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20 : MARINE REVIEW. [Séptember 27, -- -MARINE REVIEW erchant Marine, the Navy, Ship Building, and er Kindred Interests. Published every Thursday at No. 418-19 Perry-Payne building, Cleveland, Ohio, by THE MARINE REVIEW PUBLISHING Co. SusscripTion--$3.00 per year in advance; foreign, including postage, $4.50, or 19 shillings. Wee Goplen 10 cents each. Convenient binders sent, post paid, $1.00. , Advertising rates on application. Entered at Cleveland Post Office as Second-class Mail Matter. The launch of the torpedo boat O'Brien at Lewis Nixon's Crescent Ship Yard, Elizabethport, N. J., on Monday of this week, recalls history. The boat is named O'Brien to perpetuate the memory of the O'Briens of revolutionary fame, and if she is commanded by a crew as gallant as her name she will be a dauntless craft. Morris O'Brien, who lived at Machias, Me., had three sons, William, John and Joseph. When the news of the battle of Lexington reached Machias the liberty-loving people of the town erected a liberty pole. The British authorities were soon apprised of this fact, and sent' the sloop-of-war 'Margaretta from Boston to investigate the affair. This is where the O'Brien brothers come in. They executed a coup de etat and captured the Margaretta. The sword of Lieut. Moore, commanding the sloop, was presented to Joseph O'Brien, the youngest of the brothers. The descendants of Joseph have it yet, It was exhibited at the launching. The boat was christened by Miss Mira Lincoln O'Brien, the great-great-great-granddaughter of Joseph O'Brien. The O'Brien is 175 ft. long, 17 ft. beam and 14 ft. 6 in. draught. The vessel is constructed throughout of steel. Whatever woodwork is used on her has been elec- trically treated. The*piston rods, shafts, connecting rods and all working parts are of nickel steel. Engines four-cylinder, triple-expansion, with one high power cylinder 18 in. in diameter, one intermediate power cylin- der 27 in. in diameter, and two low power cylinders 27% in. in diameter, each with an 18-in. stroke. The boat lies low in the water and will be difficult to locate with the searchlight. At present Boston is the foremost city engaged in the effort for the redemption of the American merchant marine. The effort is none the less patriotic because it is personal. The transatlantic trade of Boston is controlled absolutely by foreign ship owners and during the past year it has suffered much by the withdrawal of so much tonnage by the British lines for governmental purposes. All the crack liners were removed and their places taken by slower boats. The result has been that the export trade of Boston has suffered seriously during the present year. The firm of Kidder, Peabody '& Co. is the first to take advantage of this condition. They are engaged in a courageous and meritorious effort to rehabilitate the American merchant marine. They have placed an order for two steamships, aggregating $1,500,000 jointly, with the Maryland Steel Co. They make this venture without the aid of the shipping bill; if the ship- ping bill should pass they will build a fleet. The steamers are tramps. They will carry American commerce abroad, and when abroad will carry freight for anyone who pays them. At present 93 per cerit. of Boston's commerce goes abroad in foreign bottoms, so that the new freighters ought not to lack employment. With the fall in the price of steel and with high freights prevailing, owing to shortage of tonnage, there is no reason why ships should not make a good return upon the investment. An unusually large amount of new equipment is being ordered by rail- roads. The New York Central has placed an order with the American Car {& Foundry Co. for 500 box cars of 60,000 pounds capacity. The Pressed Steel Car Co., of Pittsburg, has received a contract for 1,000 cars for the Northern Pacific. The Kansas City Southern has ordered ten compound locomotives, and the Oregon Short Line is in the market for locomotives. Estimates on the construction of new steel cars have been asked by the Lake Shore '& Michigan Southern Co. The Chicago Great Western has ordered ten Baldwin compound locomotives. The Buffalo, Rochester & Pittsburg has furnished specifications to the Carnegie Steel Co. for 2,500 tons of steel rails, for delivery next year at prevaling prices. While reducing the land force in China, President McKinley has decided to increase the naval force in Chinese waters, so that American interests may be ampky protected. The following orders have therefore been issued: The Dorothea, at League island, and the Annapolis, at Norfolk, have been ordered to fit out for the Asiatic station. The Wil- mington has 'been ordered to the Asiatic station via the Mediterranean -and will be replaced on the South Atlantic station by the Atlanta. The Albany, at Piraeus, has been ordered to Manila. The Kentucky and Vicksburg have been ordered to the New York yard to fit out for the Asiatic station. Coincidently with the discussion of the subject in the English service papers, the bureau of construction and repair, Washington, has under ad- visement a re-opening of the question of metal vs. wood for interior fit- tings of war ships. Considerable data have been collected on this inter- esting question, and it is not improbable that some modifications in existing practice may be recommended. REPORT ON THE ALABAMA. THE VESSEL IS FOUND SATISFACTORY, BUT HAVAL CONSTRUCTOR CAPPS MAKES RECOMMENDATIONS REGARDING IMPROVEMENTS IN FUTURE SHIPS THAT MEET WITH APPROVAL OF THE DEPARTMENT. The board of inspection and survey has submitted its report to the secretary of the navy upon the official trial trip of the Alabama. As for- merly announced, the vessel's mean speed is 17.013 knots per hour. The average revolutions of the starboard engine were 113.27 and of the port engine 114.72. The maximum steam pressure at the boilers was 180 Ibs. and the average 176.6. The displacement at the trial draught of 28 ft. 6 in. was 11,570 tons, the weight of