Evening star., 1901-07-20
How the Leviathans of the Inland
Seas Take the Water.
A TIDAL WAVE AS HULL STRIKES
Only Workmen Aboard as Ship
4
Makes First Plunge.
AT ONE HRISTEN ING
Written for The Evening Star.

| Written for The Evening Star.
Shipbuilders on the great lakes have de-
vised the most ingenious scheme In use
anywhere for showing a great, ponderous
| steel vessel into the water. when she is
| well nigh completed. These inland vessel
| constructors who turn out craft as big as
| ocean liners in the very heart Of the c,f.r-
| try. and most Of whose employees never saw
salt water, did not devise this method of
| giving a ship its initial baptism because
| they consider 1T superior to the plan which
| has always been in vogue on the coast;
they merely made virtue out of neces-
| slty. The ship yards of the great lakes are
not located on the banks of the fresh water
| seas, but upon contributory rivers OF acti-
| fetal slips. None Of these WATERWAYS are
| more than half as wide as a modern lake
cargo carrier is long, and so, instead Of
| sliding the vessel into the wafer andwise,
as is the custom all over the world, these
| giant levfathans toboggan down a mon
| Ster slide and take the water broadside en-.
To say that the launch of a big vessel on
| the great lakes Is more picturesque spec
| tacle than a similar event at a ship yard
| on the seaboard would be perhaps rather
| rash assertion, but assuredly 1t Is more
| suggestive of the immensely OF the work.
| First one sees the broad high wall of the
steel slipping with'aceeierating speed down-
| ward then comes the crash of splIntering
| timber as the ponderous mass tumbles II ON
| the easy incline, followed by the tremen-
| dous splash Of the water dividing under
| it's hull.
| Leaving Her Ways.
| The impetus Of the plunge from the
| launching ways" which look for all the
world like bather's running board mag
nihed a thousand times, hurls the top-heavy
vessel over with tremendous force. Often
it would turn completely over. turn tur-
|
for the ropes. as large around as mans
| arm, which extend from the shore 10 stem
| and stern and bring the rampant ship up
short when gravity would cause her to
| overstep the bounds of safety. Then, with
| a sudden revulsion of energy, the new mis-
| tress Of the seas pitches violently in the
| other direction and thus she remains for
| time rocking heavily this way and that,
as If chahng under the bondage Of the
| creaking cables which bind her to the
| shore.
The original plunge of the vessel into the
water has effect such might be ex-
| pected were a gigantic hand of herculean
strength to suddenly scoop the LIQUID and
hurl 1t forward In the form Of great tidal
| wave Very frequently the breastwork of
| water which big lake vessel throws up
| at launching, will climb the opposite bank
! to point from thirty to sixty feet beyond
| the regular water boundary. The receding
| wave plays the same prank Of course on
| the opposite bank, and the vessel rocks
| to and fro in mid-stream billows are pushed
! alternately to one shore and then the other
with gradually diminishing force. People
! who have msca}culated the force Of the on
rushing water Or have not been informed
| of the prospective invasion often
drenched and sometimes injured by the
! sudden food.
No FrilI. About 1t.
1t Is the custom at the launching of great
ocean-going vessels to make a gala occa-
sion Of the event. and usually large num-
81 70 t,lfa thair
places on board in order to go down to the
sea with the ship when she takes her first
| dip. Not so on the great lakes however.
| No one Is permitted on board save few
| workingmen. necessary to the carrying out
| of the operation. and an occasional ven-
tureSome individual OF unmiStakably reck-
| less propensities.
No person who has ever witnessed lake
| launching at close range will be at all sur
| prised at these precautions The perform
ance of the individual on board lake car
| rier she takes her maiden plunge very
| much resembles that Of the man tossed by
| the catapu.t in the circus, except that In
stead OF being thrown forward into the
air the man clingtng to post on the ves-
| sells deck must hang on for dear life. while
| the vast mass beneath him Jerks and
| bucks and rolls as If Economically resolved
| to fling him into space. Should the man lose
! his hold and be hurled forth he would al
| most surely be instantly dashed to death
| against the sides OF the ship.
There appears to be no limit to the size
! Of the vessel which may be successfully
| launched In the manner followed IN the
plants along the northern boundary OF the
| United States. A dozen years ago. when
| the largest ships on the inland seas were
| not three hundred feet In length, many
| wiseacres declared that the acme OF lake
ship building had been reached. since 1t
| would be impracticable to launch broadside
vessels of greater length and weight, but
now steamers FIVE hundred feet in length
are placed in the water by this ingenious
method as satisfactorily as were the craft
| not more than half as long.
All Ready for Voyage.
| Many Of the vessels which set afoat
! on the great lakes in accordance with the
practice outlined are tumbled into the
| water when they are not more than two
| thirds completed, and when none Of the
| machinery has been placed aboard: but
| others are launched with engines. boilers
| and every little detail Of equipment COM
| plete, 80 that the vessel may sail away on
her maiden voyage within very few
hours after she first touches the water.
That this Is possible might appear all the
more strange when there is taken into con-
| sideration the rather peculiar arrange
| ment or lake steamer OF the present day.
| Long, lanky craft they are by reason OF
the narrow channels through which they
| must pick their way. In order to give un-
| interrupted play down through the center
of the boat to the machinery which loads
| or unloads the coal or Iron with amazing
|
| builders showed the engines and boilers
compactly together at the stern Of the
boat, and perched the pilot house and deck
house at the extreme forward end Of the
| ship
| Doubtless the weights are distributed
| evenly enough when the vessel has d.
gested several thousand tons Of cargo, but
| there is. OF couEse. no cargo aboard when
| the vessel is lapnched. and the uninitiated
spectator Ia very apt TO harbor a suspicion
| that it will be bure luck II the craft does
! not break in two. Or II the heavy rear
end does not gather greater momentum
that the other pprtidh
! .-. An Accurate Throw.
The plan Of christening a new vessel
sarily presents some modincations of the
custom in vokhe elsewhere. The young
lady who smashgs the significant bottle OF
| champagne ovef' the bow Of a vessel.
| launched in the ordinary manner. must
wieid her ribboarwrabped souvenir as the
| hull slides away from her. She who
christens lake, ship must. on the other
hand anil tha HofYid