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448 In the main machinery consisting of General Electric Curtis type tur- bines and reduction gears the buckets on the first stage of the turbine rotors were partly renewed on account of natural erosion by the steam during the past four years. The original gears are still in place and needed no repairs nor replacements. According to direct information from the chief engineer, the Babcock & Wilcox water tube boilers and Foster superheaters, needed only the regular routine attention and are in fine con- dition. He reported they had given ex- cellent service. In regard to the danger of salting the boilers, the chief engineer has had no difficulty and he considers the attention required to prevent their doing so in the nature of an excellent safety. appliance, as the salt that would hurt these boilers and which would not be serious in Scotch boilers would be damaging to the turbine. In New Orders HIPYARDS along the entire Pa- S cific. coast have more work on hand at present than at any time during the last three years. This .is particularly. true of the wood yards on Puget sound which during the first nine months of this. year have had more new construction and repair work than dur- ing 1921 and*1922 combined. Work at the Seattle wood yards during the nine months ended. Sept. 30 is. estimated at $2,000,000. In addition to numerous small tenders, scows and other equip- ment for logging, lumber and _ fishing companies, the wood yards on Puget sound are at present building 12 wood halibut fishermen. These range from 50 to 90 feet in length and each is to have diesel or semidiesel engines. Todd Dry Docks, Inc., has received « $50,000 repair job on the oil tanker TryJon which was damaged in collision. Thirty plates were damaged, some re- quiring renewal. This contract took three weeks to complete. The same -plant dur- ing the last month has completed several docking and overhauling jobs on trans- pacific vessels. In competition with both Atlantic and Pacific yards, the Todd Drydock & -Construction Co., Tacoma, Wash., has ‘been awarded the contract for .construct- ing a 7000-ton steel passenger and freight ‘steamer for the Southern Pacific line. ‘The vessel is intended for service be- tween New Orleans and New York. ‘President J. A. Eaves, of the Tacoma company, states that work will begin ‘about Dec. 1. The contract calls for MARINE REVIEW the last five voyages in a period of 16 months, over half of which time was spent at sea, it has not been necessary to stop at sea for repairs. All of the auxiliary and deck miachinery have worked well except that at one time some difficulty was experienced supplying steam ‘to. keep all winches working simultaneously. This difficulty was completely over- come by the renewal of the piston valves in the winches by the ships engineers while at sea. * The captain and chief officer report that their experience with the Hoc IsLanp has been satisfactory and _ speci- fically that she is very good ‘in a sea- way, handles well and that practically no trouble has been experienced with her telemotor steering gear or with the anchor windlass. No cargo has been damaged through leaks or any fault of the ship. As a_ proof of confidence in her seaworthiness and the manner of her eon Pacihic a first-class steamer 445 feet in length, 57 feet beam, load draft 28 feet. _ Power «will be furnished by a turbine driving «a single screw and giving a speed of “18 knots. The Canadian Pacific railroad is re- ported to have placed contracts for four steel passenger vessels to ply on the route between Seattle, Vancouver and Victoria, B. C. One of the largest reconditioning and alteration jobs awarded on the Pacific coast ‘in recent months has been taken by Todd Dry Docks, Inc., Seattle, at whose yard the auxiliary steel schooner MoonuitE will be prepared for service. Competing successfully against nine other yards, the Seattle plant was given the award’ at $131,000, time 75 days. The Moon.ite, DAWNLITE and DAYLITE. were purchased from the Standard Oil by the Pacific Steamship Co. The new owners are planning to remodel the ves- sels to fit them for economical operation in the coasting trade. The MoontitrE will be ‘equipped with twin 500-horse- power McIntosh & Seymour diesel eén- gines taken from the motorship BeNowa. The other two steel vessels will later undergo similar changes, auxiliary equip- ment, taken from wooden motorships owned by the same company to be _ in- stalled. Two hundred additional work- men will be added to the yard as a re- sult of this contract. With orders to complete the navy scout cruiser CINCINNATI as rapidly as possible, the Todd Drydock & Con- struction Corp. recently increased its Co.° December, 1923 handling, it is interesting to note that the Hoc Istanp was the first to receive preferential treatment by the Salvage Association in the matter of insurance premiums, placing her on a_ parity with the best foreign ships. The only criticism the chief officer could think of was that ther decks are flat (it was necessary to do away with camber to facilitate fabrication as distinct. from building) and the water does not run off readily. It was noted in an inspection of the ship, however, that the decks are in an _ excelkent state of preservation and in fact the entire structure of the ship shows no signs of deterioration. The above account it is hoped will be received as it is intended—as a fair, unbiased account of the history of one freighter of the American merchant marine representing a large block of useful and dependable ships built as the result of the exigencies and pressure of war. Yards Busy working force at Tacoma by 150 men. The Crncinnatr is the third and last cruiser to be delivered under a contract awarded less than two years ago. Repaired at Yarrows, Inc., Esquimalt, B. C., at a cost of close to $200,000, the British steamship SIBERIAN PRINCE has been redelivered to her owners and loaded cargo at north Pacific ports for Europe. The vessel was damaged in July by running aground. The Matson Navigation Co. announces that within six months bids will be in- vited for constructing a $6,000,000 pas- senger and freight liner for service be- tween the Pacific coast and the Hawaiian islands. The new steamer is to have a speed of about 21 knots and accommo- dations for 500 first-class passengers. Three types of motive power will be considered, diesel, turbine-electric and steam turbine. Pacific coast builders, it is stated, will be afforded every oppor- tunity to compete with the larger east- ern yards. The Alaska Consolidated Canneries has purchased from the Lake Union Dry- dock & Machine Works the wood ship- building plant at Houghton, Lake Wash- ington, outside of Seattle. It is planned to operate this yard at increased capac- ity, catering especially to the fishing industry. Pillsbury & Curtis, San Francisco ma- rine surveyors, have been awarded the contract for salvaging all movable parts and equipment of the seven navy de- stroyers which were wrecked off the southern California coast in September. Pe = et ee tae ee