The herald., 1895-08-03
U. 5. CRUISER COLUMBIA
Makes a Splendid Passage
Across the Atlalntic
AID, ON BOARD AG'E WELL
congratul, atoms Sent From the Navy
Department
AID, ON BOARD Al,E WELL
A Record nade THAT Is Almo st as Good as
That Of the Fast est
Liners
Associated Press Special Wire.


States cruiser Colum bia was 81 GIFTED iron
Sandy Hook at $3.50 this moit ,lng. IN
Columbia sailed from Southa mptoh a
tl2:30 on Friday afternoon. J, liy 18th,
apassing Needles at 12:03. Her I me IRON
Needles to Sandy Hook bar is sew en- days
one hour and fifteen minutes. Ih'
average speed was about IS. IL kn6 $. ih'
sColumbia's best time was 22.07 knots
per hour made under very fav. 'rablt
,conditions. The Southampton "a coro
lis held by the American liner New 1e TX.
Ut is six days. seven hours and fourte eh
tminutes. The Colum bia reached quar1 4
Stine at 1926 am. Her log gives from
Needles to Sandy Hook light ship six
days twenty three hours and forSy-nlne
minutes, total distance OF 310S knots.
with an average speed of S.41 knots.
During the entire passage the 0uiser
was run under natural draught. Thirty
six hours of fog was experienced Oh the
VOYAGE during which the cruiser steamed
at her usual speed. Moderate winds and
weather were encountered all the way
across the ocean. At quarantine the
Columbia was boarded by the health
officer and the surgeon reported all well
and the cruiser proceeded up th e bay.
To an Associated Press reporter who
boarded the cruiser when she came to
anchor in North river, Captain Sumner
6dlO ne WAS very luuCu piodsct WIN tue
vessels behavior on her transatlantic
speed test. and that the time occupied In
crossing from the Needles to Sandy Hook
was six days, twenty-thIee hours and
forty-nine minutes.
Captain Sumner said: "Th,s run was
very successful one all things .onsideed.
We left the Needles at Z pm, a week
ago today, and throughout the trip We
only used natural draucht. Once in
heavy weather we slowed down for four
hours to a speed of eight Knots. We
encountered fog which lasted twenty
six hours, but we ran full speed through
it, We worked our three screws and
eight main boilers, and our coal con-
sumption averaged from 200 to 80 tons
per day. We had the best coal that we
could get and it is the same that is used
on the American line steamships. Had
we been able to run under forced draught
for twenty-four hours we most certainly
would have done three hours better.
However. l am satisfied that the cruiser
has proven her capacity of making extra
ordinary runs when necessary. The full
complement of the fire room is 1876 men,
but We were twelve short of that NAM
ber. To make up this deficiency we Sc
cured dozen volunteers from the deck.
We had some bad weather, and, as you
can see by our smokestacks, we threw a
lot of spray. We shipped no water, how
ever. as we had all our battle hatche S
down forward of the pilot house."
When asked about injury to the ships |
plates while on dry dock on the other |
side, the captain passed the matter off,
saying: "Oh, that was nothing of any
you can readily see from the trip Just
Finished" ~.
The eight main boilers and thre;.
main engines were used. On account OF
the injuries sustained by the Columbia
when she was docked IN Soutnamp pton
the steam pressure was limited to l4o
pounds. The coal allowance was set at
200 IONS a day. At 2:10 Saturday tube
blew out in one of the boilers An at
tempt was made to stop the Leak in the
usual manner hwith wooden plug put
the pressure was go great that the pug
would not stav in place. AT 80 u. M
the fires were thereto hauled from the
boiler. it's safety valves opsned, the poil-
ers shut off from the steam pipe Inc
effect on the ship OF thus losing one
boiler was marked. Ihe revolut,ohs 1 leii
from 106 to 9S per minute and the speed
from 1916 to 1898 knots. The break was
repaired at g AS a. m. For the succeed
ing four. hours the average 1evoiutiohs IN
creased to 104 per minute and the speed
to Is. 70 knots. This was the only serious
trouble caused by leaks in tubes Two
others blew out but were plugged without
much trouble. While the instructions
from the navy department were to run
the Colubmia underlforced draught on the
last day, Captain Sumner was unaole TO
comply with that order Tor the reason
that it was impossible to pass the coal
from the wing passages into the bunkers
fast enough. Only one man could work
at time in q wing passage ana coal hau
to be trolley ed from there to the bunkers.
WASHINGTON, Aug. There was
general rejoicing in the navy department
Today when the Associated Press bulletin
was read announcing the arrival OF the
Columbia off Sandy Hook. Assistant Sec
retary McAdoo expressed the greatese
pleasure over the fast time MADE by the
cruiser. He went to the west lnules
aboard the Columbia and was confident
from the start that she would acquit her
self handsomely on this trip across the
Atlantic. The COLUMN bia beat the time OF
the New York by two days, and previous
to this trip the New York had the pest
record of any warsnip crossing the Atlah-
tic Mr. McAdoo said today there was nc
longer any doubt about the speed OF the
Columbia, and that she no doubt could
oyertake any vessel afloat on spurt-tna'
is. if vessel was sighted in the mornlng
the Columbia could come up with her De,
fore night. The Minneapolis Is her equ4
If not superior and the record OF the Col
umbia shows that the United States has
The two fastest ships afioat.
A prominent naval officer pointed ou'
what he called the most gratifying point
concerning this speed trial. lie said ina
Columbia made her run are decided tht
results must be regarded as remarkable
In the first place, he said, the coal, wbllt
good and probably much better than th'
cheap variety usually supplied our vessel
at home, was not the very best quaint,
of WELSH ecoal. Then, again, the engln
departments of our cruisers are not a
fully manned as either ships OF the mer
chant service or as those OF foreign gov
ernments and consequently the cndur
ance OF the men IN the engine and 1lr
rooms is more seriously taxed. AS an II
lustration of this fact, it is only necessa
nv to give the following comparison be
tween the Columbia and the Englisl
cruiser Terrible:
Columbia-Horse power, 10000; mum
Der OF engineers, 4: men in engine depart
ment, 1876.
Terr!ble-Horse power, 20.000. Numbe
engineers, 8: men in engine depart mon
334.
In other words the work on the en-
gineer officers is Just 80 per celt harde
on the Columbia, while the men in on
shin have to do o1e-third more wor
than do the men in the other service.
Among the men-of war there is absC
lutely nothing compared with the Colun
bia, as none of them ever made such
run and none could, not only becaus
them do not carry the coal. but becaus
they have not the power. The navy d'
partment, however, has the report OF
twenty -four hour trial of the Englis