St. Paul daily globe., 1889-05-13
ONE OF THE FASTEST.
The Cruiser Charleston Given
a Speed Trial South Of
San Francisco.
Naval Officers Believe She
Will Travel Nineteen
Knots an Hour,
Making Her One Of the Speed
lest Of Modern Fighting
Machin eS.
Hard Spots In the Steel Dis
Hard Spots In the Steel Dis
covered in the Starboard
High-Pressure Slide.

SANTA BARBARA, CAL. May 1.-THE
cruiser Charleston left this port this
morning, steaming south for sixty miles
and, turning north again, went ahead
under full head of steam. making an
average speed of eighteen and one-quar-
ter knots with development of fifty
five hundred horsepower and one hum
dred revolutions of her engines. This
record was maintained for period Of
seventeen minutes, and after careful
computation by the government en-
gineers and other naval officers on
board. This is the first time that the
official record has been taken of the
cruisers speed in connection with her
horsepower development, and estab-
fishes the fact that as the Charleston
stands she is one of the fastest
of the modern fighting machines
afl0at, not of only her type, but inclu-
sive of the ntire class of cruisers in
American or foreign navies. The star
board high-pressure slide, which devel-
oped some hard spots in the steel on the
trip outward from San Francisco and
which it was hoped had been elilnina-
ted, compelled the starboard engine to
LOWER ITS SPEED.
and the highest development of the
steam power for four continuous hours
was therefore made impossible. The
port engine continued to run at full
speed for more than an hour, behaving
perfectly, but was then allowed to drop
to about ninety revolutions, under
which speed both engines were driven
until the ship had returned to her
anchorage off this port tonight. At the
speed up to eighty revolutions the
vacuum of the air pump was maintained
at twenty-seven inches, falling off a
little at the highest speed. The highest
speed was attained under forced
draught, which was employed for the
first time, but during the entire run the
quantity of steam from the boiler was
in excess of the requirements and was
blowing off from the escape pipe all the
time: No trouble was experienced with
the three other steel slides, the one
mentioned causing all the trouble en-.
countered. There is an evident n
FEELING OF DISAPPOINTMENT
duOlS tIC VI lllC OIilOu
Iron works on board. Upon the other
hand, the naval officers are uniform in
their confidence and pride in the new
ship, and the view is held that she
will easily attain more than nineteen
knots when permitted to employ her
full power. Chief Engineer F. A.
Wilson, of the naval examining board,
in speaking of the ships exploit, re-
marked: "There was not crank pin,
bearing or journal warm, and this has
never, in my experience, been equaled.
There was hot tendency to heat shown
by either main or thrust bearings. Once
remedying the minor difficulties devel-
oped to-day, the cruiser bids fair to
equal 120 revolutions to the minute with
conservative speed, under the record
shown to-day, exceeding nineteen knots.
To my view she promises to be one of
the fastest ships of her class afoat."
The expressions made by other naval
officers is of the same complimentary.
and confident character. 1t is expected
that the Charleston will leave port early
tomorrow morning and will probably
run north, but beyond this no announce
ment has been made.