The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1907-12-05
STEERING WITHOUT A RUDDER
heepins a Steamship On Its Course
By les Screws.

Wilhelm II Shortly after the YES
sci started across the Atlantic from
New York lis rudder became dis
abled and useless. When the sea
is reasonably calm, as it is in sum
mer, a sort of substitute can some
times be put in place of a rudder
without waiting 70 get into port
That plan is not feasible always,
and is hardly TO be thought of in
winter, when the ocean is stormy.
Another method of holding a yes
sci to it course has, however, been
discovered, though it requires
great skill aud has been employed
thus for only with steamers hav-
ing two screw propellers, each
driven by separate engine.
The Kaiser Wilhelm II has two
engines of the kind in which the
work is done with pistons. Ordi-
narily, the engines go ahead or
reverse simultaneously, but each
can be used independently of the
other. The right hand engine can
be driven at full speed, while the
left hand one is either slowed down
or stopped, or the left hand engine
can be made to work at its full ca
pacity while the right one it slow
ed. Now, if the backward thrust
against the water by the two
screws is equal, the ship ought to
keep her course fairly we'll, though
the wind and waves often play
mean tricks even then in causing
deviations. On the other hand, if
one screw does more work than the
other. the vessels course will
change. If the right hand screw
eXerts the strongest push, the bow
will swing to the left, and if the
left hand screw eXerts the strong
pressure, the vessels head will
swing in the other direction. By
following this plan the captain Of
the Kaiser Wilhelm II got his ship
safely to the English Channel,
where she made two calls, and
finally to her home port, Bremen.
1t was necessary to sacrifice a little
of her speed, and her arrival was
delayed, but the ship was kept
from going astray or stopping en-
tirely until some other vessel came
along and helped her.
Just now a kind of engine which
has no piston is coming into use
for driving steamships. This is
the turbine. With two notable
exceptions it has been arranged so
that one engine operates three
shafts and three screws. Such is
the case with the Caronia, for in
stance. On that vessel the steam
goes first to the middle cylinder,
and, after partial expansion there,
is led into the two side cylinders
for further work. Now, if one
side cylinder could be shut off and
and its shaft stopped while the
other side cylinder, the same re-
suit could be reached as was at
tanned with the Kaiser Wilhelm
II. There is room for doubt, how
ever, whether provision has been
made for varying the speed of one
side screw independently of the
other. If it was necessary either
to shut the cylinder off completely
or leave it working at its full force,
steering with the screws would
seem difficult, if not impossible.
In the case here considered the
the right hand cylinder is not a
separate engine, but separate part
0 the same engine to which the
left hand cylinder belongs.
Whatever uncertainty there may
be in regard to steamships like the
Caronia, it is probable that the
new Cunard liner Lusitania (and
her sister, the Maoretania) could
be steered as the Bremen steamer
was. Lusitania has four shafts,
but they are driven by two sepa-
rate engines. Each engine is made
up of one high pressure and one
low pressure cylinder, the two