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| | MARINE REVIEW. 9 _ Finding Bottom in the Sault River, As had been expected, vessels are finding shoal spots in the Sault river, and the first to be reported are in the immediate vicinity of the new canal lock. Capt. Daniel Buie of the Wilson line steamer Yuma sends a strong letter of protest to his owners from Buffalo, where he has just deliverd a cargo of grain from Fort William. His vessel was drawing, it is claimed,not more than a fraction of an inch over 16 feet when she passed through the canal. He says: "Coming down the Sault canal this time the Yuma struck and rubbed heavy on the miter sill of the guard gate. This striking was caused from filling the lock, which lowered the water in the canal about 18 inches. Some regulations governing the filling of the new lock should certainly be put in force; otherwise there will be consid- erable damage inflicted this year to vessel property in the canal, that will more than offset all the supposed advantages of the patrol serv- ice below the canal. After I got out of the lock and when in the jaws of the canal piers, about 1,500 feet, more or less, below the lock, the vessel again struck bottom. It is, of course, expected by everybody that there is plenty of water at this point. Werubbed heavy. I will examine the bottom as soon as unloaded. Itisa burning shame to think that this government work should be pronounced all right, and the channels declared open to deep-laden vessels, when a pile of un- known rock is left directly in the middle of this important channel and just about astone's throw from what we are told is the greatest lock in the world. There are obstructions just below the Canadian lock, but the people over there are interested enough in the welfare of vessel property to tell us of the dangerous spots and also to put stakes on them."' Official Trial of the Annapolis. FIRST VESSEL OF LARGE TYPE IN THE UNITED STATES NAVY TO BE EQUIP- PED WITH ALL WATER TUBE BOILERS--THEY ARE OF THE BABCOCK & WILCOX TYPE. The trial of the Annapolis, the first finished of the six composite gunboats ordered by the government in the early part of 1896, took place on Long Island sound April 22. An account of the trial from official sources has just been received. The Annapolis was constructed at the Crescent Ship Yard, Lewis Nixon manager, Elizabethport, N.J., and although her contract was the last given out she was the first boat finished. This vessel is 204 feet long, 36 feet wide and 22 feet 34 inches deep. Her displacement is 1,090 tons on a draught of 12 feet. As this is the first vessel of large type in the United States navy to be equipped with all water tube boilers, a report of the trial will prove especially interesting. The bureau of steam engineerring has hereto- fore preferred the use of water tube boilers in connection with those of the Scotch type, but after repeated investigations and at the request of the constructors, Babcock & Wilcox, all forged steel boilers were adopted for both the Annapolis and Marietta. This type of boiler is so well known that it will be unnecessary to enter into a description of it, other than to say that all the tubes are straight and placed on an angle of 15 degrees with the horizontal. The tubes are expanded at their ends into forged steel headers, which are provided with openings opposite the end of each tube, through which a thorough examination of the tubes can be made and the tubes cleaned and renewed. By means of a steam jet inserted between the headers, all soot deposits can be removed from the exterior of the tubes. Sur- mounting the sections of tubes is a steam and water drum, 42 inches diameter and 10 feet long. All openings leading into and out of the drum are 4 inches in diameter, insuring an absolutely free circulation of steam and water and a steady water line. Steam to 200 pounds pres- Sure can be raised from cold water in half an hour, this being a most important feature in boilers for a warship. The steam supplied to the engines was absolutely dry, not a drop of water being found in the Separator at the end of trial. The Babcock & Wilcox boilers in the Annapolis are built for a working pressure of 250 pounds to the square inch, there being two in number, supplying steam to a triple expansion engine having cylin- ders 15, 244 and 40 inches diameter, and a stroke of 28 inches. Spe- cifications for the boilers called for a total of 3,600 square feet of heat- ing surface and 94 square feet of grate, giving a ratio of about 38 to 1, the contract speed to be 12 knots and indicated horse power 800. From the performance of the boilers on the builder's trial it was shown that over 900 I. H. P. could be developed under natural draft, al- though the funnel is very short. On the official trial, forced draft in the ash pit was used, each boiler supplied by air from independent Sturtevant fans, the average air pressure in the ash pit being limited to one inch of water. The following table gives the steam, air pressure and speed in knots: : tine) g Bolen a aes ane REMARKS, a.m. Pounds. Port. Starboard. 9:00 220 78 .68 9:15 220 .85 1.10 9:30 230 1.10 .65 10:00 223 | .92 -70 1O:T5 | 225 | 55 vil 10:30 | 223 82 82 10:45 | 225 -98 85 TO:49 |) assess Vs ta cas tects ea (iets aes eae Passed 24-knot stake boat | _ and turned for home. 11:00, 223 | .92 OI TI:15 218 | .76 1.15 11:30 232 65 1.10 11:45 222 .9I .80 12:00 224 | 1.00 .80 12315 | 222 I.12 1.20 12:30 232 | 1.00 1.00 Indicated horse power, main engine, 1,379. URYAG 234 1.20 1.20 12°47 240 [ee See aetna Full speed until 1 p. m., to complete four-hour trial. Aver- age 226 .90 91 SPEED TRIAL, 48 KNOTS. Stakeboat. Knots. Time. Bpeed au Min. | Sec. 6 26 OF, 19 12 27 I 13.3 18 27 18 13.2 24 28 10 12.8 30 28 17 mee 36 26 00 13.8 42 25 49 14.0 48 25 2% 14.20 Average speed, 13.43 knots per hour. Maximum speed, 14.18 knots per hour. Minimum speed, 12.7 knots per hour. The maximum indicated horse power developed by the main en- gine was 1,400, the average being 1,320 at 147 revolutions per minute. The collective indicated horse power will average about 1,360. The maximum speed was 14.2 knots and the minimum 12.7. This low figure occurred through the pilot losing sight of the Leyden's cutter on the first six-mile leg of the return course John Patterson, Cramp's veteran engineer, was aboard asa guest. He declined to be a guest and turned up in the engine room in overalls before the trial was fairly started. His great ambition was to get up fire enough to burn the paint off the smoke stack. The new water-tube boilers foiled him. The combustion in them was so complete that the smoke stack refused to become hot, whereat Mr. Patterson, who had seen thirteen trial trips, beginning with the Vesuvius in 1889, marvelled but was - satisfied. When the end of the "four hours at full speed" test was reached the helm was put hard to port and to starboard, without reduc- ing the speed, and the little vessel made circles with a diameter of 400 feet. In turning she heeled only 3.5 degrees. Before leaving the Annapolis, Commodore Dewey said that he ~ was going to send this telegram to the secretary of the navy: *'Annap- olis trial most satisfactory; speed 13.48."" '"'It is not customary and hardly proper,' said the commodore, "to use adjectives in such des- patches, but really, this time it cannot be hele She deserves them."' The proposition to use the Pintsch system of gas lights in station- ary light-houses, or towers, that are to mark the new Grosse point cut suggests the idea that before long the government may find it ad- visable to dispense with light keepers, especially in isolated places, and use this system. It would seem that such a plan is at least worthy of consideration. A new lead for deep sea sounding carries a cartridge which ex- plodes on touching the bottom. A submerged microphone receives the sound, and the depth is estimated from the time occupied by the lead in sinking. Appointments of captains and engineers for 1897, vest eel size, $1.00. Order from the Marine Review, Cleveland, Ohio. Ee ee Oa he a ates