Charlotte messenger. [volume] (Charlotte, Mecklenburg Co., N.C.) 1882-18??, 1888-03-03
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CALMING WAVES WITH OIL.
Vessels Are Now Fitted Up with Appa-
ratus for This Purpose.

Vessels Are Now Fitted Up with Appa-
ratus for This Purpose.
When photographic students first sug-
gested to shippers who had sailed the
seas for years, that pouring oil on the
troubled waters might save both vessel
and cargo, the propositionjwas laughed to
scorn. The wise old heads knew better.
Some of the younger shippers thought
the scheme might be worth trying, and
SO put the theory to the test. They found
it to work exceedingly well; so well, in
deed, that in port here they told their
brother masters of their success. Stories
of vessels having been saved by the
method were told at infrequent intervals
in the South street resorts, and were re-
ceived with much of the doubling
Thomas spirit. Finally what were looked
upon as yarns took on color Of verify
with vengeance, and even the oldest of
the shippers began to believe in the oil
story.
The result of this has been that there
is not q week passes, in fact hardly a
day, but the master of some vessel
drops into the United States photographic
bureau and informs Lieut. Cottman or
some of his staff of the benefits he has
derived during the stormy weather
which now prevails from the use of oil.
So efficacious has it proved in number
Of instances that the attention of ship
owners has been called to that they have
fitted up their craft with special fixtures
for the purpose Of fighting huge waves
with oil. The British steamship Kate
Fawcett is one Of these. Tanks are fitted
upon deck for the special purpose of car
rying oil, and FROM them pipes lead
through the ships side just above
the water line. In case the waves be-
come particularly threatening Capt.
Young has the stopcocks in the pipes
opened and lets out bit of oil. He has
found the plan to work extremely well,
and when running finds it necessary to
send out but one gallon in four hours.
He uses linseed or varnish oil. The Brit
ish steamship Earnwell is similarly fitted,
and its officers have found that the
loosening Of even small quantity of oil
has kept the water from breaking over
the decks of the steamer.
In cases where vessels are not specially
fitted for fighting mountains of water
with oil, shippers sling over the bows bags
filled with coarse, heavy oils, which ooze
through the coarse material of which the
bags are made and has a wonderfully
calming effect on old Neptune. The only
trouble in these cases, say the shippers, is
that the oil is apt to clog up the canvas
of the bags and SO prevent perfect perco-
lation. This, Capt. Lord of the American
steamship Advance, found out when he
was caught in a severe storm between
st. Thomas and the Barbados last
month. So he rugged up a big water
filter over the weather board and
treated the waves which threatened
to ingulf his vessel, to a copious bath of
oil, and SO kept the cross seas from wash
ing over the deck of his steamer. Most
any kind of oil seems to do the work re-
quired. but Capt. Peters, of the British
steamship Lyon, has probably used the
strangest mixture yet reported, one of
cod liver oil and linseed oil, of both of
which he happened to have big con-
signment in his cargo. A couple of gal
Ions Of fish oil, says Capt. Schulz, saved
the schooner w. H. Jones from losing a
single stick of logwood from his deck
cargo while he was trying to weather a
severe gale off Hatteras during his last
| trip to this port.-New York Times.