The Portland daily press., 1893-05-23

ciiO tCoSCl, lt1SNCdbu VI OVfOtlllsS SluSl6
mile or six miles in squirt with its
steam ''bottled up,'' covers from sixty to
eighty. 1t is obvious that the American
method is the more thorough and ex-
haustive, and that it affords amuch bet
ter idea of what a ship can do in actual
service. This difference between Amer
lean and foreign methods must be kept
in mind in comparing the official speed
OF American and foreign warships
Many a sprinter can make amazing time
on a hundred yards dash, but he would
die if you forced him to keep running
for an hour.
There is another uncertain factor in
these ''oficial speed trials.'' The ordin-
ary ships log, which will record ac-
curately enough when the vessel is
steaming at a rate of 10 OF 12 or even 10
knots, seems to 'go all to pieces when
rate is reached of II or IS knots or
over. The log did literally go to pieces
at the recent trial of the cruiser Detroit.
So swiftly did this flyer travel that one
OF the patent logs towing astern ground
its machinery into fragments, and the
other broke it's line and was lost.
Nominally the fastest cruiser in the
world is the Argentine ship Nuevo de
Julio, which participated in the recent
naval review in New York harbor. Her
reported speed is % knots an hour, but
it was made in a run of single mile
only in smooth water in England, where
she was built. 1t is claimed that the
Nueve de Julio has steamed % knots an
hour in the open sea, but if the claim
rests upon patent log, it is, as we have
seen, open to some question. Another
Argentine cruiser, the rs de Mayo, of
5000 tons, is credited with 22.4 knots on
equally good authority. The Chilian
cruiser Esmeralda made 1875 knots on
her trial trip; the Japanese cruiser
Mamma Kau made 1879. The Kaiserin
Augusta of the German navy, just COM
pleted, is set down as a 20-knot ship.
The Spanish Reina Repente made 206
knots with II 500 horse power. Both
these vessels were in the Columbian de
monstration. The fastest of all French
ships is the cruiser Forbin, with a trial
record of 1913 knots. The Piemonte of
the Italian navy, one of the most remark
able war ships ever constructed, has
trial record of 21 knots and fraction
over, but this was on the measured mile.
The swiftest seagoing ships in the
British navy are the great cruisers Blake
and Blenheim, sister vessels, somewhat
larger than, but not SO well armed or
heavily armored, as the New York. The
Blake and Blenheim were designed for
% knots, but they have never reached it.
They are officially registered as 21.6 knot
vessels, but just why this is so is not un-
derstood in this country, for the Blake
reached 20 knots on her trial under ma
tural draugot only. The use of forced
draught was not thought expedient. AS
to the Blenheim, her boilers gave out
after she had covered % knots in one
hour and four minutes, and her trial had
to be abandoned. As matter of fact,
both the Blenheim and the Blake ought
to be able to outdo theNew Y ork, for their
engines were designed to develop $500
more horse power.
In our own navy the fastest cruiser
previous to the appearance Of the New
York was the San Francisco, with an av-
erage speed of 2070 knots on four
hours run on measured course in the
Pacific Ocean. 1t is exceedingly doubt
full if even the Nuevo de Julio with her
23 knots record for single mile in
smooth water could in half-a-day's
steaming keep abreast of this Yankee
ship. Our second swift cruiser was the
Philadelphia of 10 knots, and next came
the Baltimore of 1851 The torpedo
boat Cushing has reached % knots an
hour, and there are larger boats of this
type in Europe which claim rs to ~
knots, but of course no fair comparison
can be made between these light, needle
like crafts built for speed, and speed
alone. and heavy sea-going cruisers.