New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-10-15
AFFAIRS AT THE NAVY ARD.
PUSHING WORK ON THE BIG CRUISER
NETWORK.
A CONTROVERSY BETWEEN TIE CONSTRUCTOR"
AND ORDNANCE BrREAUS-NoTEs OF

A CONTROVERSY BETWEEN TIE CONSTRUCTION
AND ORDNANCE BrREAUs-NoTEs OF
INTEREST ABOUT TIE YARD.
or course the yacht race was the topic OF prin-
cpal interest in the Navy Yard yesterday among
the officers from the commandant down. Discuss
sons OF the merits and dement's OF the case COM
ments on the circumstances or the race "'.
onnions In favor of boat or the other might
he heard everywhere and from officers OF all oe-
grees 1t would be useless to conjecture now MANI
times the race was recontested. and won Tor one
or the other boat "if' certain things had OF hau
not happened Naval officers get no chance 10 90
that kind Of sailing. and do not except IN rare
instances have a chance to enter into racing
~ any kind There was boat In the Navy
which had been a yacht-the dspatch-boat De-
snatch-but she was wrecked and Is no longer IN
the service. The boat which took her place. inc
steel vessel Dolphin. bears some resemblance 10
Yacht and often has duty which makes her more
Measure boat than any other naval vessel; she mas
hasr IN New.york during the races. apd has taken
Secretary Herbert and some Of the naval oHcers
out TO attend the great contests
This duty being now fnished. the Doip"'n "d'
gone TO the Navy Yard. where she Is lying lhele
is no work to be done to her. and II Is thousn' ''
abe will lie there until the next trial trip OF ne"
vessel which she probably will be ordereu out "
attend $3.50 ,.
The Dolphin is not the only boat which has gone
TO the Navy Yard in the last week VISITORS VINO
are familiar with the yard and the haVai shps WIN
recognize as an old landmark the monitor Nia",o
nonob IN her bunk" by one Of the sea-waiis.
After being away all summer the Miah'ono"io"
hos returned TO the yard to lie. It Is supposed uh'
III summer weather and calmer seas snail again
make 1t practicable for her TO do niue cluiS"s
and while other members OF the Nol'" ]>
Souadron 20 to the West Indies and other sou'"er"
nIaces for winter cruises. the big monitor Will con-
trinc
another in the yard. possibly extending ,hese; III
ono or two instances, as far as the timber ory-
dock. x.h
The New-York has not yet changed her perth'
and visitors have trouble In ge ttng 70 her, i
IT is necessary to cross the Wallabout Channs IN
the scow then to traverse the Cob DocK anu
thence to go as far as the base OF Inc o'e e'a"'
on the Ordnance Dock, in order to get on poaru'
Nevertheless. there are good many V's''o's o'e
| officer estimating the number al TWO OF '"'eo
| hundred a day 1t would seem that any one VINO
will take the trouble to visit the ship must feei
repaid for the officers are always pIeaseo 10 -.
visitors, and the ship is something whose eau"'
| they will seldom have the chance OF seeing ne
| silver service, which was paid for by popular S"o
scription through 1.-THE New-York Herald Is u
he presented to Captain J. W. philip some ga! ''S
week. and Congressman Amos J. Cummings chair
| man of the Committee Naval Affairs mas Dee"
| chosen TO make the presentation. The ordnance
! Denartment in the Navy Yard has already begun
ito work on the vessel. but it Is thought that IL
will be two mon this before all the WORK IL hhishe'
Some Of the torpedo tubes have been put H. anu
the others will follow. The part OF this WORK that
,.m occunv so much time is the tearing up OF the
deck and making the attachments TO the steam
nIpes which thread the space underneath the DECK
ike network. The ammunition HOSTS are also
TO receive work
The construction work on the various new VESSELS
in the Yard goes about as usual The arrnor
been "HnryeyiZed,
IL Is now said that there IL question about using
them because Of a warping which results from
the Harveyizing process The CONSTRUCTION De-
partment In the Yard takes much credit TOT the
building In a little more than two mon ths oi No
pretty and so successful boat as the Minnie, the
commentaries barge. BY the discharge OF
Chief Clerk De Wolf which took place last week. the
Construction Department lost valuable man. ne
was appointed to his position during secretary
Tracy's administration. and has been faithfui
and jealous worker. He did not take much IN
,erest In politics but along with number
NJ otbers in his Office who have recently been
discharged he has had to suffer from the change
Of administration.
The turret controversy between the Construction
| Bureau and the Ordnance Bureau is now before the
officers The duty Of designing and building the
turrets has belonged TO the constructors, but tho
ordnance officers claim II the ground that the
turret is a part OF the gun. The constructors hod
that II is part OF the construction OF snip ana
that the II to do In other naVies
As there Ia a great difference In the methods OF
construction and a consequent change IN the
weights arranged the ships. II Is an important
matter. a clause in the regulations gives the
work OF designing turrets TO the Ordnance bureau
but the Construction Bureau is trying to have II
altered and the question has been referred to the
Board Of Bureau Chiefs.
Commodore ~ +. Farquhar. the chief OF the
Bureau OF Yards and Docks expected at the
yard yesterday. but he postponed his visit OF in
s2ecton until this week 1t is expected that he
will go to the yard on Tuesday
Experience shows the necessity Of several changes
on the gunboat Castlne. and these are being
made 1t IL said that the officers board express
| great satisfaction with the ship and her httings
The vessel will be ready for sea. and viii
then have her forty-eight-hour trial.
3 The case Of Passed Assistant Engineer William
\ A. MntZer which mentioned In The Tribune
, not long ago. has not yet been settled In th'
mean time he Is at home waiting orders. 1t Is
thought by that he will be put on the retire.
: list, thus removing the threatened deadlock In the
, Engineer Corps
Assistant Naval Constructor Elliot Snow Is one
Of the young graduates of the Naval Academy who
z has been going through course OF study abroad
He has been at the School OF Naval Architecture "a
Paris and has stood the head OF his classes dur
. ing the whole course. He has been ordered home
, but will stop in London for n short time on tn
way TO study the methods OF the English naval con
. Lieutenant C. A. Stone has been before boart
of medical survey and been condemned by 1t, ant
| Assistant Engineer John X Robinson has been de
tachcd from duty In the yard. TO which he haC
been ordered from the Bureau Of Steam Engineer
ing. and ordered TO Paris TO pursue course II
marine engineering.
. | rONVTCT RTTTC HTMCEIE