Omaha daily bee., 1888-08-10
THE WHITEHEAD TORPEDO.
Interesting Facts Regarding This
-. implement OF Naval War. nrc.

Chicago News: During the last two
years marked activity has characterized
congress on the question Of building W
the navy, Over $50. 000. 600 have been
appropriated. Designs of battle ships,
cruisers, torpedo-boats. and heavy ord
nance, have been obtained from every
source throughout the world. and but
little has been left undonc to render
our new fleets compatible in every re-
spect with modern requirements.
The launch of the steel cruisers, Chi
cago, Boston and Atlanta, marked the
first addition TO the new navy. On the
18th of April last the steel gunbOat
Yorktown and dynamite cruiser Vesu-
vius were slipped from the ways by the
Cramps at Chester: and or the 10Th inst.
the powerful armed cruiser harlcstown
was launched by the Union iron works
ut san Francisco. The rapidity with
which the events have occurred. and
the fact that over fifteen powerful war
ships will be added to the American
navy within the next eighteen months
has given an impetus to interests in
maratinc affairs seldom observed in
this country.
Each cruiser turned out will be fur
niahed, in addition TO her battery Of
guns. with a full complement of white
head torpcdoos.
The torpedo gunh1at now building at
Cramps has FOR Il prototype the British
torpedo cruiser Rlttlesnake. though the
engines OF the American torpclO-bOat
are contri c.cd Tor t;yeuty-one knots per
hour. The Whitehead torpedo. the in
~vcntiOn Of an English engineer in the
Austrian service, is little else than u
submarine boat. 1t is Il ciglr-shapcd
vessel OF thin wrought iron, with Il keel
above and below, horizontal and vertical
rudders-thc former intended to keep
the machine at any required depth,
regulated by setting Il scale. The body
contains compressed air, working II
pneumatic engine and ~four-bladcd
s"rew. The forepart contains the cX-
plOsive-to act by conclusion or col
lision. These torpedUes are of two
stHeS---the largest being fourteen feet
long aud sixteen inches in diameter,
intended for siXty-seven pounds OF gun
cotton. II the smaller one is nearly
the same in length, but two inches
smaller in diameter. to con.
tain eighteen pounds Of dynamite. Tho
whole is discharged from a tube in the
bows OF the operating vessel, the tor
p2do being pushed out by IN "ejcctor,n
which at the same time sets ihc ma
chtncrN in notion. The speed Of the
Whitehead is about seven and one-half
knots and it is claimed by those eX-
t"ns'yely experimenting that the range
OF the large torpedo Is more than one
thousand yards.
In firing the torpedo from our now
cruisers the openings of the tubes are
below and above the surface Of the
water, The tubo is aimed the salne as
Il gun, and the waves, flow of current,
ana other dcvia,ing causes are taken
into recount As soon as the torpedo
strikes IN object it eNplOlcs with ter
rifle effect, usually with sufficient power
to tear II hole in tho bottom of an
armored ship large enough for Il wagon
to 90 through.
The speed of the torpedo through the
water diminishes as tho pressure of the
air in the reservoir diminishes by the
working of the engine. Thus, it will
travel more rapidly for q short distance
than for a long one. For lhe first DO
yards the rate Of speed for the larger
ono is twenty-four knots an hour. and
100 yards can be accomplished at the
rate OF sixteen knots an hour. At the
latter speed the transit through 1000
yards would occupy about two minutes,
or, more exactly speaking, one minute
and ltftv-twO seconds.
But, Notwithstanding these features
of the Whitehead torpedo, it is vet not
wholly under command. though naval
officers are becoming constantly more
able to govern its Crratic movements.
During the Gillian trouble the Brit
ish war ship Shah discharged u White
head at the HuaScar while the latter
was passing broadside on near by. but
failed TO hit her. This is the only in
stance Of their use with hostile intent,
and the next war must prove the PROV
ess Of this ne plus ultra of modern war
fare.
The use of g~un-cotton in tOrDedoes
has become so extensive that the gov
crnmont found it necessary several
years ago to establish a gun-cotton fac
tory. The location of the works Is now
at Coasters island, near Newport.
From this factory gun-cottOu is Issued
to our wan vessels in Il wet condition,
and in this state large quantities can
be carried in the torpedo magazine
with perfect safety. a small. very
small. quantity of dry ]gun-cotton is
also carried, II pinch of which is ex-
ploded by the percussion cap, the shock
of the latter then exploding the wet
g%un-cotton. The latter loses none Of
its power by being wet, but requires Il
greater conclusion to cause it's eXplo-
sion. GODFREY LYNEr GARDEN,
Lieutenant.