The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1917-06-21

a thousand ships was one of the argu-
ments used against the scheme when
/ it was first proposed, The shipping
board was able to put its hands on
zoo marine engines. and it has been
promised enough more so that there
ing water They viii be oil burning,
making no smoke, and give the ships
speed of ten knots an hour regular
ly and from II to IA knots when push
ed.
And now for little surprise, and
the element of surprise in a good
story, we are told by the writer's of
fiction, always ought to be kept for the
last; and it will make the Germans
open their eyes when they are given
another proof Of American ingenuity.
A great many of these ships will carry
food, others of the fleet will be laden
with steel, munitions and similar 9TH
er heavy freight.
A grain ship can carry all that its
hold will accommodate. but the steel
being heavy. occupies comparatively
little space for its weight, and when
the cargo is slowed there will still be
considerable room. 1t is proposed to
pack the vacant space between the
top of the cargo and the under side of
the deck with tightly coopered closed
barrels.
Unsuitable Grain Ships.
When a torpedo strikes an iron or
steel vessel it makes great gap in
the side, through which the water
pours and quickly sends the ship to
the bottom as iron and steel are
buoyancy is Immediately destroyed. A
wooden ship, even with a hole in her
side, will keep afloat long time
wood being lighter than water and
there are cases known of water logged
wooden ships abandoned by their
crews and left as derelicts remaining
above water for years.
One advantage the wooden ship has
over the steel or iron is that to sink
her the Germans will probably have
to use more than one torpedo which
is distinct gain, and the barrels will
make these ships still more difficult to
sink. The barrels, being empty, but
air, will add enormously to
the vessels buoyancy On the same
principle that air chambers in life
boat make it unsuitable.
Calculations made show that a tor
pedo entering the ship and smashing
several of the barrels to splinters
would leave the vessel still practically
as the reserve of buoyancy
provided by the remaining barrels
would keep the vessel afloat even
though she took in a considerable
amount of water Should one of these
vessels be torpetloed near the British
coast she would under ordinary cir
remain afloat long enough
to enable her crew to patch up the
hole and limp into port. The vessels
are to be armed, and it is hoped each
of them can carry small but speedy
submarine chaser which can be quick
ly launched and give battle to the
submarine if it remains on the sur
face
Still lanother novel scheme is to
distinguish the "jitneys." Grain YES
sells carry their cargo in bulk, that is,
the grain is simply poured into the
hold, and when a ship is torpedoed
the grain rushes out through the gap
and there is no way by which the
much wanted food can be saved. Mr..
Donnely proposed to pack the grain
for these wooden ships in watertight
hexagonal containers made of light
metal, which will float so long as they
are unpunctured and their buoyancy
is not overcome by the escape of the
air.
When the containers are slowed the
hold of the ship will resemble very
much the cells of a gigantic beehive.
This cellular arrangement WILL like the
barrels, greatly increase the buoyancy
of the ship and keep it afloat for
long time; if the vessel is wounded be-
yond recovery many of the containers
will drift about in the neighborhood
of the wreck and can be salvaged by
the rescuing vessels.