The Portland daily press., 1895-10-31
ESPECIAL TO THE PREss.I

ESPECIAL TO THE PRESS.I
New London. Conn, October 3d.
Few people outside the service have any
adequate conception Of the work as
signed to and always performed Ey a
naval board of inspection appointed for
the trial trip of United States war
vsesol. The official instructions issued
by the department for the guidance of
the two boards which are to observe
and report on the speed trial of the
Ammen ram Katahdin tomorrow, cover
about so type written pages-altogether
over 10000 words. OF approximately over
seven columns Of IN average newspaper.
They are given with degree of speci-
fioation almost painful to layman and
in the most minute detail. A proper per-
formance of their duties will require full
ly three days work by each member of
the board, and after the trial has been
held, four or five additional days will
be necessary for the working up of data
and the preparation of reports. This is
tho case with every vessel in the navy
for the little torpedo boats as well as for
the largest warsbips The secretary of
the Navy appoints a special board for
every trial trip, and these appointments
are necessarily from out of the ranks of
those officers who are, at the time, doing
shore duty.
The trial board proper for the Katahdin
was appointed about two weeks ago by
Secretary Herbert, it's composition being
as follows: Captain Henry f. Picking,
presiding officer; Commander Robert T.
Bradford, Lieutenant Commander Seaton
Schroeder, Chief Engineer Augustus FL.
Albe, Naval Constructor Dudley H. Var
ney and Lieutenant Sidney H. Stanton,
recorder for the board. Ordered to the
assistance of this board are Naval Con-
structor John T. Hanscom, Assistant
Naval Constructor Ferguson and Ensign
Fl. E. Parmenter. The later officer is
an expert on electrical outfits and has
been assigned to this special work in
the detail of inspection from this board.
A board of engineers also appointed
by Secretary Herbert is composed of Chief
Engineer Augustus I'll. Albe, presiding
officer, Chief Engineer r.. W Milligan
and Passed Assistant Engineer Frank H.
Bailey. The corps of assistants to this
board is made up of Passed Assistant En-
gineers F. G. Bieg, G. r. Salisbury, Ken
meth McAlpine, c. e. RoInell, Ward p.
Winchell and A. .McAliister, and Assistant
Engineers W. B. Day, W. G Herbert,
c. H. Hayes and A. S. Halsted.
Ordered TO New London for the pur
pose of giving the boards ali the neces-
sary information and every measure Of
assistance in their power are Naval Con-
structor John B. Hoover and Chief En-
gineer James Entwistle-both of whom
have been on inspection duty at Bath,
Me-, ever rssince the construction of the
ram was begun-and Commander Rich
ard Leary, who will in all probability be
assigned to the command of the Katah
din when she goes into commission.
Following the established practice of
the department, Commander Leary was
four years ago assigned to inspection
duty in connection with the building of
the ram as her prospective commander,
but of late his duties have been merely
nominal.
All of the above named officers are now
in the city, and the two boards met at
the custom house yesterday for organiza-
ton ana the assignment of stations on
the ship These assignments were made
by he presiding officers, and during the
speed trial tomorrow every man will oc-
cupy special point of observation. The
REGULAR inspection duty began Tuesday
afternoon and was continued through to-
day. Superintendent Charles Ridgeley
Hanscom of the Bath Iron Works render