The record-union., 1898-04-17
BRAZIL'S BOATS.

boat, named the Morse, is now under
construction.
BRAZIL'S BOATS.
In the meantime the Goubet type of
boat, though abandoned by the Gov
eminent, was being greatly improved
by her inventor. So satisfactory were
the results obtained that the Brazilian
Government in their naval programme
for 1896 ordered five of them to be
constructed in France Two of these
have been completed and are now in
the Brazilian navy. This new type is
known as the Goubet H., and like the
first, is a spindle shaped vessel, 26 feet
long, 8 feet in diameter the hull be-
ing formed of a series of brood rings,
with f1anges for boiling them together.
On top midway of the length is cir
cular hatch. or manhole, fourteen
inches high with a dome shaped COW
err. There is a fin keel at the bottom,
and side keels as we'll, the latter sup
porting skeleton discharge tubes for
automobile torpedoes. Oars working
through universal joints afford
means of propulsion in case of acct
dent to the electric motive power,
screw propeller projects from the stern,
completing the list of external features
of the hull The vessel rises or sinks
with the expulsion or admission of
water, the reservoirs being in the
double bottom The boat weighs about
nine tons and can be driven at a speed
of seven knots. The steaming radius
is forty miles. The boat is habtable
for eight hours.
Within the last year two of the
Danes have experimental with special
ly fitted torpedo boats submerged so
that only the coming tower shows
above water, and have obtained
speed of fifteen knots.
Spain experimental extensively with
a boat known as the Peral, the name
of her designer Although much was
promised the boat in the end was
abandoned as a failure.
Portugal also tried a boat, but with
only a measurable success. In all these
cases the difficulty seems to have been
with the electrical means adopted for
the motive power, and besides there
was never any certainty that the craft
could be unanswered with accuracy
when once she was completely sub
merged When these two obstacles are
overcome the submarine torpedo boat
will become a truly formidable vessel.
THE u. S. S. PLUNGER.
The last boat and presumably the
very latest development of the art OF
submarine navigation, is the United
States vessel Plunger, above referred
to as building at Baltimore for the
United States Navy. Her dimensions
are: Length, so feet diameter II feet;
displacement. light, 1855 tons; sub
merged, 139 tons. When the boat is
running or awash the twin screws, OPP
Grated by triple expansion engines,
worked by steam, are estimated to give
speed of about fifteen knots and four
teen knots when awash, with mini
mum endurance of twelve hours at
this speed.
To drive the ship when submerged
la battery of storage cells is to supply
an electric current to operate motors,
with sufficient force to give a speed
| of eight knots for at least six hours.
The armament is to consist of five au-
tomobile torpedoes and two expulsion
| tubes
| The boat must be able to go to a
tdepth of twenty feet below the surface
of the water within one minute after
/ the order is given to dive. When the
| boat is submerged three feet the pilot
| obtains a view over the water by
| means of a camera lucida in tube
| that projects above the surface. This
method of sighting has been fitted to
! the French boats The little turret ris-
| ing about four feet above the center
| of the boat and the place where the
pilot is required to keep his head in
every sense of the word is to be pro-
tected by an armor cylinder about
eight inches thick. Upon her compile
ton the Plunger will be put to the
following test: She will be required to
make submerged runs for a distance
of two miles. at the end of which
torpedo will have to be discharged and
strike a target $50 feet long and six
teen feet deep.
During these submerged runs the
vessel will not be permitted to come to
the surface more than three times from
the time of starting until the discharge
of the torpedo The duration of each
appearance must not exceed one min
ute.
Such in general will be our navy boat,
and since the little Holland, her pro-
totype, has done so we'll we may with
reason expect equally good results from
the Plunger: if so, the most powerful
coast defense weapons will be provided
and we will be the only nation pos
sessing such destructible means. The
PIunger is about 70 per cent. COM
Melted New York Herald