The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1912-05-09
On the Bridge of a Modern
Ocean Going Steam Vessel
How the Captain or Navigat-
ing Officer Receives
Information.
w yHEN a great disaster like the

w THEN great disaster like the
AN/ sinking of the giant Titanic
w comes to shock the communi-
ty into an attitude of min
gled awe and wonder many persons
are usually found asking questions as
to why it happened, how it happened
and what were the conditions sur
rounding it's occurrence. Some Of
these questions are vapid, and some of
them are Intelligent, but the upshot
must be better knowledge about the
special dangers involved or the spe-
c1al preparations to meet those dan
gers. Even in the few days which
have elapsed since the survivors of the
latest tragedy of the Newfoundland
banks were brought once more to land,
the general public has learned much
that it never knew before about life
boats and icebergs and marine engines,
together with other lore of the sea.
In the press of more immediate con-
Germs, however, the organism of a
monster ship, with it's commander as
a central vital point, has teen to some
extent overlooked.
The commander of an ocean liner is
furnished with so many instruments
of interior communication that on his
bridge he is at the same time, as it
were, in all parts of the great hull
which he is charged with plotting in
safety. He stands in the midst of a
network of delicate antennae, which
bring him accurate record of all that
is occurring hundreds of feet away in
either direction and by means of which
he may easily transmit his orders with
approximate certainty that they are
both understood and carried out. The
bridge, then, is the seat of power. It
is the strategic position on board ship,
and human accommodating becomes I'M
necessary because Of the numerous
mechanical devices which extend it's
range of vision.
Broadly speaking, the instruments of
control found on the bridge Of a great
modern liner fall under two heads
those whose operation is mechanical
and those in which electrical power is
used. Most prominent in the first of
these classes is the marine telegraph,
the engine room telegraph and the
steering telegraph.
Engine Room Telegraph.
If you We're to get permission to
visit the bridge Of one of these big YES
sells of the general type Of the found
cred White Star boat you would find
in the inclosed part several brass posts
about three feet high, bearing at the
top dials Of ground glass, whose. faces
were divided into sections by lines of
colored glass. Each section of the
dial would show an order in blue or
red letters, varying according to the
chosen phraseology Of the particular
line, but usually arranged in a series
such as Full Speed" "Half Speed"
"Slow,'' "Stop," Reverse" and GO
Ahead" covering the whole face of
the dial or so divided that all the Or
ders were repeated, applying on one
side to forward and on the other to
backward movement. Above the dial
would be seen a brass handle connect
ed with pointer or indicator, and an
other short pointer would be noticed
attached to the dial's center like the
hour hand of a clock.
This is the visible part on the bridge
OF the engine room telegraph In the
engine room of the vessel an exactly
similar dial or set of dials is mounted,
and any order from the bridge is seen
there within the space of a few Sec
Onds at most
The operation is entirely a mechan-
1cal one. When the captain sets the
needle or Indicator on his starboard
dial at "half speed.'' for instance, the
needle in the engine room dial at once
assumes the same position. More
over, the engineer answering the signal
sets a pointer to the indicated order,
and at once the short central hand on
the bridge dial initiates his action.
showing the officer in command that
his order has been understood.
Visible and Audible Signals.
This is accomplished by means Of
direct mechanical connection by pro-
tected wires and chains in most ves-
sells. Some Of the newest and largest
ships have adopted the British ad-
mlralty system, in which it is effected
by means Of shafts and gearing, but in
either case the principle is the same.
There are always the setting Of the nee
die by hand, the mechanical communi-
cation with the engine room dial, the
visible signal there and the repetition
of the process in reverse order to show
that there has been no mistake. The
basis of this instrument is that of all
the devices for interior communication
save the telephones-namely, that of
visible rather than audible signals, al
though on the engine room telegraph
large gopgs also sound the signals with
certain strokes as a matter of precau-
ton, and a means of attracting atten-
,tion.
Steering telegraphs of the same de-