| Show TERROR A TORPEDO BOAT ALL FOR the power boch OR and under the water another step in tho progress of wi der water warfare was recorded at southampton when a second series of trials conducted with the den felt submarine torpedo boat 0 which mr T Norden the mown manufacturer guns is the inventor it may be necessary to briefly repeat that the fishlike monster resembles a whitehead torpedo in contour and a first class torpedo boat in dimensions though even when not submerged and steaming with its funnels erect it presents nothing more than its turtle back to the lire of an enemy it measures fee in length and has a diameter of 12 feet at tho section which is a perfect circle the forward and after sections being composed of two arcs of a circle gradually diminishing in size extremities the total displacement when submerged is equal to tons and tons when light the propelling power is represented by a single screw which is driven by a pair oi double cylinder compound engines working upon four cranks diametrically set and capable of developing ve a collective power of 1000 horses there are other engines for circulating the water steering the vessel producing forced draught worling the submerging thac boat and expelling the torpedoes through the bows abeam is supplied by two boilers v at a maximum prepare of pounds to the square inch but the supreme novelty oi design and construction is the appliances by which she is enabled to sink below the surface of the water and to rise at will safety being secured by the fact that a reserve of buoyancy is always retained sufficient to brina her up automatically should anything happen to go wrong with the machin cry As a matter of fact after the vessel has been immersed to within a foot of the surface by admitting w iter within a number of tanks placed below the inner deck she is then forced under the water by the action of a couple of horizontal screws working in apertures aper tures freely open to the sea in the stem and stem tho depth of her descent being indicated by which is adjustable to a few inches when the motion oi the screws is arrested the boat rises in the water by its own buoyancy to the same height at which it was when the screws were set going its further elevation being accomplished by pumping out the tanks before total submersion the in the are hermetically scaled and so extin gui shed and after the funnels have been stowed and the scuttles battened down the boat is worked by preserve of accumulated sloam which is stored up in reservoirs at an initial pressure of pounds in tin s condition it ia said the craft can remain submerged for a period of five hours and with a continuous speed of five knots but where it is not necessary to economize th power for that length ol 01 time the speed can be increased by admitting steam more freely to the engines the centre of gravity ol 01 the boat in ita least stable condition is six inch es below the centre of figure while the mata centre in its bosl unfavorable position is placed two inches below the centre boat she carries about thirty five tons of cold water in her tanks and twenty seven tons of hot water in the boilers which as expected to retain sufficient heat to drive the boat a distance of twenty scots the boilers can be blown out in five and the cold water is pumped out by three pumps driven by kep arate engines who coal bunkers which are situated in the middle of the vessel hold eight tons of coal A ton will drive the boat miles at a speed of 10 knots while abc a speed of 8 knots the total fuel earned is calculated to drive her 1000 miles should it however be intended to travel a groat distance 20 additional tons of coal can be stowed in the wa ter tanks tho has two bow tubes and is proposed to arm her with two two pound quick firing guns the was lying in the inner dock with her funnels in position and in the light trim for service as an ordinary torpedo boat since the lacot trial somo alterations had been made in the arrangements of her machinery whereby the inventor guarantees an enhanced speed ol 01 seventeen knots in her surface condition A ventilating shaft in line with the funnels had also been fitted ats well as a flat deck level with the tie top for the convenience of the men of whom she carries dmd passing between the cupolas cu in other respects she was unchanged the party embarked on board the alex screw steamer and proceeded out on southampton water as far as den felt which however easily passed the steamer As accurately as could be estimated she went at a speed of fifteen knots without any rolling motion and aier engines worling so noiselessly that no sound could be lioard the alexandria then returned towards southampton and when a distance of about yards the effective range oa had been placed between her and the the latter approached end an saeed with the object of allowing the company to judge of the difficulty of sighting hr oven in her surface trim the afternoon was dull and h play of light so fitful that it was at the beetch throes difficult to distinguish heff sometimes only her forward fannella fanne Laa visible at other times her position was only anaed by the crest of the bow wave a t r W t i i art c jaw ys as which at ahagh speed not only ef conceal the hull but acts a a protection while occasionally when obscured by the shade of a assini daoud she entirely vanished observation rom for several second chis completed the first trial the second was devoted to a night atack it was known that capt gar submerge the boat in tho docks but as it was supposed that he inight attempt a surprise from soma unknown point of the compass a long and weary watch was kept up on board from five until near upon eight the moon came out and cast a shimmer of light upon the water and it was thought that the enemy would be certain to be detected in crossing the ray presently however a nimbus cloud cama floating over the scene from the northwest and rain began to fall followed by total obscuration to make mat tors worse a largo german mail steamer anchored close at hand and a number of tenders with colored and and masthead lights began to move about the alexandrian Alex andrias headlight on tho other hand was of indifferent brilliancy and juat as those on board had made up their minds that capt garrett had lost his bearings or he had delivered his attack in some other direction by mistake or that he had met with an accident a whistle abc some distance to windward aroused the drooping spirits of the watchers this was at ten minutes to eight and nothing further occurred until after the lapse of twenty minutes when a grampus like blowing was heard about a hundred yards away on the port bow which was afterwards ascertained certa ined to have been caused by an attempt to free the whistle from water on the boat emerging from below the surface some imagined they could perceive the outline near at hand but the majority were sceptical and it was not until the skipper blew a loud blast from his whistle and exhibited a light to signify that the attack bad the spectators had really any tangible evidence of the presence of the enemy it appeared that capt garrett had begun his approach on a slack tide about six at a cautious speed of not more than four knots and at a depth of five feet bolow the surface the lights of the many craft on the water and the arrival of a neat of fishing vessels under sail which showed no lights at all somewhat confused him apprehensive of being run into ho deemed it necessary to rise for observations at avory fifty or sixty yards tho attack was very cleverly conducted under great disadvantages and proved a genuine surprise of course it is quite possible that tho electric searchlight might have succeeded in discovering the boat during one of its look it would have disappeared long before any gun could be wrought to bear upon it and even if this were not the case as only the forward cupola which is nothing more than a helmet large enough to contain a mans head would have been visible the chance of a hit would be exceedingly remote on the other hand as the position of the opposing vessel would itself have been clearly defined by the light the balance of advantage would boon the side of the attack london times |
