New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-04-09
WORK AT THE NAVY YARD.
4 COMPLETE AND THOROUGH EQUIPMENT.

Is constant AID Interesting change Of scenery and
OF incidents. visitor 10 ia" Yard week or two
aGo. when he looked at the many vessels assembled
there. both laIc, and small Of various types made
OF heavy steel Plate, and armed with guns OF tr"-
mcndous power terrible engines Of war these vcSs is
are ., might have been struck with the WORT for which
they made. OF course, Il war~hp j. for war.
Perhaps the visitor IS Ike the Dutchman and does not
want war. In the recent talk about war with Chilli
n Dnchman said that h. dld not want war for three
reasons: " In the fr.t place. ! don't wants 10 Kill
nobody else in the second place. don't wants nobody
else 10 Mi me. and In the third place. lihrs my
meals regular 1t Is truc. II Is in the army
his meals are likely to b. irregular.
Though the statement that warshlps for
war Is true, perhaps the use OF them may be
defined In another way: warsllps are
for the protection OF the country To do this II may
not be- necessary 10 engage IN war. for dcmonsra
ton OF power or the knowledge on the part Of foreign
nation that there Is large and powerful navy mas
keep one nation from cncroacing on the rights Of
another. a nation must slill keep up a powerful
navy. With all the new vessels that have been
built. and all the money that has been spent for
new navy, the United States does not spend nearly
much many fcr,ign nations do for that purpose.
and is still far from being Of the first powers In
that respect.
About O'Clock Yesterday afternoon the new prac-
tce cruiser Bancroft left the Navy Yard TO start fr
her first cruise commissioned vessel In the United
states Navy Since little vessel went to the Navy
Yard month ago, She has been made ready for sea
with marvellous rapldty. She was almost immcdl-
atcly put into commission AT first the crew lived on
the Vernon, and went 10 the ship TO work every day,
but they took up their quarters on her: the
officers also went 10 their quarters on board the
vessel. The Bancroft had to receive her maStS and
rigging. her boats her guns her slOr.s provisions and
ammunition. ana all the thousand and or" things which
are essential to life on beard ship for safety, comfort,
etc When She returns here there will SIN BE- work
to be done her. The intention was Yesterday that
the Bancroft should 90 down to the Lower Bay and
swing ship 10 test the comprises in the afternoon.
provided that The atmospheric conditions wc~ right
and then TO this morning If the weather should
prove suitable: Otherwise She might be DELAYED until
tomorrow. The Bancroft Will join the other vessels
Of the fleet at Hampton Roads and later will come
70 New York with them for the review.
The new steering engine for the monitor Mlanto-
nomoh has almost entirely been put In place, and
next ii will need testing 10 whether IL works sue
cessfully and easily. The vessel has not vet
cevcd sailing orders. but Is to down the Bay TO
Navcsink for the ceremony that was described last
week after which She probably will await Ia" rest
OF the fleet and come up the Bay with them. Two
new patent lifcprcscrycrs have been put on ia"
vessel one AT each end Of the bridge extending
the ship at the supcrstructurc They hang overheard
In such a that they can be readily released,
and they will then drop Instantly into the water.
The plant Of machinery I'm the Navy Yard for the
building of modern steel war vessels Is very com
ll,te one. having received many additions within the
last few years. The machine shop In the steam En-
cheering Department has "A new mammoth lathe.
which was intended for use In the new cruiser work.
hut ~ the contractors had 10 have extension Of
time in furnishing #. IT did not reach The yard soon
enough to De- Of wall IN that work. 1t IS double
cidcr engine s,rcw.out'ing lathe. with swing Of
scvcnty-two inches; It takes fifty feet between
centres. and Will cut anywhere from one thread In
twcntyfour inches 10 twelve threads IN one Inch; 1t
weighs ninety tons and l. nltcd with three slide car
ragcs two tail stocks and three steady rests. and
Is complete I'm all parts. 1t J.. IN fact, ore OF the
largest and mot complete athcs ever built In this
country. II was constructed for the Department by
the Putnam Machine Company. Of filchburs Ma.
