Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1899-07-26

eminent is prepared to pay the rate
Of bounty mentioned. Had Ccrvcra's
squadron been superior to SIMPSONS
tho rate would DC $500 for each Spanish
officer and man The Maria Tcrcs; had
Il complement of 49,. ana ut the rate Of
500 Tor each OF these men there would
be only $iS.300 to be distributed among
the officers and mon of SIMPSONS fleet
on account of the destruction. There
IS no doubt that Ccrvcras flagship
would have brought very lar.,.
amount. probably Il million dollars hail
She been sold at auction after The
Hlcckcrs tloatcd her. The department..
~ ordering the appraisal of the Maria
point raised that she was Il captured
and not Il destroyed vessel.
Lewis Nixon has the contract for the
construction OF the initial safe float of
the design recently patented by Joseph
r. Anderson. and the little vessel is
now well under way at tsliZHbcthnOrt
NJ j. The float is OF metal and clipti-
cal in shape, being twenty-five feet
long and fourteen feet broad. The de-
vice is destined. it is hoped. to rcvolu-
tonic present methods for the trans
portation of bullion by water. 1t can,
OF course, DC utilized for mail matter
and other valuabcs as VOL The safe.
which is of iron water tight and fire.
proof. is affixed To the deck of n
steamer in such Il manner that it can
be quickly or even automatically re-
leased in event of an accident. ana it
will then float until towcu into port
u light sntcd by contact with the
water showing at night in the form
tf Il fam" four feet in height. / n day
titnc Is; presence may be detected ~
fog horn and bell which ii is claimed
viii blow and ring automatically. Tn.
inventor says that the float will he
a IN jt-l, ia,
w reason of its shape and that this
can he insured hy p,tcing the heavy
metals OF the cargo at the bottom The
rhospilidc OF calcium light which it IS
proposed To use on this float is already
in use on the Franklin life huoys, 10
which thc government has given its
endorsement. but it is suggested that
a storage battery could be installed and
and electric light used With little ditli-
Guilty We're it perfected.
Secretary Long has determined to
largely Increase the Importance of the
course of steam engineering as Taught
at Annapolis. and the change will take
place at the beginning of the term next
TALL at the Academy. This is one of The
direct results of the personnel bill
Under the terms of that measure line
oi'Iccrs are subject to detail to care for
the engines of n ship just as they might
pc placed in charge Of ordnance or as
signed to duty as navigators The
work Of caring for the engines has
heretofore been in the hands of the
Engineer Corps, and the line officers
were not required to have more than q
general knowledge of engineering.
Now, however. With the prospect fac
ing them OF being at any moment as
signed to duty in the engine room.
the line officers must fit themselves
much more thoroughly in that branch.
ana that is the explanation OF the Sc
crctary's action.
Rear Admiral Higginson clearly H.
iustratcs the Importance Of the Mica
ragua Canal. from a naval view. tax
ing the hatticship Oregon. as an exam
pie. Inc distance she sailed by log
was 20"06 nautical miles and the time
was nincty-two steaming days, making
an average speed of ZOOS knots per day.
her coal consumption for steaming
purposes only was SALT tons, at a cost
81 -:',953.9". Had she gone through
Nicaragua she would at the same speed
nave reached her destination in 5l.4
s:camins days on a coal consumption
or .'.o21 tons and at an approximate
cost Of only $3.50 That would be a
saving in time Of 400 days; in distance
Of ?.?S2 nautical miles; in coal Of 9.3oG
tons: in money of sl7,254.93 This would
be merely Il saving to our navy. now let
saving it would be to the merchant
marine.
M OastcrErcn, New York in
Ventor. who is dcvotinG much attention
to LIQUID air. declares that the limit Of
speed for vessels driven ny steam mas
been nearly reached. but that he cx-
poets 10 see vessels driven in Other
ways built before many years. Future
progress. he says. lies in the use of
liquid fuels. IF gasoline were burned
under a boiler it would give double the
stcani-making result, pound for
pound, that coal does bu! that
would only be Il step in the right di-
r1ctinn. He would do away with steam
engines and steam boilers altogether.
and in their place use vapor engines
burning liquid fuel.
The granting Of subsidies to Japanese