armor tie heaviest
ordnance, the ID ,tIoycr is practically Iuyul-
herablr and "a the same time most terrible
antagonist Her armament consists Of a single
brccch-loadcr OF wrought iron h00Jed with
steel aud 4 bore Of Is inches. This gun lies
seven feet under wa. and disch1r-cs pro-
iectile containing go pounds Of dynamite.
When the boat with It's crew O. ten men Is
within 800 OF 400 feet Of the enemy, tie gun
Is fired toy electricity and the prQec-
tile cxpodcs by conclusion. Ii the first
shot fall another follows IN few minutes
and the torpeio bombardmcnt proceeds with
extraordinary rapd.t,, no time being wasted
IN charging the gun. The substitution Of gun
powder for compressed air in the operation OF
charging the gun vastly increases the efficiency
of the armament. 1t may not be too
much to sly that II leaves the miShheSt iron
shipS of thc world completely at her mercy.
Lest tins may be regarded as an cXtrava-
CANT statement, we call attention TO the fact
thai the British Admiralty have thus lar de-
yisod 10 adequate means OF repellIng the
attacks OF an ordinary torpedo fleet. The use
Of powerful electric lights, by which
the approach OF a torpedo boat may be
discerncd mt night, has been proposed,
and The eNpedcn"y OF ouclsi,g ironclads With
defensive network, or species of naval
crlnoiinc, has been seriously discussed; bat
such an antagonist as the d stroyer would be
iuyumerable even in Daylight, and her pr jyc-
tile would pierce any chain network that
mig Git be forged. Her superiority to the tor
pedo auaches broug GIT into play in the sham
fights on the English coast is too apparent to
require proof. a wasp with such 4 sting a-
tins one has would send a leviathan like the |
lnvincioie to the bottom OF the sea, unless it |
could be beaten back by swarm of wasrs |
like itself.
The subject is one of great importance to |
Americans. For fife years the European |
Powers have been building enormous wa. |
ships, protected by the thickest armor and !
armed with the heaviest guns known in the |
of the world. Our own Government |
has made no attempt to vie with the war il-ets |
of the world. 1t has not built floating car
Iiagcs for l00-ton guns at cost Of millions |
upon millions. Such wicked waste of na-
tonal resOurc s would have been condemned |
by our people. Yet the insecurity OF our han
bors and coasts has caused not little appre-
hension, since it has been PLAN that in an
emery, ncy or iTonclads would be powerlcss
to resist the fleets of even the sccond-rate
European nations. If Captain Ericsson's tor
pedo boat be all that it seems to be, the prob
lem of coast defence will be very simple. Nay,
more; the millions that have been invested |
abroad in the construction Of floating batteries
that can be sunk by toy monitors will seem
" like water poured upon the PLAIN, Not to be
" gathered up again"