In addition 10 tlIs immense machine th"r" ar" t"o
electric cranes which have been put IN the foundry
recently; there are two tg travelling cranes about
the dry-docks, 81 when las Just been finished.
and there (, much powerful machinery which has been
in the ward a longer tmctAc other crane, Including
the floating crane: III. new machine shops. Which
erected for In the construction o ia" Maine
and the Cincinnati. the new boiler shop WITH lis
powerful machine. and the various machine shops.
- the yard f. well lifted 10 build steel Nc,,els-sO
well fitted n truth that II it should have three or four
new ones to build, said yesterday. II would
not need 10 have 10000 spent In improvements
few new 81 am boilers.
While the yarI IS well fitted to build vessels ani
the plant VIII simply lie idle for the most part unless
las one 10 build. there j. another reason Why II
would Dee desirable to give It at least one sAlp 10
build. II Vc-,cl i being built, there Is alw"y'
hand In IA" yard lars" gang OF skilled W"rNh'''
NOW, Wen a squadron OF vessels returns from some
winter or summer cruise ana needs TO BE- fitted
rapidly for other duiy-such has just been the case
Wien several Vcs,cl5 Of TIE review fleet had TO be
repaired and fitted with great quicncsa for SEA duty
men can BE- taken from other Jobs and tac vessels
can lie Immediately covered with worhmcn VINO ar"
not only skilled. hut familiar with the Navy
Yard Navy methods and the Navy vessels tarnl-
selves. such worhmcn can carry along the work In
the shortest possible time Bat suppose. on the other
Land that there j. no vessel In course OF construction
in the Navy Yard and such an emergency comes up
II will be necessary 10 collect a gang OF men from
TIE out side ana ii /, difficult 10 get skilled labor
this may take several days; these men, when they
come are not familiar with IL" navy Yard III" ways
Of doing things there and the vessels ana no, HaVs
been engaged In such work, they probably WIN no, no,
bc able TO DO 1t 80 rapidly nor - ch"HPS a. te ",
Enstrrn coast tie New York Navy Yard and the Nor
folk Navy Yard hav" the most worn to DO IN inc ""E
Of repairing and fitting out Ia" new sIlls, ana ~
woud seem necessary to maintain In tl''m an EN-
cicnt force Of wortmrn. , ,r
one Of the vessel, t. take part in IN" naval review
is the torpedo boat stc;lo. aud when 81" Is son on
TIC North River and In the Lower Day shooln- "tt
and tlIcr" Itlf'l uHiA no Ho"pt many
recall the "hNcr' that used 10 excite 50 much atbh
ton when she Ire lucnty raced with lh" sp"uy
Mary lowell in l-7J aud 1r-6. HE htli'ttv wa
looked uppu as n remarkable little craft when In the
summer of Ia-6 She SKINNED through IN" water ~
a speed of between Twenty-Five ana tNchth mr.
knobs. with her owner the bini sllpbllli"r l,i'.s
nOtr on board. Her load displacement i ohlN ihli9
lvc tons and rs she Is built with woOden sim sH'
was not a cO-tly ship to build nor 10 purchase So
rotary Whitney bought her for acrvlc" ~ ho.',h-
urnt torpedo boat in July, 1857, paying S2I,Oo Iu'
her. she Las been al the torpedo station NINP'''
nearly ever since. When 1t WI, decided 10 nave a
mumIcr of patrol boat for the naval review IN
,tIlcto was ordered here special dispatch boa
for CAPTAIN Frederick ROdg"rs. Tn" naval oI'cr u'
tailed "A, supervisor Of New York liatbor
I'm addition II the stllctO four revenue in'iin'
ser, ice cutters the Dexter, Grant. Wa.nnS'pn "ipi
Nanhatian-Will serve on patrol duty. EhIiN OH "i'
morning OF April - Captain Rodgers VIII 70 -
sandy Hook with ~, patrol vessels TO h"1t ,' az
rival 4 the ig naval Meet from Hampton hp"N' anu
will station the patrol along the channel WAYS oi III
harbor 10 assure ia" fleet clear lsss,iS up -
inc Lower Bay anchOrig" ground Inc net i "a.
lcct.d f. arrive ihc sandy IL ph bii pi
nh ucr which !, about > 80 p III. ON Eic lbuo"
ing CAV the patrol vessels VII guide inc naval ne.