Calais, Folkestone and Boulogne, and other Channel ports, were so small,
was because the harbours on either side could not receive vessels with
such a draught as the fine steamers, for example, which run on the
Holyhead and Kingston line. Now, the _Castalia_ drew only 6 ft. of
water, or 1 ft. 6 in. less than the small Channel steamers, and would,
therefore, be able to enter the French ports at all states of the tide.
Yet the extent of the deck space was equalled in few passenger ships
afloat, except the _Great Eastern_ and some of the Atlantic steamers.
The vessel was 290 ft. in length, with an extreme breadth of 60 ft. The
four spacious and elegantly-fitted saloons—two of which were 60 ft. by
36 ft., and two 28 ft. by 26 ft.—and the roomy cabins, retiring rooms,
and lavatories, were the greatest possible contrast to the “cribbed,
cabined, and confined” accommodation of the ordinary Channel steamers.
There were also a kitchen and all requisites for supplying dinners,
luncheons, etc., on board. But besides the above-named saloons and
cabins, there was a grand saloon, which was 160 ft. long and 60 ft.
wide; and the roof of this formed a magnificent promenade 14 ft. above
the level of the sea. There was comfortable accommodation in the vessel
for more than 1,000 passengers.
The inner sides of the hulls were not curved like the outside, but were
straight, with a space between them of 35 ft. wide, and the hulls were
each 20 ft. in breadth, and somewhat more in depth. There were two
paddle-wheels, placed abreast of each other in the water-way between the
two hulls, and each of these contained boilers and powerful engines. The
designers of this vessel calculated that she would attain a speed of 14¾
knots per hour, but this result failed to be realized. Probably there
were no data for the effect of paddles working in a confined
water-space. The position of the paddles is otherwise an advantage, as
it leaves the sides of the vessel free and unobstructed. The ship had
the same form at each end, so it could move equally well in either
direction. There were rudders at both ends, and the steering qualities
of the ship were good. Although the speed of the _Castalia_ was below
that intended, the vessel was a success as regards steadiness, for the
rolling and pitching were very greatly reduced, and the miseries and
inconveniences of the Channel passage obviated.
[Illustration:
FIG. 67.—_The Castalia in Dover Harbour—End View._
]
The _Castalia_ is represented in Figs. 66 and 67. She was constructed by
the Thames Iron Shipbuilding Co., and launched in June, 1874, but after
she had been tried at sea, it was found necessary to fit her with
improved boilers, and this caused a delay in placing the vessel on her
station.
The _Castalia_ proved a failure in point of speed, and she was soon
replaced by another and more powerful vessel constructed on the same
general plan, and named the _Calais-Douvres_. But this twin-ship again
failed to answer expectations, and as the harbour on the French shore
was meanwhile deepened and improved, new and very fine paddle-wheel
boats, named the _Invicta_, _Victoria_, and _Empress_ have been placed
on the service. As the latter boat, at least, has steamed from Dover to
Calais, nearly twenty-six miles, under the hour, there is nothing more
to be desired in point of speed. A fourth vessel is to take the place of
the twin-ship, _Calais-Douvres_, and will receive the same name.
[Illustration:
FIG. 68.—_Bessemer Steamer._
]
Another very novel and curious invention connected with steam navigation
was the steamer which Mr. Bessemer built at Hull in 1874. This invention
also was to abolish all the unpleasant sensations which landsmen are apt
to experience in a sea voyage, by effectually removing the cause of the
distressing _mal de mer_. The ship was built for plying between the
shores of France and England, and the method by which he purposed to
carry passengers over the restless sea which separates us from our
Gallic neighbours was bold and ingenious. He designed a spacious saloon,
which, instead of partaking of the rolling and tossing of the ship, was
to be maintained in an absolutely level position. The saloon was
suspended on pivots, much in the same way as a mariner’s compass is
suspended; and by an application of hydraulic power it was intended to
counteract the motion of the ship and maintain the swinging saloon
perfectly horizontal. It was originally proposed that the movements
should be regulated by a man stationed for that purpose, where he could
work the levers for bringing the machinery into action, so as to
preserve the saloon in the required position. This plan was, however,
improved upon, and the adjustments made automatic. It may be well to
mention that it is a mistake to suppose that anything freely suspended,
like a pendulum, on board a ship rolling with the waves, will hang
vertically. If, however, we cause a heavy disc to spin very rapidly, say
in a horizontal plane, the disc cannot be moved out of the horizontal
plane without the application of some force. A very well-made disc may
be made to rotate for hours, and would, by preserving its original plane
of rotation, even show the effect of the earth’s diurnal motion. Mr.
