Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1890-08-08
A TORPEDO BOAT
a WONDERFUL LITTLE VESSEL
ADDED TO OUR NAVY.
She Runs From Washington to New
York i'm Fast Tjme-A Descrip-
ton of the Craft--How She
Will BE Used.

A recent issue Of tho Washington Star
says: A long, low, narrow little boat,
painted dirty gray, with two flat smoke
stacks and a couple of warty- looking tur-
rcts protruding from her round back, lies
tied to wharf at the navy yard, the
| centre OF admiration and comment. Her
| crew, consisting of sixteen brawny-look<
ing fellows, with their wide trousers
rolled up to their knees, were splashinn
around on the wharvcs this morning with
water buckets aud cleaning q lot OF
wooden gratings. The little vessel WINS
the new torpedo boat Cushing, recently
built by Herrcschoff, the blind inventor
for the United States navy, aud she ar.
rived at the yard last evening at about G
O'Clock, after twenty-eight- hour run
from New York in heavy sea. This
vessel is probably one of the swiftest ever
put into the water, her record last week
OF running from Newport to New York
in six hours and fifty-scven minutes
being the best on record by seven min
utcs.
A Star reporter visited the wharf
where the Gushing lies this morning
shortly after 10 o'clock and found every.
thing In a hustle, ship cleaning Lieu
tenant Herbert Winslow, the commander
OF the brisk little vessel, had gone to the
Navy Department to report his arrival
and Ensign William Truxtun, the execu.
tive, was in charge.
"We passed under the Brooklvn
Bridge Saturday afternoon at 2 o'clock
precisely, said Ensign Truxtun, "headl
ed for sea, and when we struck the out.
side weather we found it very rough.
The seas were quite high, and VIC worSsD
almost completely covered with spray.
we ran along easily, however, with only
one boiler working, and after n steady
passage reached here at r. NJ. yester-
day, making the trip in twenty eight
hours. Our speed averaged over fifteen
knots, and sometimes we ran rs high as
seventeen knots an hour. We are ali torn
up down below, trying to get the vessel
clean, for we have not had chance to
make her look at all decent since we took
her from the hands of the contractors.
Everything is very dirty, aud we want to
brighten up a bit. n
The Cushing is torpedo boat of tho
first class, built entirely of iron and steel.
about 135 feet in length and 10 feet
beam. She carries two Thonnycroft boil
ers, fore and aft, with an engine room in
the middle, and can make, on spurts of
an hour or more, about 90 knots an hour
On her trial trip, when she made her
fastest speed, she ran for four consccu-
tive hours without break OF any de-
scription.
At present she has no armament what
ever, but when completed by the Govern
mont 10 1,n "a III
pedo tubes amidships and one in the
bow.
The ordnance department of the navy
IS now waiting, before putting in tho
tubes, to find out whether or not tho
Howell automobile torpedo is success.
1t is now being tried by board, and il
found to come up to the claims of the
inventor, will be used on the Cushing.
A number of rapid-tre guns will Nu~'
mounted on the deck of the vessel zen
cschelon," and this will complete tho
biting powers of the boat. !
She is designed to run up on an enemy
under cover of heavy fire from her own
feet, to surprise the antagonist, if pos
sible, and shoot out torpedo before she
is discovered. If shot should strike
her, good byel Her sides and deck arc
covered with Quarter-inch steel, which is
the heaviest material used on her, and
the only protection she has from an
encmy's fire comes from her coal bunkcrs
on each side, extending from one boiler
to the other. She carries about 30 tons
of coal.
Near her sharp PROV, on the highest
part of her curved deck, is pilot house
or coming tower of iron, round, with
sides slanting slightly and turtle back
roof that screws up and down, thus allow!
ing ventlating space of several inches
all around. Glass ports are fixed in tho
sides for sighting. From this tower tho
vessel is run and fought, her steering
apparatus being controlled by steam
worked by baud gear in the tower Hero
is also the firing gear of the torpedo tube,
which comes up from near the water limo
to within foot or two of the tower.
Abaft the smokcstacks is second tower,
to be used in case the forward one is shot
away, and here is n haad steering appar-
atus.
The vessel is very low and sharp and
cuts long waves very easily She rolls
slightly, but not unpleasantly, recover
ing herself without jerk She is OK
tremcly steady in sea way, her dis
proportionatc length keeping her from
pitching. -,
The Gushing will probably be here IF
month or six weeks and may be fitted
with her armament while here. 1t is
quite possible that Secretary Tracy may
send her down the river on n test run.
and in this case she will open the eyes Of
the river boatmcn.