The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-11-30
WITH THE FLYING FLoTILLA.
SAVANNAH NAVAL RESERVES TAX
EN- TO TYBEE ROADS.

ed Out sixty Men Including OH
cers-Lieut. Commander Kimball
GratiRed with the Interest shown.
Savannah's Naval Reserves We're given
one of the most Interesting trips yesterday
they have ever had. Sixty members
OF the two divisions under Lieut.. II. 5.
Colding and Lieut. c. E. Broughton were
taken down to Tybee roads on the torpedo
boats Porter and Gushing, and were shown
how torpedoes are used in actual service.
The men assembled at their armory
about noon. and having donncd their blue
uniforms, marched at ! O'Clock to the
wharves at the foot of Bun street. where
the torpedo boats were lying. The Third
division under Lieut.. Broughton, having
the largest number of men and officers,
thirty was assigned to the Porter,
while the Second division, under Lieut..
Colding. with twenty-eght men and Off
GERS, went on the Cushing. Two other
members of the second division Joined ID
before the Cushing left the city.
Crowds of people were upon the wharves
and on the little piazzas back of the Bay
street buildings to see the torpedo boats
start on their trip down the river. There
was no delay, and as soon as the men ar
rived, and were on board, the start was
made The Porter swung out by her bow
at the same time the Cushing was getting
under way, and the larger boat took The
lead With steam from only one Of her
boilers, the Porter shot down the river
with about the speed of a Tybee train, ana
within forty-five or fifty minutes from the
time she left her dock she was In Tybee
roads.
The little lighthouse girl was on hand
to greet the passing boats with wave Of
her handkerchief and the dipping of her
flag, and both answered her with three
lusty blows from the whistle.
On the way down the naval militia were
detailed in squads and the workings IF
the torpedo We're explained to them by the
gunners mate. The construction of the
torpedo and the manner in which it does
its work were explained to the men last
Friday afternoon, but this was in part
repeated on the downward trip both on
the Porter ana on the Gushing.
Lieut.. Commander W. W. Kimball, com
handing the tiotilla, went down on the
Porter. Lieutenant Commander KIM
ball, Lieut., J. c. Fremont,
Ensign l. V. ellis of the Porter,
Lieut.. A. Gleaves and Ensign j. c. Breck-
of the men and officers of the naval militia
and saw to it that they had every oppor-
unity for learning everything there was
to learn about the boats
On their arrival in Tybee roads a small
boat was put off from each Of the torpedo
boats for the purpose of putting up a FIR
ing marx, a staff with a white flag a the
top. All the preliminary arrangements
Tor hring the torpedo had been made in
short order The charge or powder used
In launching torpedo weighs about four
ounces. 1t consists of twenty-one cubical
grains of slow burning powder and seven
grains of quick burning powder of hexag-
onal shape and about the size of a marble.
These are put into cartridge, which fits
IN an aperture above the torpedo tube and
the quicker burning powder is ignited first
by means of a percussion cap.
The torpedo which was fired from the
Porter had in the meantime been charged
with compressed air, the air cylinder sus-
tanning pressure of about 10000 pounds
TO the square inch. The guages were set
so that when fired from the tube it would
travel under water al depth of seven
rect Another guage was fixed so that a
clamp would drop over the propeIlers at a
distance of about 500 yards from the
boats side, stopping the engines, and the
torpedo would rise to the surface
Inc Porter was making about nine knots
when the torpedo was fired. In making
allowance for this the tube was diverted
from the target in the direction the boat
was going about 10 degrees. The small
charge of powder, the discharge Of which
could scarcely be heard, threw the de-
strucuve engine or at that time rather a
harmless engine, as il carried a dummy
mead, overheard somewhat after the man
ner OF man diving into the water Ii
took its course almost directly for The
mark, the pole bearing the white flag
Whlch was about $50 yards from the boats
side. It's course, a directly straight line
could be distinguished by the slight dis
turDance of the water, and IL passed the
mark about ten or fifteen feet to the
right of it, continuing until it made the
500 yards, when il came to the surface.
The torpedo rose to the surface very near
the small boat, and two men picked it up
without any difficulty and brought it back
TO the torpedo boat
Inc same work was done aboard the
Gushing and another extraordinarily good
SHOT was made Had either of the shots
been hred at the side of a small boat,
the mark would have been hit In prac-
ice work dummy heads weighing the
same as the regular loaded heads are at
ways used, and the torpedoes are SO ar.
ranged that they will float when they
nave gone the distance designed. The head
used Tor regular work in warfare con-
talhs us pounds OF gun cotton and a per
cusslon cap and powder Weighing abou,
seven POUNDS more. Since each tOrDadO
costs the government about 81, 500 in prac-
ice work the conditions must be such that
they can be recovered without any dim
Guilty. and yet the practice is had under
the same conditions that would present
themselves in actual warfare and win
the exception of an exploding charge the
results are much the same. record is
Kept every time torpedo is fired for prac .
tice, and the conditions are always care.
fully noticed. 1t is necessary for the Off
GERS to study each gun, so that il NAV
be determined in just what manner the
best results can be obtained from it,
After firing the torpedoes and picxinp
them up again the Porter and the Cushing
turned about and started for the CITY. If
was after O'Clock when the Porter start
ed on the journey 10 her dock She
steamed up the river az the rate of efgb
teen knots an hour, which Lieut. Fremont
remarked was only an ordinary spoed
and. in fact. rather q slow gait for the
Porter This was about twentv-one
mile an hour. whereas the Por
ter has made as much as thirtv-si,,
The Gushing kept pretty well behind The
Porter on the trip down, hut on the return
tr1D the Porter walked ri0bf