The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1898-05-13

| article tnaC goes TO make up u lnouerH
warship, from coil of boiler tubing to
patch of armor for mending hole
made by projectile. Inside, between
| decks, the craft will be awhirr with
| machinery, belts flying, engines pump
| ing, steam hammers pounding, wheels
| revolving and all the paraphernalia of
a busy factory in active employment.
| Grimy mechanics will rush to and fro
or stand at FORCES, heating big bars of
| iron white hot or turning out objects
| of steel or brass which are designed to
| serve as parts of one piece of delicate
mechanism or another The trouble is
to say what will not be done on board
| of these factory steamers, which must
| be prepared to mend or to replace any
| thing that may be wrong or missing
above the waterline of a battle-ship or
cruiser.
| The navy department intends hat
each one of our fleets shall be provided
with repair ship of this kind, whose
business it will be to accompany the
war vessels and to serve them on all
| necessary occasions as sort OF first
aid to the injured. Such floating
machine-shop, however, will be SER
viceable for a good deal beyond mere
emergency work, though this is what
is required Of it chiefly. It goes with
out saying that In an engagement on
the seas no matter how favorable the
result of the encounter to our side, the
American ships are bound to suffer
very srious damage They will be cut
up to considerable extent by the ex
plosive shells of rapid-fr guns and
more or less of their internal nechan-
ism will be in need of mending. 1t is
under such conditions that the repair
ship will come into use, plugging shot
holes, fixing up boiler-tubes, mending
! engines, ETC.,
During an action the repair ship will
avoid the thick of the fight hanging on
the skirts Of it so as to be available in
j case her services are wanted at any
moment. Suppose, for example, that
one of the American ships becomes
disabled by an accident to her steering
gear, and thus Is rendered useless for
fighting purposes. The repair vessel,
unless the engagement is so hot as to
render such a movement Impractical
Il BILE, will steam up and take the help
less ship in tow, pulling her away to a
distance and out of reach Of the enc
mys fire. Though not herself fight
ing craft, the floating machine shop
will be provided with half a dozen rap
id-fire guns, so as to be able to put up
some sort Of defence in case she is at
tackled 1t might be that she would be
assailed by torpedo boat though
/ oF 4I,s lit,
unprotected by armor, would not be
likely to take part in general fleet en-
gagements on the open seas. She
could keep off such a waspish foe by
means of her rapid-fire guns and her
speed-only fast-going steamers will
be employed for this purpose-will en-
able her to keep out Of the way Of the
big warships
An engagement on the ocean be-
tween Spanish and American ships
will not be likely to result in the total
destruction or surrender of one side.
Both fleets will suffer very serious in
jury, and one or both will draw off for
while before attempting another ac-
ton. During the interval, as a matter
Of course, they will be as busy as pos
sible in repairing damages and getting
ready for another encounter. Obvi-
ously, If the American vessels can put
themselves into shape for further
fighting in quicker time than the
Spaniards, they will have a great adj
vantage. This, indeed, may be consid-
cred as an important point in favor of
the Americans. They are born me-
chanics, whereas the Spaniards are
singularly deficient in that way. 1t is
difficult to see how the latter will be
able to mend their ships when they
have been damaged in action. The
Spaniards may be said to know COM
paratively little about the mechanical
construction of their own vessels,
nearly all of which were built in other
countries. All of their torpedo-boats
and torpedo-boat destroyers for ex-
ample, were constructed by English
firms. When one thinks what an ex-
eeedingly delicate and complicated
piece of machinery a new-style war
ship is, it is hard to see how such a
nest Of engines isto be manipulated by
Spanish officers so as to be efficient in
war. Once put out of order, how are
they going to repair it?
The crew Of each one of our repair
ships will consist wholly of mechanics
not ordinary mechanics, but men of
the highest skill in the different kinds
of work which will be required of
them. They will be men specially
trained in the construction of marine
engines, electrical apparatus and other
mechanism that go to make up a fight
ing vessel. While merely voyagine
) and not otherwise occupied, they will
know how to act as coal-heavers and
} engine-drivers. Whenever it may be
desirable, they will be transferred tenn
porarily to warships that need repairs
going aboard with their portable tools
and mending whatever is to be mend
. ed. On their own craft they will have
FORCES for making forgings of all kinds
: and sizes. They will have a cupola for
making small castings of iron and
brass. Their apparatus will include
suitable tools for patching the sides of
} vessels where they have been torn and
ripped open by shells from the rapid
!, fire guns. The repair ship will even
carry armor plates, with which to
make patches.
One of the repair ships will be as
signed to Commodore Schley's flying