Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1896-06-10
ELECTRICITY AT SEA.
OUR GREAT STEAMSHIPS GUIDED BY
Il FikGER'S TOUCH.

4 FINGERS TOUCH.
| Machinery Operated by the Magic Power.
Ruadsr Gnided by tho Electric Current.
Au Signals Verify 7The1nselves-The Plant
on the ST. Paul.
The real mysteries and the most in
| teresting parts Of a great ocean steam
ship Of the present day are to be found
in two parts cf the ship which visitors
| are seldom able to get at
| "Here is the nerve center of the
ship,'' said the officer as he stepped up
on the bridge, 'sand here day and night
! stands an cfsieor On watch, during every
minute that she is under way, posted
! on the was.;he side and able with a
! touch and Il glance to guide her, to
move her backward or forward, and to
know without asking whether each Of
his orders is being obeyed promptly by
the men and mechanism toiling down
| in the hold.
ssEere,'' he continued, moving to
near the center Of the bridge, 'is the
electric arrangement by which we
transmit our orders to the engine room. "
The device upon which he laid his hand
was of brass and was shaped like
drum, supported on its side on brass
standard. In place Of the drumheads
were plates Of glass, and behind these
| were lettered dials, on which were
marked the orders Of the engineer. Han
| dies came up through slots in the top Of
the drum, and these moved, indicating
points around the face Of the dials. !.
zone Of these dials carries orders for
the movements Of the port engine, said
| the officer, ''and one for the starboard
engine. Move the handles forward of
the center and the orders are for going
ahead; move them the other way and
| they relate to the movements Of the en-
gines when reversed. T"
''But suppose the wires are broken or
| the electric current does not wcrk-what
then?" the reporter asked
"You sec the second set of indicators
on the dials?" be replied. "When the
engineer gets an order, he sets similar
dial i'll the engine room to the mark in
dicated, and that second indicator in
our dial goes around and stops at the
signal. Thus we know at glance that
he has not only got tho order. but that
he has got it correctly.
B, eve have, however another indicator
here," and he touched button which
lighted up q translucent dial just under
the coping Of the bridge bulwark,
which tells US at every moment just
what the engines arc doing"
This dial was perhaps foot long and
marrow, with indicator point resting at
the time &J q zero mark at its center
On either side were graduated scales
with numbers. ''The numbers, the Of
'fcer said, s'represont the revolutions
per minnie which tla screw IS mailing,
and when the point goes over one way
the screw is working ahead, and " hen
it goes over the other way it is going
aback. There is the other ind:cat Z f;al
the other screw. All the signal appa-
ratus is il duplicate also. !"
Turning then, he pointed to sn elcc-
trio button in the front cf the pilot
house. ''That blows the whistle, :" he
said.
Then he pointed aft to where the
whistle stands i'll front Ct tho forward
funnel and indicated two electro mag
nets, which, when the current goes
through their wires, draw open the
whistle valve and let the steam into its
,hoarse throat.
Within the pilot house be then
showed another electric contrivarco
which, in connecti ion with 9 clock move
,ment, SOUNDS tho whistle automatically
for ten seconds i'll every minute during
'fogs.
Beside that was q set Of nine electric
Switches. "Thcse," he said. sare fer
the ships lights Thesaare fer the mast
head lights and tho others fer the port
and starboard bow lights. There are
three separate sets Ct wires to caca light
and two lamps in each. IF q lamp goes
out, this little bell rings and another
lamp is switched into circuit ct once"
Except for tho carefully shaded cleo
trio lights in the pilothcuse, this was
all Of that sort cf apparatus there, but
the steering wheel and its manner of
operation were as interesting i'll another
way.
Here, with hardly an effort, one man
can control the great rudder Of the ship
with the certainty and case with which
he might that Of the smallest sailboat.
It is a simple thing The wheel merely
operates pump, which i'll turn injects
column Of glycerin through small brass
pipes to cylinder aft, where the rud-
der head comes up and the plunger in
this cylinder opens and closes steam
| valve
Just back Of the officers quarters
stands ventilator, which connects with
these quarters. Others, like it, but big
ger, along the ships upper deck connect
with and supply air to all parts of the
ship except the boiler rooms. These
have their own plain shafts In each Of
the ventilating shafts is an electric mo-
tor driving g fan. Instead Of trusting
for the entry of air to the wind blowing
into the old fashioned wide open mouths
OF the ventilators these new ones force
the air down just as it may be wanted
by the electrically driven fans. Beneath
tina fans again are coils of steam pipe
and in cciI weather the air is warmed
by these before it enters the saloons,
staterooms and other living parts of the
ship.
| Down below" said the officer final
| ", There are many more uses to which
electricity IS put On the ship, and then
there are lcr engines-but that is q re-
| gion where I am as unacquainted as you
are 1t takes long enough for one to get
| acquainted with the parts Of such big
ship that one has to know about. have
been aboard the st. Paul ever since she
| has been running, and there are lots Of
things about her which ought to know
that don't know yet, such as where to
find anything i'll Il hurry in her store
rooms She is q great ship, can tell
| you. New York Sun.
An Indication of Character.
"And shall speak to your father?''
| asked the young man.
"Never mind about papa said the
you'g worl:tl,. ''I'll fix him.