Bessemer designed such a gyroscope to move the valves of his hydraulic
apparatus, and so to keep his swinging saloon as persistently horizontal
as the gyroscope itself. Mr. Bessemer’s ship was 350 ft. long, and each
end, for a distance of 48 ft., was only about 4 ft. from the line of
floating. Above the low ends a breastwork was raised, about 8 ft. high,
and 254 ft. long. In the centre, and occupying the space of 90 ft., was
the swinging saloon intended for first-class passengers. At either end
of this apartment were the engines and boilers. The engines were
oscillating and expansive, working up to 4,600 horse-power, which could
be increased to 5,000. There were two pairs of engines, one set at
either end of the ship, and each having two cylinders of 80 in. in
diameter, and a stroke of 5 ft., working with steam of 30 lbs. pressure
per square inch, supplied from four box-shaped boilers, each boiler
having four large furnaces. The paddle-wheels, of which there were a
pair on either side of the vessel, were 27 ft. 10 in. in diameter
outside the outer ring, and each wheel has twelve feathering floats. The
leading pair of wheels, when working at full speed, were to make
thirty-two revolutions per minute, and the following pair of wheels move
faster.
Entrance into the Bessemer saloon was gained by two broad staircases
leading to one landing, and a flexible passage from this point to the
saloon. The saloon rested on four steel gudgeons, one at each end, and
two close together near the middle. These were not only to support the
saloon, but also to convey the water to the hydraulic engines, by which
the saloon was to be kept steady. For this purpose the after one was
made hollow, and connected with the water mains from powerful engines,
and also with a supply-pipe leading to a central valve-box, by means of
which the two hydraulic cylinders on either side were supplied with
water. Between the two middle gudgeons, a gyroscope, worked by a small
turbine, filled with water from one of the gudgeons, enabled Mr.
Bessemer to dispense with the services of a man, and thus completed his
scheme of a steady saloon, by making the machinery completely automatic.
The saloon was 70 ft. long, 35 ft. wide, and 20 ft. high. The Bessemer
ship proved to be a total failure, and never went to sea as a passenger
boat.
On board of some modern war-ships where speed is essential, and where
the engines are driven at a very great number of revolutions per minute,
as in the case of torpedo-boat catchers, the vibration throughout the
whole of the vessel becomes extremely trying, not only for the nerves of
the crew, but for the security of the structure itself. The cause of
this vibration and consequent strain and loss of power is not far to
seek. The cylinders of marine engines are always of a large diameter, 6
feet, 8 feet, or even more sometimes, and the pistons and piston-rods
are necessarily of great strength and corresponding weight. Now, at
every half revolution of the engines, this heavy mass of piston and
piston-rod, though moving at an exceedingly high speed in the middle of
the stroke, has to be brought to a standstill, and an equal velocity in
the opposite direction imparted to it. A large portion of the power is
therefore uselessly expended in stopping a great moving mass, and
reversing its motion. All the force required to do this reacts on the
vessel’s frame. Many attempts have been made to construct rotatory
steam-engines, and some hundreds of patents taken out for such
inventions, which in general have a piston revolving about a shaft; but
the great friction, and consequent liability to wear out, have prevented
their practical use.
Lately, a method of using steam on the principle embodied in the water
turbine has been developed, and within the last six or seven years has
found successful application in propelling electro-dynamos at very high
speeds. In the steam turbine there are no pistons, piston-rods, or other
reciprocating parts, the effect depending on the same kind of reaction
that is taken advantage of in the water turbine (which has a high
efficiency in giving out a large proportion of energy), and the power is
applied with smoothness and an entire absence of the oscillations that
would shake to pieces any vessel that an ordinary steam-engine could
propel at the same rate.
The advantages of the steam turbine have been proved by the performances
of a small experimental vessel lately built at Newcastle, and
appropriately named the _Turbinia_. She is only 100 feet in length, and
9 feet in breadth, with a displacement of some 44 tons. Now the highest
record speed for any vessel of that size is 24 knots per hour; but the
_Turbinia_, in a heavy sea, showed, at a measured mile, the speed of 32¾
knots, which is believed to be greater than that of any craft now
afloat, being nearly 37¾ miles an hour, or equal to that of an ordinary
railway train. Besides that, it has been found by experiment, that an
arrangement of the blades of the screw propeller more suitable to high
velocities will enable a still greater speed to be obtained. The weight
of the turbine engines of this vessel is only 3 tons, 13 cwts., and the
whole weight of the machinery, including boilers and condensers, is only
22 tons, with an indicated H.P. of 1576, and a steam consumption of but
16 lbs. per hour. The weight of the turbine is only one-fifth of that of
marine engines of equal power; the space occupied is smaller; the
initial cost is less; not so much superintendence is required; the
charges of maintenance are diminished; reduced dimensions of propeller
and shaft suffice; vibration is eliminated; speed is increased; and
greater economy of fuel is secured.
