Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1898-10-06

vessels soon came 10 De OIL great LIZ
portance In the coasting trade of both
Europe and America, and In 1919
steamer of $50 tons called the Savan-
nah made the passage from New York
to Liverpool In twenty-six days, but she
was heavily spared and depended
largely on her sails.
In 1910 vessels with screw propellers
came into vogue. Captain John Erics-
son made proposition to the English
government to apply the screw device
to war vessels, but his scheme was
secuted as visionary. In 1S43 Ericsson
came to New York and built the Prince
ton, which was the first screw man-of-
war ever constructed. The Princeton
proving q success In every particular.
England built the Duke of Wellington,
which outranked the Princeton, the lat
ter being adjudged unseaworthy In
1S40.
The Crimean war demonstrated the
usefulness of the screw propeller, al
though 1t was several years after that
the naval authorities of the world were
willing to trust to full-powered screw,
unaided by sails. About this time the
Great Eastern, also called the won
der Ship" was built. She was con-
structed of iron and wood, was 692 feet
long and carried 10000 tons Of coal.
She piled between England and Aus
tralia and, although not man-of-war,
properly speaking, was a formidable
vessel.
The day of the wooden wheels came
to a close however, when In 1860 the
French built the first sea-going IRON
clad, which was christened La Gloire.
She was originally intended to carry
ninety guns, but was cut down and
plated with several inches of iron. She
was provided with full steam power,
with auxiliary sails and carried forty
guns. Not to be outdone, England,
ever Jealous of her mistressship Of the
sea, constructed the Royal Oak and
later the Warrior, the latter being
faster than any wooden vessel afoat
and vastly superior to La Gloire.
France replied with the Solferino, re-
markable for her ram bow and for the
fact that up to that time she was the
only ironclad carrying guns on two
decks protected by armor. The Mino-
taur war vessels were then introduced
by England, but they were too I'M
wieldy for service and were aban-
doned.
This see-saw competition was going
on when the rebellion broke out in the
United States and we found ourselves
without single ironclad vessel and
practically without a navy. At the out
set, the Federal government made a
vigorous attempt to get control OF the
Mississippi and Missouri rivers, which,
it was thought, would become theaters
in the war. Accordingly, a contract
was awarded to James B. Eads, of St.
Louis, for the construction Of several
ironclad steamers suitable for river
navigation.
In October, 1861, forty-five days after
laying the keel the st. Louis was
launched This was the first lronclad
owned by the United States. The I'M
| fortunate Abandonment of the Norfolk
navy yard, however, had given to the
| vi Scul lOlCtS pOSocSolOu VI Stftldl
vessels, notably the fine steam frigate,
Merrimac, vessel built like the Wa
bash. The Confederates were busy
Transforming this vessel into a broad
side casemated ironclad, with q slop-
ing roof calculated to cause the enc
my's shot 70 glance without injuring
the vessel, when the Monitor type of
ironclad came into being Captain
| Ericsson had been given contracts for
the construction of two broadside iron
clads and one vessel of special design
The Monitor, which later defeated
the Merrimac, was of Especial design,
and 1t was this same Monitor and her
successors during the civil war that
reyolutionized the naval warfare OF
Europe. The Monitor was sllghtingly
characterized "a cheese box on raft
bat 1t proved to be the strongest cheese
that ever was placed in a naval sand
witch. The turret system, which was
the essential feature Of the original
monitor is familiar, and does not re
quire description here. The broadside
system was said by contemporary crit
les to excel the turret system for ocear
service, but the value Of the "cheest
box" iTcnclad for close fighting in shall
low water was never disputed. Som,
of our monitors, such as the Mlantono
NAH, were constructed Of wood, ant
the voyage of the Miantonomah to Eu
rope and of the Monadnock to Sal
Francisco via Cape Horn showed tina
these vessels could go to sea as well a
, fight In shallow waters.
OF the two broadsides constructed b,
, Captain Ericsson, one was a failure
and the other, New Ironsides, decide,
: success. After passing through tn
siege Of Charleston and doing excellen
, service she was laid up in ordinary a
, League Island and afterward destroy
, ed by fire. England converted one o
her liners into a monitor of the turre
, shape and called her the Captain. Sh
| was constructed according to a pla
{ proposed by Captain Coles, but wen