Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1893-12-15
QUARTER KNOTS IN SPEED TRIALS,
Earely Reaching OF Missing The Mark ~
which $4,000 es $50, 900 Depends.


Msrelshead TO arfly for new speed trial
rs natural, The subtraction Of lust half q
knot from her record in last weeks run.
| bringing the average down from ts.as ia
| is,s4 knots pVt hour, through eorrectione
sos tidal force, WAS deeided surprise ~
well rs a Disappointment 10 her builders. This
| ratio ef allowance for tidal influence 10 un-
usual, but. of course, II was calculated by
experts from careful data.
| In the case Of the Colntahis. for example,
the total delurtion Tor tidal allowances or
ether causes was only one-hundreith Of Q
knot on nearly 2S knots and in the case
of the New York and other vessels tho al
| iowsBee has also been very shsht. IL was
| known that her ip,,is knots on the second
hall vas made by the Marhlehead with .
| strong ebh 10 help her but her is.a knots
on the first half had been against u hoad
;ile, while the total correction was disap.
pointing,
And an ssgrsyation Of this disappoint.
tient WAS that the deduction required for
tidal allowances was sufficient to carry the
speed little below the marx OF $3.50
knots, which would have given si5O,ooO
bonus ~ the prescribed rate OF ~ao,uou for
each extra quarter Of knot above tho
tiaus of quarters. For purposes Of premi-
um t. 4 knots would be as good as 1894;
bat ~ "a Is no better. tor the same pur-
poses. than 1895 would have been.
THUS the loss of S3h 900 from what was
expected is the kecner from the bare mar.
ain of sir hunlrclths of knot which Lost
it In this respect, however, the expert
ence Of the Marblehcad is like that Of her
nat hal ~
M "a ith ~ a knots being only four hun
,lreiths short OF what woaid have given her
serca quarters. or ~l'1,no. whereas che
wss only credited with siI quarters, or
81 10, goo, 80 IL making but 1880 knots.
There was u contrast In the good fortune
Of the Columbia. which made 22 $50 knots
Al a premium rate Of $50, 900 per quarter
sboye u knots, thus getting $3.50, 900.
~ hercas, If she had fallen on sir hun
dfedtlis anl made 22 "a she would have re-
ceiyeti hut $500 900, so that she saved s50,-
600 on a very narrow margin. In the case
of the New York the results were still moro
noticeable. She was built with guaran-
tee of 2n knots. with a speed premium OF
$50 O6n per quarter knot in excess OF tho
con,rart.
On her trial she was reported 10 have
made exactly u knots along the ss,nc
eours. that vas used for the Columbia
and what was stiIl more remarkable, when
tlc official deductions were made they were
reported to leave the speed at n knots.
We are hardly to suppose that there was
absolute mathematical precision IN the pub
Iisbed statement, but /, 10 evident that the
speed mnst have been very close upon the
eIapt mark needed for getting the premium
on Tho last quarter Of A KNOT. so that there
again tbe CRAMPS must have seen very
inmate traction OF knot saving $50, 900
for ,hrm.
SO ii is evident that even in what may APP
pear 10 be- 80 oxaol a matter there Ia con-
siderable infqnaIiy. The two g000.ton-
no,s.ult,,,t end Narbiebeal. lnse $50 900
hg Ealing IN An aggregate of only $500 Of
a krnt' wijja ne Srw york anl Columbia
vin atuo g0O by still smaller fraction OF