_THE RIVER AND LAKE STEAM-BOATS OF AMERICA._
The chapter on “Steam Navigation,” in the foregoing pages, has dealt
mainly with the progress of the ocean-going steam-ship, from the
establishment of regular transatlantic services down to the building of
the splendid liners, the _New York_ and the _Paris_, and we have
recorded, in addition, the performances of the pair of hitherto
unsurpassed sister ships, the _Campania_ and the _Lucania_. The
importance and interest attaching to steam navigation is, however, by no
means confined to ocean-going vessels, and the chapter demands a
supplementary notice of the great developments of the steam-ship in
other parts of the world than Britain, more particularly where great
rivers, navigable for hundreds of miles, and lakes, spreading their
waters over vast areas, present conditions of traffic and opportunities
for adaptation to an extent that could not be required within the range
of Britain or British oceanic lines.
[Illustration:
PLATE IX.
THE “MARY POWELL.”
]
If the reader will cast his eye on the map of the United States, he will
see towards the northern boundary a great fresh-water system, comprising
five enormous lakes, the least of which is nearly two hundred, and the
largest nearly three hundred miles in length, in all presenting a total
area greater by far than that of England and Scotland together thrice
told. This lake system has a line of coast to be reckoned only by
thousands of miles, and for a long time an enormous traffic has been
carried across its waters by sailing vessels of all kinds, two- or
three-masted schooners, brigs, and other craft, carrying wood, stone,
lime, and other commodities. On the map, the position of the Detroit
River, which leads from the southern extremity of Lake Huron to Lake
Erie, will readily be recognised, and this strait, which is in the only
line of transport from the three great upper lakes, formerly presented
all the picturesqueness that crowds of boats of every build could
impart. Especially was this the case at Amherstburg, its southern
extremity, where sometimes a northern wind would make the passage
impracticable for several days in succession, and a fleet of a hundred
or two hundred sailing vessels would collect to await the opportunity of
a favouring breeze in order to carry them against the current to Port
Huron. Then, taking advantage of the right moment, they would set their
sails, and in a compact body move slowly up the strait. This was not
quick enough to meet the traffic, and, before long, larger vessels were
built, which were towed up and down the Detroit by steam-tugs. The next
step of replacing sailing ships by steam-vessels was not long in
following, and though there still exist fine specimens of sailing craft
on the lakes, their day may be said to be over. The navigation of these
lakes, before the extensive development of the railway systems near
their shores, comprised a large passenger traffic, which was carried on
by big paddle-wheel steamers, and at the time of the great westward set
of emigration to Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota, these steamers were
crowded to their utmost capacity. The great improvement which in recent
years has become possible for passenger steamers in speed, cabin
accommodation, and other particulars, above all, the growth of great
cities on the shores, the progress of the territories adjoining the lake
system, and other circumstances, are now combining to renew the
passenger traffic on a larger scale than ever. “Fifteen millions of
people,” says Mr. H. A. Griffin, the Secretary of the Cleveland Board of
Control (_Engineering Magazine_, iv., 819), “now live upon the shore
lines of the lakes, or within six hours’ travel by rail, and nearly all
of that population is south of the United States boundary line. The
territory directly tributary to the lakes, north and south of the line,
is capable of easily maintaining a population of 100,000,000.... It does
not require a very lively imagination to foresee the Great Lakes
surrounded by the most prosperous and progressive people on earth, and
crossed and recrossed by scores of lines of passenger steam-ships, in
addition to a still greater number of freight lines.” The number of
first-class passenger steamers already launched or on the stocks is an
indication that the revival of passenger traffic will not lag or be
delayed.
The unique conditions and requirements of this lacustrine traffic were
bound to lead to types of vessels differing in many respects from the
steam-ships to be seen in the harbours of Great Britain. The
introduction of iron shipbuilding gave a great impetus to the
construction of the lake steamers, for vessels of more than 3,000 tons
could be built with a comparatively shallow draught of water (15½ feet),
which was one of the necessities of the situation. As far back as 1872,
iron shipbuilding had been fully established at Cleveland and Detroit,
and at the latter place scores of splendid steel steam-ships have been
turned out. The Cleveland builders have not been far behind, and
Buffalo, Milwaukee, Chicago, and other places, have followed suit. At
the beginning of 1893, there were on the lakes more than fifty vessels
of over 2,000 tons each, while the total number of steam vessels of all
kinds was considerably over 1,600, and sailing vessels with steam-tugs
counted over 2,000. The tonnage of the ships on the lakes has been
estimated at about 36 per cent. of the whole mercantile marine of the
United States, and it is said that 40,000 men are employed upon the
vessels. The total freight passing Detroit in 1892 was calculated to
exceed 34,000,000 tons, an amount greater than the whole foreign and
coasting trade of the port of London. There are more than thirty
shipbuilding concerns on the lakes, and some of them possess large dry
docks of their own; but there are also independent companies owning dry
docks of great size. Some of these shipbuilding establishments have
turned out steel ocean-going tugs, paddle and screw passenger steamers,
cargo-carrying boats, vessels for carrying railway trains across the
Detroit river, etc., etc.
