New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-02-23
ALULL AT THE NAVY YARD.
SIX Busy DAYS PRECEDED IT.
rrorBLrs OF THE BARRACUDA, AND LESSON
ro RE DRAWN FROM THEM

~
driving into and ont OF the Yard, all was Pue'' anu
thc Yard was almost deserted. Almost the Only ui'
| turbance was the hosting Of flags and Dea''hs ~
drums and at noon salute Of twenty one guns, nIo"
in honor OF the Father Of His Country" sue" vas
the effect which Washington's birthday produceu o'
tho New-Yorh Navy Yard n,o
Much work has, however. been done during INC
wool. 80 IL, advanced state will show On cruiser NO
: the work OF erecting the vertical keel mas Deeh
carried on and the frames are being made Fcdul I"
use IL was said at the Yard yesterday that possibly
/ .ome of the francs could be put IN place sometime
this week. The dcrrickS for hosting the heaVS Pi""
and frames into place are ready for use, and part Ok
the frame for tic machine-shOp is up. Inc pd''
and patterns for the stem and stern pieces nave oee
,de INT the castings are be made at the standard
| Steel Casting Company's works at Chester as the
ward ha, not facilities for making steel castings
The gang Of about eighty sailors who have been at
work scrapng the bottom Of the Alarm nave ABOUT
finished their job and she viii PROBABLY DC Pa'n'''
th, week In the meantime her caon and decks are
holm, made ready for use and furniture and fittings
are being procured for her
The original plans for the Puritan-that she shouH'
he double turreted mOntor-have been altered anu
when the work Of demonstrating her Is hnlshed she -
/ to be- according to the present plans, o@fDe'te0
battleship There are to be four twelvc!nch guns IN
covered barbettes, mounted that they may DC area
/ I'm heavy seas. 4 fourtecninch thick steel Wmor'
with a wooden backing eight inches in thickness ana
! two haIf-inch plates and Orders Is to protect inc
hydraulic machinery and the working gear oil inc guns
| Behind the forward barbette is to be the coming
tower which will be protected by steel arhor "n
inches in thickness The vessel IS to be pFoVlucH
with forced draught and abaft the smoke pipes there
Will be a military mast which, besides being used for
ventilation will be fitted with two tops In one Oh
these will be Ii scarch-llght and in the other TWO
machine guns. BESIDES being supplied with eiec'.l'
lights for lighting the decks and various parts Vi "'
vessel there 20 be electric side lights ana 'u'''
head lights.
The third OF the hlghpressure cylinders for
tbe new cruisers has been successfully cast
AZ the foundry in the yard. and they VIII sooh %
ready to cast the fourth. This will be the last mS"-
pres,ufe cy Under 10 De made but the medium pressure
cylinders viii be cast next. The erection shop Is COM
pctcd and the erecting beds are to be sent mere from
the Washington Yard. This shop will soon be heeded
to set up the machinery fast as the parts are
finished.
The Cowlcs boiler, which is being erected IN inc
ward for a competitive tc-t, is almost ready Tor uai'
between the new boiler shop and the erection 'hop anu
alongside Of the large machine shop rather curious
ob /, being done This IS the breaking UP Of tie Ola
bo1cr, which we're made for the unfinished frieate
/ New York. but were never used The boilers lie Oh
tho ground and near them is heavy iron ban
with a mig i'm II. THIS ball Is hosten
about forty feet into and then dropped on the
boiler In thu way the iron IS broken and II i then
| u.ckcd up and carried away 70 be melted ana used
again.
Workmen are busy erecting poles about the YARD
on which are to 20 the wires winch carry the current
., RIM thc porable electric drills one Of these drills
was used . successfully in the Yard last winter thar
an order for several more Of an improved style was
Given and Il expected that these will arrive IN about
two weeks.
one II the piles Of immense cannon balls "hlon
ornament the lawn the York st. gate to the afu
Iviu hon
grass They are to be painted. and the foundation on
which they rest is 10 be strengthened
The following has been posted the bulletin board
NJ the Lyccun Building: The Yantic will arrive at
Key West or about March 81
BIDS for furnishing 40 tons of bituminons, lump
George, Crock coal to the New York Navy laFd' arc
70 bc opened at the Navy Department on March ..
