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'Oh, that's easy, he laughingly an- swered, 'I know how to turn a crank myself,' " No doubt a certain sense of securi- ty is derived by the passenger not acquainted with ship equipment and handling when such an _ important matter as lifeboat launching gear and its simplicity of operation can be readily understood. 'This sense of security no doubt adds to the passenger traffic of. a vessel, and will more than pay the owners for the small extra ex- penditure of equipping their ships with such a simple and practical de- vice. A NEW LIFE PRESERVER. The accompanying photograph shows an interesting comparison be- tween the ordinary cork life pre- server now. in use and one of unique construction lately approved by the Board of Supervising Inspectors and about (to <be placed on, the: miggket CORK LIFE BELT. A-B-C LIFE "BELT, by the Lane & De Groot Co, the manufacturers. This new life pre- server, known as: the A' B.C. re- sembles in general construction the older type. The manufacturers have, however, found a material which is about one-third lighter than tcork, and 'have therefore been able to re- duce the size of the lifebelt by a considerable extent and still main- tain greater buoyancy than with the ordinary cork belt. This material is coated with a solution which entirely prevents the water or dampness of atmosphere penetrating the same, this advantage ibeing perhaps the most im- portant so far as maintenance goes, the covers and straps being thus pre- vented from destruction by mildew and rot and the life of the preserver considerably prolonged. The material used in the manufacture of the cover and straps is of an exceptionally high grade, tthe stitching also being ot the best workmanship. The whole is most compact, efficient and_ satisfac- tory, and even if the first cost should be a little more than the ordinary life preserver now in use we sincerely "'TAE MarRINE. REVIEW believe it will pay our readers to com- municate with the Lane & De Groot Company, at 17 Battery Place, New York City, and further investigate the matter. In conjunction our notice a photograph readers' will of one of the Lane & De Groot metallic lifeboats, which have, by the way, been long considered the standard of their kind, particularly the Atlantic on Coast. LANE AND DEGROOT LIFEBOAT. A poorly-constructed lifeboat is a source of constant trouble, dissat- isfaction, and eventual loss of life, whereas boats and rafts of superior build will, last twice as long and need fewer repairs than those of inferior make. In case of accident or disaster the owner of a vessel equipped with a good make of lifeboats feels that he has done his utmost to safeguard the passengers and crew by placing an outfit on the vessel that is a real life-saving equipment a fact that the crew of the vessel can always appre- ciate. INSTALLATIONS OF THE NICHOLSON SHIP LOG. Messrs. Barrett & Lawrence, east- ern agents of the Nicholson Ship Log Co., have recently closed a contract to equip the large steam yacht "Alcedo,". owned by G. W, Childs Drexel, of Philadelphia, with the No. 1 Nicholson log. This log is with- out question the most scientific and perfect instrument of its kind yet produced. It is the only log on the market that will indicate the speed of the vessel, count the knots run, record the vessel's speed and be in- valuable not only to the navigator but also tthe engineer. Indicator cards taken from the instrument in- stalled on the scout cruiser Chester recently show considerable improve- ment in steady steaming conditions, whereas the line shown when the in- strument was first installed was quite irregular; the improvement being due to the fact that the engine depart- ment. was able to tell at a glance if the vessel was maintaining an even speed. Economy in coal consump- tion, resulting from a uniform speed being maintained, is a most important point and one that should receive the 69 closest attention and consideration of the ship owner. Another feature which makes the Nicholson log invaluable is its ex- treme sensitiveness to varying depths of the water under the vessel. In other words, if the vessel is running at a given speed in deep water and suddenly runs into shoal water the racing of the water aft to the pro- peller will cause the instrument to suddenly show increased speed. This is a point that was developed on the U. S. SY Maine. The Nicholson eiip log is now being installed on a num- ber of vessels of the United States and other: navies, and if in use if many vessels of the merchant marine. JONES STOKERS IN LAKE VES- | SELS. 3 The Under-Feed Stoker Co. of America, Marquette building, Chicago, manufacturers of the Jones. stoker, has sent us copies of two letters re- lating to marine installations of Jones stokers. One of these letters is from Mr. G <A. Tomlinson, Duluth, and covers quite completely the results shown by the operation of the six Jones stokers in the big steamer "Tames E. Davidson,' «during the season just closed. Views of this vessel and the stoker equipment are shown elsewhere in these pages. The other letter referred to is from Mr. Francis T. Simmons, president, the commissioners of Lincoln park, Chicago. In his -letter Mr. Simmons covers most thoroughly every feature of smoke abatement, economical ap- eration, saving of labor, maintenance, © and the general satisfaction derived from the installation of eight Jones stokers in the boilers of the big hydraulic dredge "Francis T. Sim- mons." Both of the letters mentioned will, we understand, appear reproduced in identical form in separate bulletins descriptive of these installations and which will be ready for distribution within a few days. On account of the very emphatic statements made by the gentlemen mentioned we are cer- tain that the bulletins will be of con-- siderable interest to marine men in® general. ple The Nelson Valve Co. of Philadelphia have recently established two branch of- fices in the Middle West to keep pace with their rapidly expanding business ; one of them in Detroit, at 822-23 Penob- scot building, the other in Cleveland at 814-13 Perry-Payne building. John M. Bulkley has been appointed sales manager for the territory of Ohio and Michigan. |