The record-union. [volume] (Sacramento, Calif.) 1891-1903, 1899-11-13

problems which he had to solve was the
construction of machinery which should
be thoroughly trustworthy. This leo
him, contrary to- what would ordinarily
be considered good designing, but which
under the circumstances, in my opin-
ion, was consummate engineering skill,
to build machinery very heavy, but
Which, as a matter of fact, never broke
down and which carried our guns to
victory. In those days, just as in our
own, the imam behind the gun" may
be most in evidence, but without the
man behind the shower he would
never have been able to get within
range of the enemy.
The destructive career of the Ala
bama had led our authorities to decide
upon the construction of q class Of yes
sells which should be faster than any
others afioat, in order that these COM
merce destroyers might be hunted
down and themselves meet the fate
which they had SO often dealt out to
others Here, again, Isherwoods con-
summate skill and mastery of his pro-
the hulls was still wood. which gave
platform for the machinery altogether
too flexible to permit of the type OF
engines which we now use; consequent
ly he designed what were known as
geared engines, which, he, better than
any one else, knew were extremely
heavy, but the great point is that they
enabled him to accomplish exactly what
he set out to do. The Wampanoag, the
first of these vessels, in 1868 made the
unprecedented record of nearly seven
teen knots for thirty-six hours in a
rough sea, and for several periods OF
six hours seventeen and one-half knots.
At that time no other vessel in the
world, either war or merchant steamer,
approached this speed within three
knots.
About this time(Rdr. sherwood con-
Quoted number of experiments in con-
nection with the expansion of steam,
and boldly enunciated principles which
the rest of the engineering world in
many cases denounced as erroneous, but
which are now accepted as fundamental
facts in thermo- dynamics. This is
notably the case with respect to cylin-
der condensation, where he was the
first to enunciate the true principle.
Another great engineer became ia
NOUS at this time, although he had
been doing splendid work and helping
to develop the war vessel before, name
ly, Captain John Ericsson. You all
know the story of the first monitor, and
it is not necessary for me to repeat
it 1 only wish to remark as apropos
of my theme that here was a vessel
which in hull, machinery and ordnance
was the work of engineers, and which
for that period represented the highest
embodiment of engineering skill and
talent 1t is worth noting in this con-
nection that the success of the Monitor
in her engagement with the Merrimac
was due almost entirely to the skill of
her engineers, Sinners and Newton.
They We're thoroughly familiar with
every detail of her machinery, which
needed skill to keep it in good order,
and, as is we'll known, after the acct
dent to the gallant commander, Wor-
den, Sinners fought the guns while
Lieutenant Greene, the executive Off
GER, took command in the coming
tower.
I must not neglect to state that
splendid work during this period was
done for our ordnance, and the devel-
opment of this branch of engineering,
largely due to the skill and ingenuity
of Admiral Dahlgren, was such that at
the end of the Civil Var our naval guns
We're recognized as the best in the
world.
BUILDING OF THE WHITE SQUAD
RON.
There now comes a period in our
naval history which, as far as actual
results are concerned, may just as well
be passed over, for, while our designers
We're keeping abreast Of the times, we
were not building anything new in
either ships, guns or machinery. Be-
ginning with 1888, however, a new era
dawned for the navy, and we began the
building of our White Squadron, which
has so appropriately been termed the
New Navy" and in connection with
these ships I shall endeavor to go intx,
some details which will thoroughly
prove the correctness of the theme
which has been given me to discuss
What is the problem that confronts
the naval designer? The maximum of
offense, combined also with the maxi
mum of defense and with a maximum
of mobility. 1t is important to note
the limitation upon the naval designer
as regards one vital element, namely,
weight; for this has far-reaching eff
fects in every feature of design, and
differentiates in a most marked way
his work from that of designer of
somewhat similar works for use on
shore.
While it has been aptly said that the
war vessel is gun platform" and it
would therefore almost seem that
everything else must be subordinatei
to securing a maximum gun fire. the
vessel must be prepared to Withstand
an attack Of an opponent of equal force.
which necessitates close attention to the
defensive elements. Now, under the
very best circumstances, the weight OF
the bare hull will approach 80 per cent.
of the entire displacement, which, as
you know, simply means the weight of
the completed ship with everything on
board, so that we have left only some
what more than half of the displace
ment for guns, armor, ammunition, ma
chinery, coal and stores. The first
problem, then, is to construct a hull
which shall ca fe1v carry all the wafghts