[Illustration:
FIG. 68_a_.—_A Whaleback Steamer, No. 85, Built at West Superior,
Wisconsin._
]
The extent and importance which steam navigation has attained in a
definite region have been indicated in the preceding paragraphs; but an
attempt to show by illustration and description the several
characteristic forms the steam-ship has now assumed in these lacustrine
waters would carry us far beyond our allotted limits. The steam vessels
now on the lakes are almost exclusively actuated by screw-propellers,
whether they are passenger or freight boats. The boilers and engines are
near the stern, and the hulls are usually of great length; in fact, some
of these steamboats will compare in dimensions with the _Persia_, which
was the transatlantic marvel about the year 1857. (See p. 137.) Such is
the _Mariposa_, launched in 1892, which is 350 feet long and 45 feet
broad, carrying 3,800 net tons, with a draught of only 15½ feet. There
are others, 380 feet long, with engines of 7,000 horse-power, steaming
at 20 miles an hour, and providing ample accommodation for 600
passengers. The newest and most novel type of steam-ship on the lakes is
the “whaleback.” The celerity with which ships of this kind have been
constructed on occasion is perfectly marvellous. One of them, named the
_Christopher Columbus_, designed to carry passengers to and from the
World’s Fair at Chicago in 1893, was launched in fifty-six days after
the keel had been laid, yet it was a ship intended to carry 5,000
passengers, having a length over all of 362 feet, breadth 42 feet, depth
24 feet. The “whaleback” steamers are designed to give the greatest
carrying capacity with a given draught of water, and all the structures
usually fitted to the upper deck of a steamer are in them replaced by
the plain curved and closed deck, over which, when the vessel is in a
storm, waves may sweep harmlessly, thus avoiding the shocks received by
ships with high sides.
The river steam-boat was, as we have seen, nearly coeval with the
nineteenth century, and although its practicability was first
demonstrated in British waters, regular steam navigation was not
established until a few years afterwards, when, in 1807, Robert Fulton
placed on the River Hudson its first steam-boat. To this others were
soon added, so that in 1813 there were six steam-boats regularly plying
on the Hudson before a single one ran for hire on the Thames. An article
by Mr. Samuel Ward Stanton, in a recent number of _The Engineering
Magazine_, gives a very full account of the Hudson River steam-boats
from the beginning down to 1894, and to this article we are mainly
indebted for the details we are about to give.
The Hudson River washes the western shore of Manhattan Island, on which
stands by far the greater part of the city of New York, with its vast
population. The river is here straight, and has a nearly uniform width
of one mile; at New York it is commonly called the _North River_,
because of the direction of its course, for it descends from almost the
due north. It is not one of the great rivers of the United States as
regards length or extent of navigation; not, _e.g._, like the
Mississippi and the Missouri, which are ascended by steam-boats to
thousands of miles above their mouths; but it has one of the world’s
great capitals on its shores, and at the quays, which occupy both its
banks to the number of eighty or more, may be seen in multitudes some of
the finest ocean-going steamships, trading to every considerable port in
the world. The North River separates New York from what are practically
the populous suburbs of Jersey City and Hoboken, though these are
controlled by their own municipalities.
It was on the River Hudson that steam navigation was inaugurated by
Fulton with a vessel which was 133 feet long, 18 feet broad, and 7 feet
deep, and was named the _Clermont_. The speed attained was but five
miles an hour. The first trip was made on the 7th August, 1807, to
Albany, 150 miles up the river from New York, with twenty-four
passengers on board, and the new kind of locomotion was so well
patronised that during the following winter, when the Hudson navigation
had to be suspended on account of the ice, it was considered expedient
to enlarge the capacity of the boat by adding both to her length and
width; at the same time her name was changed to _The North River_, and
she plied regularly for several seasons afterwards. Her speed down the
river with the current was evidently greater than that of the first trip
up the river, for on 9th November, 1809, the New York _Evening Post_
announced that “The North River steam-boat arrived this afternoon in
twenty-seven and a half hours from Albany, with sixty passengers.”