Evening star., 1915-01-31

| critics and con-
Comment on the struction en-
q. S. S. California. rome Sne at this
time. because the combined result of
using oil fuel and thermoelectrtc pro-
/ lpulsion will make it possible to give
this vessel heavier armorinG and great
er radius of action than any exist
| ing battleship, along with exceptionally
heavy weight of guns and unique facility
! Of lnaneuvering. The construction OF the
California has just been started at the
! New York navy yard. and it is expected
that it will be finished about the fall OF
i1s17.
| Propelling battleship by electric power
is distinctly new departure in naval en-
gineering, and an English writer states
that in general efficiency and economy
Of operation the California will surpass
all naval vessels, either built or under
construction for any of the powers. The
| use of oil for fuel. of course. is not new.
and naval engineers have long appreci-
ated the advantages to be gained from
the use of oil instead of coal. AS is
generally known. oil results in much
higher heating efficiency, and for the
Same storage space gives approximately
double the energy of coal. In combining
the of oil fuel and thermo electrical
! propulsion. naval experts of Europe ad.
| nit that American engineers have scored
a real achievement.
The new dreadnaught will generate
| its own electricity with a power plant
which will be as economical and eff
of trolley line or electric light plant
on land Engines using oil fuel will
run the powerful dynamos which will
generate the electricity to propel the
ship. The introduction of thermo-elec-
trical propulsion makes it possible to
reduce the boiler capacity so per cent,
and brings about a corresponding re-
duction In the weight and space usu-
ally occupied by coal bunkers. feed and
steam piping and auxiliary equip
ment. In the California the necessity
for reversing the turbine engines has
been eliminated, and the weight of the
main turbines has been reduced. and at
the same time higher speed and ef1i-
cheney in operation will be obtained.
European naval experts are most in
tereSted in the fact that the great re-
ductton in weight and saving of space
through the use of oil fuel combined
with thermo-electrical propulsion will
give the California greater radius
of action-enable it to go farther
without returning to port for fuel
than any other naval vessel upon the
seas. The present war has shown how
important factor is n ships radius
of action. demanding attention ahead
Of every feature except weight of arm
ament
The many reductions in the weight
of engines and space saving brought
about in the designing of the Cali
fornia have also made it possible to
increase the room available within the
hull for accommodating both the crew
and armament. and will permit the use
Of much heavier armor plate for a given
total displacement of $4,000 tons The
main armament of the new dread
naught will include twelve fourteen
inch guns. the same as the Pennsyl-
vania and Arizona. and secondary
armament of twenty-five ffve-inch
guns. The Texas and New York. the
first ships to be equipped with the big
fourteen-inch guns. have only ten each.
The twelve fourteen-inch guns on the
California will be mounted in four
three-gun turrets. an arrangement
which has been found satisfactory by
the United States and the European n
naval powers. excepting Great Britain:
For some reason, the multi-gun turret
has not found favor with the British
naval engineers.
The newest American dreadnaught
has a number of other features which
have been commented upon favorably
Of grouping all of the boilers under a
single funnel, thus reducing the vul-
nerability of the vessel by rendering
her less conspicuous target. The
QanRer OF aCLdCk ITOul diISlipS
been guarded against and substantial
cover to afford protection to all parts
has been planned. Officials of the Navy
Department believe that the California
will mark a new era in battleship con-
struction and that other nations will
follow Uncle Sans lead.
An inventors ideal to render discov-
cry already made the mother of new
discoveries and thus
Fund to Promote contribute to the
scientific and tech
"eSooAen' nical development
of the industrial arts has been realized
in the public management of the in
vention of an electrical appliance to
assist in the abatement of smoke,
fumes and dust, which was given to
the Smithsonian Institution by Fred
eric G. Cottrell four years ago.
DR.. Cottrell, who is in charge of the
laboratory of the United States bureau
of mines at San Francisco. invented a
process known as the electrical pre-
cipitation of suspended particles and
this process has been placed into such
practical use in many parts of the
country that from it's earnings a fund
of more than 100000 has been raised
to be devoted solely to the encourage
ment OF scientific research. When DIR.
Cottrell offered to transfer his inven-
tion to the Smithsonian Institution it
was considered best by Director
Charles D. Walcott and others to form
what is known as the research cor
poration," to administer the fund to
be created by the earnings from the
patent.
Dr. Cottrells idea. which has been
demonstrated to have been practical
as well as original, was to encourage
other inventors, who. like himself.
have needed financial backing in their
experiments. In providing the means
for the advancement and extension of
all of the net earnings of the research
corporation over and above the sum
which may be reserved or retained as
an endowment fund or working cap
ital will go to the Smithsonian Insti
tuition or other scientific and educa-
tional institutions to further the work
| Of research and experimentation.
The old-fashioned practice of sup
pressing news concerning an epidemic
of communica BILE
Publication OF disease in city is
Disease News. all wrong, ',is1, , This aa,s.is is
of the United States public health serv-
ice, who say that nothing but harm
can come out of the action of either
| city officials or commercial organiza-
tions which seek to keep from the pub