The sun., 1919-09-21

ously from nautical catastrophes than
in the past. but does mean that our
amplified cargo fleets by the law Of
averages inevitably viii bring a greater
number of accidents. and because Of
this place a heavier burden upon the
deep water diver and the wrecking
engineer.
Happily for us ship salvage during
the war, both at home and abroad, but
especially within the zones of the sub
marines activities. has given the art
tremendous impetus. Technical cum
ming, developed facilities and a rare
measure of courage on the part of all
concerned have contributed to results
OF an astonishing nature. 1t is unde-
niably true that many of the vessels
raised from the sea bed during the
period of strife as well as scores and
scores Of those released from rocks
and beaches where they had been pur-
posely or Internationally. grounded,
were saved at an expense that would
not have been encouraged in prewar
years. But even so, those costly es-
says revealed possibilities in wrecking
previously only dreamed of and largely
chdcocd aS AiiiptdCIlcaDle.
Americans I'm Forefront.
Now the ship salvor has at his
command not only a much bigger
wealth Of information and precious
experience, but he can command APP
paratus capable of helping him to
master many a difficult problem which
would have staggered him, daunted
him. In the years gone, Fortunately
Tor US some Of the most expert of our
own salvage engineers were sent
abroad TO collaborate in the Joint eff
forts Of the British, the French and
the Italian marine wreckers. These
men did their very useful bits and in
troduced some American methods of
proved efficiency; and. In turn, they
have come back to US the wiser and
the more capable for what they have
learned.
1t Is matter of common knowledge
that much of the astonishing work
done by the salvage section of the
British Admiralty was due to the pc
culiar nexibility of the electrically
driven submersible pump, which could
be dropped right down into the flooded
compartment Of a sunken craft and
drain the area Of water against a
head" of eighty feet. In other words,
It had nearly triple the lifting capacity
Of suction pump operating from a
point above the seas surface. Before
the war the submersible pump was
heard of infrequently, and its applica-
ton In savage undertakings was lin
tied almost entirely to an occasional
difficult task along the coasts Of the
British Isles.
Under the pressure of competition
against the ravaging U boat, wher
every freight carrier was at q pre-
MUM, the submersible pump won the
wide recognition which its merits jus,
tined, and. further. the apparatus wa.
improved and greatly amplified In it:
pumping power and made more rugged
and reliable. The salvors found tn,
Job a great deal easier where thel
could use this pump instead Of tn,
steam driven suction pump that ha,
TO be placed lpon the exposed deck o
the sunken craft and held Their
against the possible sweep of storm
tossed seas, II was not merely a ques
ton Of keeping the steam apparatus Il
place, but also the very hazardous tasl
Of putting the pump on the wreck Il
the first instance. These massive af
fairs invited disaster to both the sal
wage craft and the ship to be saved
their handling occurred In open water
with any sort of a sea running. Sim
ilarly the wreckers were imperilled
they got in the way of those pendu
lumlike masses as they were swun
aloft and over onto the foundered yes
sci.
The New Pump Is Light.
The submersible pump, on the othe
hand, weighs only a moderate percent
age OF its steam driven rival of eQus
capacity, and therefore Is Just tina
much easier to shift and TO lowe
snugly into position down into the hol
OF ship we'll beyond the disturbin
surge Of battering waves. Further,
does not require the installing o
board the wreck Of an auxiliary powe
plant All that Is necessary Is to carr
electric cables from the pump to tn
dynamo aboard the salvage steame
and these connections can be broke
during a period Of tempestuous weatf
er and picked up again when the Sc
buDSlueS ana WOfk IL resumed. ines
operations require but few minute
Much was heard at intervals durin
Abe activities of the Admiralty Sal
gage Section of the so-called "AG
'niralty PATCH" sturdy fabricatio
- stout timbers and steel work b
which the British wreckers were abb
20 seal the great ragged rents torn
the bottoms and sides OF craft runnin
afcul of enemy mines or made tn
targets for hostile torpedoes. Rune
to the contrary, the Admiralty pate
commonly required days In the maxim
and very considerable measure
time in getting the structure int
place and secured properly over tn
wound. As a rule each patch had [
be carefully modelled to At the shaI
of the damaged hull. Success in tn
depended in the main upon how care
fully the divers determined the cor
trolling dimensions and form of IN
ships body surrounding the injure
area.
Americans Devise Flexible Patel
When our own men entered n
neld OF the International Salvage On
ganizatiop they introduced a fiexib
patch. This was far easier TO mall
and susceptible Of quicker application
The flexible patch was the outcome ,
some notable salvage achievements
american waters, prior TO the wa
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