the machinery being 1,131.17 tons. Naval Constructor W. L. Capps, in a report to Rear Admiral Rodgers, makes the following recommendations: a "As a whole the bottom was in excellent condition, both as regards fouling and corrosion---this condition being unquestionably due to her -having been in fresh water almost continually since her last docking, which had taken place more than twenty-six months previously. The. bottom itself, after careful examination, showed no evidence of bad work- manship, or that the vessel had taken the ground with any force since launching. The plating was fair, and there were no signs of leaky seams, butts, or rivets, and the ship itself showed no evidence of straining through docking. The draught marks forward and aft were carefully veri- fied and arrangements completed for observing the heeling of the vessel and the outline of the wave profile on the ship's side, vertical rows oi figures one foot in height being placed at frequent intervals on both sides of the ship for the more accurate determination of the wave profile by observation from the ship itself while running at high speed. * * * "The Alabama averaged 17.013 knots on the official trial course; and immediately after passing No. 1 buoy on the return passage, the helm was tried under the maximum speed of the vessel, with the following results: "Time to put helm from amidships to hard astarboard, 12 seconds. "Time to put helm from hard astarboard to hard aport, 20 seconds. "Time of completing full circle with starboard helm, 4 minutes, 2 seconds. "Time of completing full circle with port helm, 4 minutes, 40 seconds. © "List to port when turning with port helm, 3% degrees. "List to starboard when turning with starboard helm, 3% degrees. "The ammunition hoists, except those of the 13-in. guns, were tested, and, with the exception ofa slight defect in the after 6-pounder hoist. s _were found quite satisfactory. Winches, anchor engines, steering gear, ship's blowers, boat cranes, and electric hatch rising gear were all exam- ined and worked satisfactorily. The electric turning gear for the 13-in. turrets was not complete and could not be tested. It should be subjected to tests before acceptance of the vessel. "Actual inspection of the vessel in New York and during her trial trip off Cape Ann; and reports of officers quartered on the vessel on her recent trial trip, make it evident that additional ventilation is necessary for the amidship berth deck spaces and the after end of the upper deck. The actual quantity of air supplied by the blowers of the Alabama is much less than that available on the Kearsarge and Kentucky, vessels of the same general dimensions, recently inspected by the board. This difference is due, in great part, to the lower speed of the steam-driven blowers of the Alabama, and the necessarily tortuous lead of the supply pipes. But, without changing in any marked* degree the present arrangement of blowers and air ducts, it is believed that a very great improvement in the ventilation can be provided without interfering in any way with the effi- ciency of the ship, or resorting to radical changes. The proposed changes are as follows: IMPROVEMENT IN VENTILATION. "1. To provide a direct supply of fresh air to the petty officers' quar- ters on the berth deck by means of a ventilator carried from the after part of the petty officers' quarters, to such a height that the cowl willbe above the upper bridge awning. An inspection of the ship and a careful location of the obstructions on each deck, indicate that a ventilator at least 16 in. in diameter can 'be installed for this space; and, as it is forward of the smoke stack, and high enough to get a free supply of fresh air, it can always be used as a direct supply. _ "2. For the group of three warrant officers' rooms located amidships (an arrangement made after the original design of the vessel was pre- pared, and in order to accommodate the additional warrant machinists authorized by the act of March 3, 1899), a direct ventilator can be pro- vided, the upper portion being divided and carried above the level of the vegetable lockers on the bridge deck. When steaming it may be found advantageous to use this ventilator as an exhaust, but when at anchor it would probably be preferable to use it as a supply. : 3. To provide permanent trunks between the coal chute openings on main and upper decks, between frames 55 and 56, the opening on the upper deck 'being provided with a short portable mushroom ventilator. These chutes are at present provided with portable trunks between the main and upper decks, but the fitting of permanent trunks does not inter- fere in any material degree with the clear space on the decks, and, as they are 30 in. in diameter, with a direct opening to the air space above the upper deck, the outlet for hot air from the berth deck will be very great and will materially lower the temperature in that compartment. '4. It is also recommended that short portable ventilating trunks be provided for the loading scuttle openings on main and upper decks, be- tween frames 45 and 46 and 40 and 41, to provide additional escapes for the hot air in the berth deck compartment immediately over the boilers. 5. As an additional means of reducing the temperature in this over- heated space it is recommended that the under side of the protective deck immediately above the boilers be coated with a non-conductor, such as silicate of magnesia or asbestos board, and the supply ducts for the amid- ship quarters of warrant and petty officers be made more direct and of a oo than ee at present installed. '6. ne alter part of the upper deck, under th 1 i = usually overheated, the hot air from the engine foce bole dee into a pocket under the lower bridge without sufficient means of escape. This can be remedied by cutting a hatch in the bridge deck immediately over the engine hatch and in size about 5 ft. by 8 ft. 6 in., and covered by a flush grating so as not to interfere: with traffic, proper compensation be-