The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1911-07-19

about 1873 gross tons, from this port to
Albany, and during which the ship
builders art was developed so as to
produce with ease the a., 1000 tons
Olympic.
1t is safe to say that the second
century of steam vessel building will
witness no such DEVELOPMENT as the
first did in regard to size, but equal
ly safe is it to state that great changes
will come about in the motive power
OF vessels, as these are already being
foreshadowed in the internal combus-
ton engine, with which several ves-
sells now building for the transatlantic
tared are being equipped. 1t is also
reasonable to predict that electric
propelling machinery will be de-
veloped and made practically useful
ere long.
Some Tall Waves.
The London Shipping Gazette re-
Gently published some interesting data
in regard to abnormal ocean waves.
These great seas are not always en-
countered during storms, but occasion
ally during weather which is far from
wild and when the surface Of the wa
ter is comparatively smooth These
unusually tall waves do not spare even
the largest liners, an instance being
the Mauretania in January, 1908, which
vessel was struck by several huge roll
ers with the result that some of the
boats on her upper deck were dis
lodged. Another instance in that year
was the Ivernia, which shipped a
heavy sea westward of Queenstown,
1njuring several of her passengers.
The steamer Philadelphia of the
American Line is another that has en-
countered mountainous seas. When
Capt. Mills was in command Of her, a
big one reached her funnel top. She
hao -
Deam sea, and at the psychological
moment, when rolling to windward.
this unusual experience was encount-
cred, therefore not necessarily making
the wave as high as might be imagined
would be needed to accomplish this
feat.
While ocean waves as rule do not
run over thirty or forty feet, some
have been authoritatively estimated to
have reached fifty, sixty and even
seventy feet. These are rare, but
when vessel is caught by one the
damage is usually severe. An instance
where serious loss of life has occurred
was the sailing ship Loeb Torridon,
which in 1882 shipped a sea that
swept overheard the master second
mate, and the entire watch on deck
The same year the clipper Undine had
her second mate with his watch wash
| ed overheard and her commander,
Capt. Bristow, killed by a topping sea
In 1894 the bark Montgomery Castle,
300 miles west Of the Azores, had her
master, both mates, five sailors, and
| everything movable on deck washed
overheard by one big wave. It is no
wonder therefore that many a sailing
vessel in bygone years brought I'D in
the port of missing ships when such
| conditions were encountered. The
giant liners of today, however. while
they may occasionally suffer dam
age to their superstructures. have
| nothing to fear from Old Neptune's
most savage assaults as long as they
are kept in deep water
A Monster Oil Well.
The Producers Oil Company's well
No. at Vivian, La, if turned on at
| full head, 1t is estimated would Yield
over $4,000 barrels of oil a day, and is
in fact too large to be handled proper
i ly or controlled when yielding it's full
| capacity. 1t is at present producing
$4,000 barrels daily, and plans are on
foot to have the railroad handle some
OF the oil to supplement the pipe lines
The Suns Heat.
1t has been estimated that the
amount of solar heat annually poured
down upon the surface of the earth
exceeds million times the heat pro-
duclDle Dy the output or all the coal
| mines of the earth. which may be
taken at 100000, 900 tons year. In
other words, the 800, 900. 900 tons of
| coal, the produce of all the mines,
would suffice to keep the solar radia-
| ton for only one forty millionth part
of second. II the entire earth was a
solid mass Of coal and could be sup
| piled to the solar furnace 1t would
last just thirty six hours. And yet the
earth intercepts only the $50 miIlionth
part of the heat that is steadily being
thrown off by the great central lumi-
nary.