I'm order to be accepted. the coal must conform L"
the Navy standard. and pass the usual naval IN
,pection.7 ,
New, Of the recent accidents 10 the new British
cruiser VarI-lcouta on each OF her three trial upS
ha, reached the Navy Yard and gives iood ior ais
cu--lon among The officers, and the opinions are any
thing but crcdltablc 10 this latest addition 10 inc
british Navy The barracuda j, one Of four cruisers
do.l,roa NV W H. White Director Of Naval Construc
ton from which the Admiralty expected great re-
4ults She was launched in April last. and mad her
fir, trial on January 26 when her steering gear gave
, considerable amount Of trouble and, after nearly
running into , schooner, she was tancH n''h ~ '''0
,hc.rucs, Dockyard where the officers worked niIht
and aav repairing the defects and strengthening inc
tulahcads \ few DAYS later She had another u'"'
uhen her machinery broke down, and she was re-
Turned for further repairs Again. on FEBRUARY ~ S"c
started for an eight hours trial. one OF the oHl''Fs
referring to letter received from AN officer attached
70 AN American legation said: " All went well IN
the l,st trial until the Barracouta was of MaFgate
,,cu a Stacking accident occurred. She was running
uudcr forced draft at 80 pounds seamprcaSure woh
The back draft drove the flames ont oil inc lurhd'c'
If the port boiler and cnvclopcd the men IN hanlc'
The Grcucn and Others around the boiler dd an tcS
po-~!bv could 70 set 70 - place Of safety but Nh
fortunately not until ten men were more or less
burned Tho pressure OF steam was Immediately re
ducc,I and the vessel put back TO Sheerness, the
hrrn.d men meanwhile suffering ag0nieS, because OF
;hc lack Of means at the disposal Ot the doctors 10
alleviate their pain. TIE real cause OF the disaster
ma, not been officially determined, but 1t Is known
20 bc due to the sudden expansion and contraction
# the tube plates, which thus caused an escape Of
wafer and team into the furnace forcing the flames
into the fire room. From the many accidents Of u
similar nature t. the vessel, fitted with triple
expansion engines and requiring high pressure Of
steam It would seem that NJ form II marine boiler
has been devised to sustain the varying strains caused
ly -uddcn changes from ordinary Ia forced drdught
Which The cngfne- OF the naval service frequently
lrqnrrc The whole cla., u snip, Of the Barracuda
design f. a failure. which C"nvinccs me, a 1t does
many others. of the wisdom in the present state Of
naval construction Of building 40 more than two ships
Of ana unified pattern at the same time Naval an
thoritics have all along Contendcd that these ships
were too Slightly hu for the work they were designed
To perform and there /, considerable agitation among
naval experts both here and abroad, about continuing
the use III forced draught appliances
The board Of engineer expert, detailed by secretary
Tracy to conduct experiment, of machinery
boilers etc. at the Navy Yard. of which Chief Eug
negr Charles H. Lorms Is President mas nearly com ,h
adapablHty Of the tubular boiler, to vessels Il the
Navy. There has been adorable dodhU the part
~ the engineers OF the Navy to the adaptaby
of the hitherto used types 81 tubular boilers
IL the large vessels but during the last other
types nave been presented which 10 the
objections to the Becvie boilers in In the French
and Russian uavlcs. Engnccrin Chcf George W
Melville one of the first among naval experts to
urge the experiments With tubular boilers, believing
that an ideal type would be developed IN that way
II intimatcd that the report Of the board will be
favorable to NJ least of the types and that
ttpt he of Ie r. hp