Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1899-06-12
ENGINEERING AND ORD
NANCE OF HE NE W
M Wy.
NAVY.

Inc Q1Splacom0nU OF Cn0 sim pie en-
CINE by the compound, and that by
the triple and quadruple expansion
engines, with cylindrical or coil boil
ers, using high pressure of steam,
years, but the masterful warship of
to- day has been made possible because
of this Improvement. With the old
simple engine the coal per horse
power varied between 81 and 4
pounds, while with quadruple-ex pan-
sion engines using steam at $50 pounds
pressure, result as low as II pounds
per horse power has been reached.
This means that on a given amount of
coal the steaming radius has been
trebled. The carrying Of these high
pressures has been made possible by
the recent improvements in the art of
steel making, which have greatly les
sened the weight Of boilers and en-
gines without sacrifice of strength.
The reduction in weight Of machinery
per horse power is strikingly shown
by a comparison of one of the vessels
of the old navy, the Pensacola,
with the modern ships Minneapolis
and Gushing. The weight of the Pen
sacola's machinery per horsepower
was 671.4 pounds that Of the Minnea
polls is 204.S pounds, while the Cush-
ing's machinery weighs but 1914
pounds per horse power.
81 oh 81
the great advance that has beeu made
in ordnance. Onlya few years separ
ates the time when a six inch gun
jacket had to be obtained abroad, and
the present, when a sixteen inch gun
is under construction here.
When rapid firing guns were first
supplied to our naval vessels in 1885,
the brass cartridge cases needed for
them, although the largest were only
of 6-pounder size, could not be pro-
duced in the United States. day
the extension of the rapid firing prin-
ciple to larger and larger guns, UP to
9-inch calibre, has been accompanied
py the development of plants for the
difficulty will be found in their man
ufacture for guns as large as 8 inches.
The manufacture of armor piercing
proiectiles has also been domestica-
ted in the United States, and our man
ufacturers produce projectiles of this
class equal to any made in the world
Several methods of manufacturing
common shells of forged steel have
been developed, and it may be safely
stated that now ammunition of all
classes, Of quality ally equal to any
that can be obtained abroad is man
ufactured in the United States at
prices as low as are paid by foreign
governments.
It has taken a number of years to
develop a safe and efficient smokeless
powder, but this result has at last
been accomplished, and though the
emergencies of the late war required
large quantities Of brown prismatic
powder to be purchased, the last or
ders for this kind Of powder have been
filed, and hereafter smokeless pow
der will be made for the navy. Two
priv ate plants, each capable of max
ing from 5000 to 5000 pounds per day,
are now at work to their full capacity
for the navy. In addition to this, a
smaller factory is under construction
by the department at it's own proving
ground.
No account of the building of the
new navy would be complete without
a brief statement of the application
of electricity to naval uses. But a few
years ago electricity was used on
shipboard only for the purposes of
electric lighting. Such has been the
progress in this regard, however, that
in the battleships Kearsarge and Ken
lucky, now nearing completion, the
turret turning gear, ammunition
hoists, hammers and elevating gear
for the turret guns, and the cranes
and deck winches will all be operated
by electric motors. It is is many re-
spects an ideal power on shipboard,
is constantly growing in favor, and
will be extensively employed in all of
the battleships under construction
Frank Leslie's Popular Monthly.