Evening star., 1915-01-10
CLEARING FOR ACTION.
Explaining How British Warship
Warriors Prepare for Battle.
rom London Answers.

From London Answers.
A hundred years ago warships were
built of timber; but in those days can
non cast forth solid shot. Shells con-
tanning explosives were unknown. One
modern high-explosive shell would
have fred and utterly destroyed the
finest and most stately of the old three
deckers. Even today the great danger
which confronts any warship going
into action is fire, and it is fire rather
than anything else which must be
guarded against. Once a ship takes
fire she can no longer be fought to ad-
vantage, for men have to be called
| away from their guns to subdue the
conhagration.
The great idea, therefore, in clearing
for action is to discard everything that
can ignite. In the first place, the boats.
A big, modern battleship has fifty or
sixty thousand pounds worth of steam
launches, picket boats and pullboats
at sea when war is declared. The mo-
ment that her wireless proclaims the
fact of hostilities having commenced,
overheard go all her boats. They are
chance comes. they may be picked up
again. If not-well, at any rate. no
ship could go into action with boats.
Except in the very latest vessels.
en- joinery and furniture in the ship,
Most of the wooden partitions are
movable. All these-everything that
is infiammable except what is abso
ly cast to the fishes. All the ordinary
wooden ladders are replaced by wire.
while fire hose is laid everywhere, con-
nected with the steam pump. ready to
flood any part of the ship. While this
is being done, the whole upper deck is
cleared of everything movable, SO as to
leave it absolutely free for the work
ing Of the guns. The next JOB is to rig
network designed to prevent burning
splinters from falling on the men who
are working the guns or otherwise en-
gagged.
Hatches are covered in. In war time
there is only one hatch open by which
crew or officers can reach the upper
deck. Below. stokers are busy getting
up full head of steam. Other men are
posted at the doors of the water-tight
compartments. There are two to three
hundred of these compartments. max
ing the whole hull into sort OF hon
eycomb Ammunition is hastily brought
out from the shellrooms and put in po
sition, SO as to be ready for the guns
Torpedoes. too, are prepared; while
down in the flats the doctors and their
assistants make everything ready to
attend to the wounded. All is con-
trolled from the coming tower, where
the captain stands in small fort with
sides of twelve-inch steel. amid maze
of speaking tubes. telephones and
bells. Our ships at present in the
North sea left port cleared for action.
They were fortunate in this respect.
The loss and destruction which goes OH
when a ship in ordinary cruising trim
has to be cleared at sea is very Sc
we're.
We all remember the Dogger Bank
incident, when the Russian feet-in
cited, no doubt, by the German-fred
at our trawlers in the North sea. The
Russian fleet passed southwark. and
our cruiser squadron hurried after.
The Russians went to Vigo bay. Our
people were informed by wireless that
if the Russians were found to have left
Vigo it meant that war had been de-
clared Sure enough. the Russians had
left, and the cruisers broke all records
down to Glib. One of them-the Suf-
folk. we believe, though the fact was
kept secret at the time-did actually
clear for action. Everything movable
that might burn was dumped over
board, and her people were sick and
savage indeed when, on reaching Glib
raltar, they found 1t was all for moth
irg OF late our admiralty has been
fitting the newest ships with metal or
freproof furniture. The idea original
ed in America. where Naval Construct
or Bowles had complete sets of furni
ture all made of cold-rolled steel put
into the United States cruiser Atlanta.