The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1908-06-16
FIRST CHAM CABLES.
How They supplanted tho Use oi
Hempen Ropes on Warships.

The first man who succeeded In
making a useful chain cable was
Robert Finn, and he experimental
with It in 1903 in a small ship named
the Anne and Isabelle. OF three hum
dred tons burden. His cable was
made of very short links, with no
stay pins or studs, says the London
Globe, but it served its purpose, and
was, moreover, favorably reported
upon by some of the progressive sea-
men of the time.
AT about the same period lieuten.
ant in the navy named Samuel Brown
was also experimenting with chain
cables made of twisted links, and
this, when 1t was duly patented, he
brought to the notice of the Navy
Board. After much discussion 1t was
decided to give Lieut.. Brown the COM
mand of a sailing vessel, the Penelope.
and send him on a voyage to Marti.
nique and Guadeloupe. AT his own
expense he was to supply chain cables
for the ship, and they we're to be ex-
perimented with on the voyage. Dur
ing the four months the ship was
away the new cables we're given a
thorough trial, and proved quite salts
factory.
When Brown had made his report a
committee was appointed to advise as
to the adoption of the chain cable in
place of the hempen, and as result
the new tackle was gradually intro
duced into men of war Between
1910 and 1911 the first chain cables
were served out to the ships, but the
full complement of hempen cables
was reduced to three, and in 1S47 \
further change was ordered two hem
pen cables only being retained, with
four chain cables as pricipal moorinS
tackle.
During the Russian war the superb
ority OF chain cables was amply de-
monstrated on many occasions. The
vessels we're exposed to the gales and
hurricanes OF the Baltic and the Black
Sea, but whereas the men-o'-war with
these chains were able to keep their
moorings in the toughest weather,
many OF the merchantmen transports
fitted only with hempen ropes broke
away and met with disaster And SO
an ancient industry, one which in
early days was almost monopoly In
Dorsetshire, was placed infinitely In
a secondary rank. No act of parlia-
ment such as that of Hendy VIII. OF
daining that mo person but the in
habitants only sA4n L.~.c cables
could bring back that prosperity to
Bridport which that town had en-
joyed in the earliest days OF Eng
lands naval glory. A modern battle
ship carries four main cables and
anchors, each costing about E1.2OO
This gives her total OF 450 fathoms
of chain cable.
The earliest anchors OF which we
have any record were of wood. and
gradually, through the iron anchor o!
one hook and the anchor in the shape
of a rake there was evolved the an
chor with the straight thick shank.
the two curving arms with fattened
extremities and the long cross stock
The process Of slowing one of these
old anchors was a long and laborous
one. 1t was hove close up to the cap
stan or windlass. man was let down
by rope to hook on huge tackle, by
which the anchor was then hoisted,
still perpendicular, to a stout project
ing timber. Then the lower end had
to be hoisted up horizontally by an
other tackle. and the whole made
fast.
In the modern stockless anchor a
chain is attached to 1t at the balanc-
ing point and this is passed through
a pulley at the head of the anchor
davit. When the anchor is high
enough, davit and all swing round un-
Ill the anchor is over the billboard.
where it rests and is secured by
chains.