Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1892-06-11
A WHALEBACk
10 Try the Experiment of.
Carrying Ice.
A Graft that Looks Like a Whale and
is Called a "pig,"
But Which Carries the cargoes aad Gets There
lest the Same

bAsf5i>EE- JuIIss 10 Special. 4 pig
/ IN port is the novel Of affairs at Berrv's ice
| houses in Dresden where there now lays
| At the shipping run one Of those peculiar
marine crafts. whale back barge, called
by the highly appropriate name Of pig
by tte shipping fraternity. Neger before
IN the history of Maine shipping 20 far as
known, has such a craft nl4sie IL. appearance
/ N Maine waters and a. might be imagined
. has been visited By hundreds of curious
people and certain ii is tina, il is well worth
an Inspection. Through the courtesy of
Mr.. Fred Berry, the Journal representative
enjoyed a tour over the barge yesterday.
Viewed at a short distance the craft looks
4 huge pig in shape. The bow is a mere
snont from which the sides of th.. weasel
dlyerge TO meet again al tie stern
in another $Hout much similar
70 that at the how. its deck is oval. vers
much the shape Of hale. back At the
forward end are the anchors AMI tow bit.
lhd a turret some ten feet high upon the
top OF which are the immense nine inch
80 fathom hawser with which she Is towed
the windlass and other paraphenalia for
working the craft. ! long stretch of deck
and you come to the cabin a turret like
the first only larger These are the only
pr0trusions from the deck. which is guarded
on the side By wire rope railing. The
peculiar outward appearance Of the craft
calls forelbly to mind the wonderful ma
chine which Jules Verne Describes in his
'2n.HD Leagues Under the Sea The
ieck between the tnrrets Is composed of
eight hatciie-, eight By 10 feet in dimen-
sons ant eight feet apart. Through these
the cargo is run in until the barge has its
complement of 1850 tons nicely stored away
These matches are provided with rubber
gaskets and when screwed down by means
of their 30 screw bolts render the hold alb
s0lutely wuter tight. Capt. e. johnson, the
GENIAL captain of the craft. informs the
J"rENAL that he has been out in her " hen
The seas would completely bury the body
md vet not a drop of water would find its
eay into the hold. The cabin ia surmount-
I'd by an open deck, lsxl6 feet square,
where the steeragc apparatu, is placed and
above which are securely lasiietl life boat
and life raft. Descending the companion
stalrS the entrance il made into the cabin
with tts five neat rooms beside store room
all of which are presided over by Mrs
.iohnson. pleasant faced lady with fam
,ly Of three sturdy little boy. and girls
Nnoihcr step down and We are in the boiler
anil pumping room where an immense
pump renders sinking almost impossi-
bic the barge has two bottoms
AMI uIpn the lower one are six
tanks for carrying water ballast They
have a capacity of 700 tons. No attention
whatever is paid 10 trimming The barge when
loading. After the hatches are screwed
down, the pumps are set to work and the
tanks are filled on the sile, stern or bow
until the barge shows an even keel. When
port il made the pnmp, are again set at
work and in Fix minutes tim every gallon
of water il pumped out Thr pumps have
capacity of 1000 gallons per minute
Capt. Johnson tells us of an occasion when
the barge went INTO the rocks staying
great hoIc in her bottom. Only one tank
filled, however, and the barge made two
trips before she was taken out for repairs |
In addition to these tanks are two water
tight bukhcatIs, one fore and the other aft
The barge il " No. 202" ami i, ow ned by
the American Steel Barge Company which
'as an immense fleet of steel whalcback
barges and steamers. She is "00 feet long,
ST feet beam and IL feet IN the bold, and i.
made entirely of steel plates ii,e-eights of
lull in Noyembrr, l<9u. al Erie Basin.
Brooklyn. y. Y, by Iiaudrcu & Robjns
capt Johnson has been with her since she
huilt and whilr lac ronfesses rs feeling q
httia uneasy when he started on his first
trip nov states that he hever handled the
heel of finer acting craft than the pig
over which he now has command. Three
men and the captain comprise the force
necessary to handle her. She has no
motive power of her own. heing towel from
port to port and for 80 large craft
raws hut very little water as she only
draws four feet when light and fourteen
feet when inaded.
MIR, Berry is loading her with ice for
Philadelphia and she will tow tberr in three
lays. Loading her with ice j. somewhat of
an experiment rs she has never carried
such cargo and it is not known in what
condition it can be shipped. If it proves |
satisfactory however, Mr., Berry will char
ter the whale back steamer, Joseph l.. |
1 oiby, which is owned by the same com
pany and can carry 220o tons.
II would seem that in these crafts nothing
has been left that could in any way improve
thcir safety or utility, and should they
rome into general use in ice shipping will
he of considerable Importance as they can
he counted upon 10 make the trip in GER
hn of considerable Importance ~ they can
he counted upon TO make the trip in cer-
ain time. factor which is absent in sailing
vessels