The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1898-07-11

take the rns1rky, senussy trip thrcugh the
bunkers. The assistant engineers figures
occa sionalsy ger within q hundred tons or
so % the figures presented BY the ye-ofnaH
ard -he cadet engineer Finally. the chse1
assumes the blue jumpers and blouse MN
self. ard makes the banker cruise he az-
ways energies from the h1Ekers with q
g,o.orY,v eve and with his confidence n tfnp
three officers he has Sent through slc
hunkevs quite shattered. and he generally
makes for the captains cabin ana an
raounces that IL the speed Of the ship = not
Immediately reduced he won't Dc aeid re-
sponsshse for the ships running oft Of coal
il rnidocean. The perturbation OF the cniet
engineer under these circumstances usual
IS works on the feelings OF one OF the old
uaachin.sts at the throttle. These Old ma
cElinasts are practical. experienced men,
who don't know much about figures. and
have no sort OF reverence for cubic meas
urenent. One OF them goes through the
bunkers. sizes up the amount OF coal re-
manning in each OF them by the simple eye
method, which - tie evolution Of expe-
rience, and makes a report On the amount
OF coal on hand that IN nine cases out Of
ten Is proved At the end Of the cruise cor
rect almost to the ton. Thus the trouble
over the coal in the bunkers is never at an
end.
II the chief engineers trouble over the
question OF coal consumed and on hand
were the end of the problem. II would not
be so bad, but the number Of reports he Is
compelled To make 20 the bureau Of steam
engineering On each cargo OF coal is APP
palling- He has got 10 tabulate for the
bureau OF steam engineering the exact
amount Of coal, 10 half bushel. Used daily
for driving ship. for working the ventiiat-
ing engines, for working the flushing
pumps. for working the dynamos, for fur
nishing heat, for running the ice machines,
for operating the condensers, for doing all
of the things aboard modern man-ofwar
that steam is employed for. He must see
TO IL that every pound OF refuse from the
coal used On a cruise is measured and
weighed and report on 1t. He must have
the cl!nker assorted from the refuse, have
it weighed, and report On IL. He must
note the color OF the coals smoke, and re-
port on 1t, in varying degrees of density.
He must, in general. note the conduct and
and report on II. No wonder that chief
engineers on shore duty Always look away
when they pass coal yard.
The enlisted men of the deck force are
perpetualy sore on the coal question on
account Of the ever recurring coal ship
job, which is the gneanest work in the navy
and the hardest. The number OF blue
jackets who have deserted from warships
after their first experience in coaiing ship
would make hard calculation.
The crack Olympia, one Of the most per-
feet and beautiful cruisers in the word,
and one of the most comfortable for the
men forward, was compelled to ship three
almost entirely green crews out at the
Mare Island navy yard before she was able
TO put TO sea after going into commission
three years ago. The recruiting officers on
the receiving ship Independence were ship
ping men for the Olympia for six months
before they got gang that would remain
aboard of her. SO great is the distaste new
men in the navy conceive for coaling ship
when they first tackle the job. The Olym-
pia's men went over the side like rats after
each coaling. There is no question about
this cealing ship being nasty job, and all
hands, fore and aft. stand by for 1, with
hard words. When the coal ship day in a
home port finally arrives, the men 60 at it
with c1ear-ship-for-action energy, and ac-
complish the job in . frenzy OF endeavor
to get through with it as quickly as possi-
bic. that Shey may again have q luodicum
of comfort-for comfort, for either officers
or men, on board man-of-war being
coaled " out OF the question. The men are
not quite so strong In coaiing when they
are making a cruise in foreign waters, for
the simple enough reason that on a ship
cruising on a foreign station there is al
ways large number Of men who want to
make first visit shore trips in al! the ports
touched at, and the longer they delay the
coaltng by failing 10 put forth their best
efforts the better the chance Is for them
to get ashore after knock-off In the even
ing. This idea does not prevail, however,
in a case like that of the Oregon, in a rush
trip of the sort recently completed by the
battlesh.p through the Straits from San
Francisco TO this side. All records for
coaling ship We're broken by the Oregon's
crew In the various coal ship stops made
on the Pacific side, and the navy depart
rnert viii perhaps publish the figures on
this after while.
The ships Of the navy always coal from
lighters. The blue Jackets in the lighters
shovel the coal into hays that hold about
quarter Of a ton each. The bags are then
whipped over the side and the coal dumped
into the deck bunker holes. They coal
ship differently in the British and other
navies. A circular chain OF men Is planted
all the way from the lighters, anchored
alongside, to the bunker hoes. and the
coal is passed up from the lighters and
over the side into the bunker holes in small
baskets that hold about peck each. This
looks like toy business. but as a matter OF
fact il Is a better and quicker way OF coal
ing ship than our own. and there is talk
of adopting 1t in the United States navy.
The men who handle the baskets acquire
the proficiency OF brick throwers in the
work and The chain is always on the move,
so that Il lighter containing 100 tons or 50
Of coal is egnptied by this system In an ex-
traorGnarily short space of time. While
a warship IS being coaled. all hands fore
and aft are compelled 10 eat and breathe
coal. There Is no such thing as warding
off the dust. II perrleates the whole ship
and the linen in the captains after cabin
chest Is TO more immune from it's sfnudgy
explorations than the canvas around the
sides OF the bridge. II takes solid week
Of inceSSant swabbing and scrubbng to
clean ship after she has been through the
coaling process. and the way the Old time
fat feet, full Of memories of the wind jam.
n1ers Of the Old navy, talk about coal AZ
cosi is Used OF men-of-war today !s scan
dalous.
luvie are instances on record in which
American strips Of war have run short OF
coal when far from any port. and on TWO
or three occasions ships thus situated have
been IN luck 30 get picked up a: all. The
cruiser Baltimore. after her terrific expe-
rlence with a typhoon on a cruise from
Yokohama 20 Honolulu three years ago.
during which she was stove to in the
trough Of Il heart-hreaking ssa for eleven
DAYS finally pulled ur, In Honolulu harfHpr