Los Angeles herald., 1907-02-02
SAFETY ON TIE DEEP
From the New York Post.

of man. Man Is fallible on the sea,
as elsewhere More than one grim dis
aster since the bulkhead system was
applied has gone to demonstrate that
fact. There was the French Line
steamship La Bourgogne for instance.
No vessel ahoat was fitted more ado
quately with great steel water-tight
bulkheads than La Bourgogne was.
Yet 1t appeared that in the excitement
attending the puncturing of her hull
by the bark Cromartyshire the crew
failed to close the bulkheads, and she
went to the bottom, as the Arctic went
twenty-four years previous.
The White Stars Lesson
The bulkheads of the White Star Line
steamship lying at her pier several
years ago were naturally open. she
was listed because of ice coating her
decks and rigging, water flowed in the
open cargo ports, and down she went
to the bottom of the North river. "A
fine opportunity for q test of the bulk
head system was thereby lost but
scientists, from a study of her decks
and interior after she was raised,
gained valuable data as regards water
pressure.
Obviously, the hand d-closing compart-
ment system, which still obtains on
many great transatlantic vessels, had
its serious defects. German shipbuild-
ers seemed to feel this more strongly
than those of any other nation What
was wanted was an invention whereby
the presence of sailors at every door
in event of disaster was unnecessary.
In their quiet, Unconditional way, the
TeutOnic constructors took up the
problem. and studied it year after year
The result was the installation OF the
Doerr system of automatic door clos
ing first applied in the construction of
the North German Lloyd line steam
ship Kronprinz Wilhelm. Through this
invention the captain standing upon the
bridge was able to close compartment
after compartment as fast as he could
move his hand from lever to lever
Those who. in the first days of the
Kronprinz, were privileged to stand on
the bridge and watch the captain pull
the levers. with little red lights SPRING
ing to life over each lever, notifying
that the door corresponding was closed,
were impressed with emotions not of
the every day sort.
But this was not enough. The Ger
mans, not content with what had al
ready been done, passed onward. The
frailty of the sailors had been provided
for; how about the frailty of the cap
tain or whatever officer CHANGED to be
on the bridge? This was worth think
about 1t, and not without practical re-
suit On the most modern liners now.
should the officer on the bridge fail of
his duty in time of disaster. the bulk
head doors will close automatically
when the inrushing water has attained
a height of two feet in the holds. Surely
the contention of the modern ship
builder that his boat is now unslnkable
would seem to warrant belief. Through
necessary n
leak be discovered. A hidden inflowing
of water checks it's own entrance once
II has risen to the danger point, two
feet
Isolation of Compartments
This isolation of compartments may
be used effectively to prevent the de-
struction of the vessel by fire, while in
event of explosion in the boiler or en-
gine ROOM doors close automatically to
prevent the exit Of steam and fire. If Il
light on the masthead or in any other
part of the vessel goes out, an annun-
ciator in the wheel house warns the
captain of the danger forthwith.
Wireless telegraphy keeps vessel
in touch with the shore, either one
shore or another, throughout, or very
nearly throughout, her entire passage.
Cape Sable sends her warnings of the
bleak gray rocks upon whose fangs so
many vessels have periShed: ships in
distress may hurry out their calls for
assistance over a radius of hundreds of
miles, and the case is on record of a
steamship on the English coast. the
name of which escapes memory, which
in sending out her request for assist
ance, giving, of course her exact lati-
tude and longitude, brought two vessels
to her side
One wild night at South Wellheet the
writer stood beside the operator, no
less than Marconi himself, as he talked
with a transatlantic liner, which told of
a heavy sea that had swept her not an
hour before. hanpily with no damage
or loss of life. This same vessel be-
fore the days Of wireless telegraphy
was once overdue many days without a
sign of her, and the impression OF just
what this new system of telegraphy
had achieved in robblng the sea of it's
terror was overwhelming.
The "Sunken Bell"
But there are thousands of reefs and
shoals against which wireless teleg-