Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1886-04-10
NEW AMERICAN TORPEDO BesTs,
An Ingenious Device that is Driven and
Steered Under Water by Electricity

An Ingenious Device that is Driven and
Steered Under Water by Electricity.
| The United States may be behind the
world in naval armament and coast de-
| lenses, says the New York Tribune. but If
all the inventions which keep bobbing up
TO meet these long-felt wants were given a
fair chance under the fostering influence of
Congressional appropriations, this would be
| the most armed nation in the world. The
| main tendency at present seems to be to-
| ward torpedoes and submarine torpedo
boats. In a large machine shop on the east
| side of this city a number of torpedoes are
! being built for the Government on a plan
which has received the approval of the en-
| gineer at Willett's Point One of them has
been completed and tested, and is now in
sections at the shop waiting to be packed
up and shipped to Washington.
The motive power is electricity, and the
| current is supplied to it through a light
cable from a dynamo on ship or on land.
The motor is of the ordinary simple form
| dynamo reversed-and the coil fits into
| the body of the torpedo shell, which is of
copper, eighteen inches in diameter. The
| cable is carried ID the torpedo shell and is
| paid out as it goes along. Thus the mec-
| hanism can travel three or four miles from
its base of power. The cable does not have
to be dragged through the water, but lies
stationary and is spun out as a spider let's
himself down by his web. The torpedo
! itself is twenty-eight feet long and of cigar
| shape. 1t will not float, but is submerged
lew feet and is supported by raft of
cork, which is twenty feet long and about
! two feet wide. This can be riddled with
shot without destroying its buoyant power.
| The charge of 200 pounds of dynamite is
put in the bow, and the whole apparatus
| then weighs ), 700 pounds. Those built for
experiment have been driven at q speed of
| eleven miles an hour. The propulsion il
| by screw the shaft of which is coupled
directly to the shaft of the motors arma-
| ture. The same current that drives the
| motor actuates the magnets which control
i the rudder. Variations in the amount of
current affect relay, which reverses the
| large magnets and moves the rudder. The
| iron piece that runs from the forward end
| of the raft to the forward end of the tor
| pedo is sharpened to q knife edge in order
| to cut through any obstruction. When it
| can't cut its way through it dives under.
Two little painted spheres raised several
| inches above the raft indicate the position
| OF the torpedo and the direction in which
it is pointed
The advantages Of this system of torpedo
management are numerous. Unlimited
power as long as the connection remains
intact, invulnerability, the possibility of
launching it long before the enemy is within
range, keeping it moving alongside, and
discharging it in any direction while under
ire, are few of the more noticeable points
The danger of breaking the connecting
wire and thus losing all control of the tor,
pedo is the main drawback. A little iron
clad surrounded by convoy of dozen of
these torpedoes might creep into the midst
OF fleet and discharge them in all direc-
uons. They can be sent ahead to blow up
torpedo blockade in entering a harbor,
while fleet of them operated from the
shore might be kept in motion 10 guard the
mouth of a harbor from entrance