SHIPS AND THE SEA.

Evening Post, Volume LXXI, Issue 142, 16 June 1906, Page 12

SHIPS AND THE SEA.

Captain Rottgers, of the German sailing ship Sachsen, which arrived at New York at the end of March from. Kobe, had an experience on his lost voyage of a very remarkable mirage. On the horizon, an hour before sunset, they sighted a four-inastied barque under full sail. Several of the men were on the yards, and suddenly one of them fell from the spar into the sea. In a. moment it could be seen that the crew were taking in canvas. Soon several other men appeared at the davits and a boat was lowered. The boat was manned and pulled away some little distance. The man in the bow then reached over and picked something out of the water and the boat returned 1 . The whole scene waa seen almost) as clearly as if it had taken place but a few yards away, and as suddenly it vanished. The next day the Sachsen sighted the barque which had been seen in mirage, and the captain hailed it. The event took place exactly as they had seen it a distance of, they calculated, 50 miles away. ivlany enquiries have been made as to how shipping in port at San Francisco fared during the recent disastrous earthquake, and advices to hand- show that the damage done was of a comparatively trifling character. The only casualties notified to Lloyd's were in the following terms : — "City of Puebla, hull pierced by falling shears ; hull partially full, but well out of water ; not serious." "Columbia, on dry dock, thrown from blockß, breaking hydraulic dock in middle, longitudinally ; vessel at angle 45 degrees : water to level of outside, but decks well above water ; consider position and damage starboard side very serious." "Neir steamers Mexican and' Columbian very seriously damaged j all keel and bilge blocks gone ; vessels dropped to ground ; now rest on pile timbers ; 'damage 1 * to hull very serious. No other damage shipping known at present." Some concern was felt at the Navy Department, Washington, regarding the fate of the Union Iron Works at San Francisco, where three warships — tho armoured cruisers California ■ and South Dakota, of 13,680 tons each, and the protected cruiser Milwaukee, of 9700 tons — are under construction for the Government. A later telegr&m, however, stated that the ships escaped injury. The Pacific Mail Steamship; Company reported that the Mongolia, Barracoutla, and Acapulco were safe at San Francisco. The gtory of how a Liverpool captain's wife performed an act of bravery when the ship 'Was at the niercy of a gale (cays the Liverpool* Weekly Mercury of a cecent date) is modestly told by the lady j herself m a letter to a friend. The Liverpool ship Ancenis was on a voyage from Fremantle to Port Natal, and when' nearing the South African coast she encountered a very heavy gale, when three members of the crew were washed overbon.rd a.n<i jTowued- On.pta.in SaAter- wcm» caught by a. heavy sea and flung againsU the rail, with the result that his head was split open. Mrs .Salter procured needle, thread, and bandages, and made her way to her injured husband, and whilst standing up to her waistl in water she put ten stitches in his head. With such skill was this done that in ten days the wound had practically healed. On line vessel's arrival at Durban the wound was examined by a medical man, who found that there were no signs of suppuration, and complimented Mrs. Salter very highly for her skilful treatment. ' In reply to questions asked by the members of , the Federal Shipping Commission, Mr. T. A. Coghlan, the AgentlGeneral for New South Wales, has furnished the commission with some information which shows how costly it would be for the federation to establish a stateowned steamship line betlwecn Australia and Great Britain. Sir. Coghlan states that the cost of a steamer of from 10,000 to 15,000 tons, fitted on tlhe lines of the R.M.S. Mongolia, with a. speed of 16 knots an hour, would be £350,000; 17 knots, £377,000 ; 18 knots, £403,000 ; 19 knots, £433.000 ; and 20 knots, £466,000. If fitted with tlurbine machinery the cost would be slightly greater. Assuming good delivery, Coghlan states that it would be possible for a firm to deliver the first vessel in 15 or 18 months, and additional vessels at intervals of six months. He dwells upon the advantages of tuibino machinery, and says that "all the evidence points to tlhe fact that the construction of larger passenger-mail ships is to be revolutionised by this method of propulsion." First-class intermediate steamers for the carriage of cargo and perishable products of about 11,500 tons register, could, Mr. C6ghlan says, be purchased for — 14 knots, £282,000; 15 knots, £295,000; and 16 knots, £311,000; but he points out that his calculations are only approximate, and that flhey do not include items like crockery, crystal, napery, cutlery, silver plate, etc. The following comparative table will show at a glance the enormous proportions of the world's eight largest sbeamers owned by British, German, and French companies : —

The LusiUania. and Mauritania — the two leviathan turbine Cunarders — which are being built under agreement ■with the British Government, are being rapidly proceeded with. Both vessels, it is expected, will be in commission next year. The Kaiserin Auguste Victtoria belongs to the Germans, while the White Star liner Adriatic is at present the largest British vessel float The Amerikn. belongs to the Hamburg-American line, and tUie Caronia and Carmnnia are the Wo recently* launched Cunarders. The La. Provence, the largest vessel owned by France, left Havre on her maiden voyage to New York a few weeks ago. While she ii smaller than the British and German liners mentioned above, she is faster than any of them — excepting, of course, the new Cunardors now being built. The La Provence did ft little over 23 knots on trial with just a shrde more power than the 30,000 indicated, the draught being 26ft 9in,' and tlhe displacement 19,190 tons. The capacity of her bunkers is 3200 tons. The hull, which is of Riemens-Mavtin steel exclusively, is exceptionally well built. A double bottom, divided into ten compartments by watertight bulkheads, and having a total capacity of 1800 tons, extends from end to end, and the whole space above ifc is divided into 20 compartment's by watertight bulkheads, the doors of which are fitted with the Stone-Lloyd hydraulic apparatus for closing -them. In addition to this provision, powerful steam pumps are installed, capable of discharging 3000 tons of wnter an hour.

In putting down a cement floor to be used for separators it is well to have a pier built about 2in higher than the floor, and about the size of the separator base This tends to prevent dirt from lodging under the separator when scrubv blug the floo^

Vessel. Length, feet. I.H.P. Lusitania Mauritania Kniserin Auguste Victoria ... Adriatic .., ... Amerika ... ■ ... Caronia Carrnania ... La Provence 787.6 787.6 727.6 727.6 690.0 675.0 675.0 627.0 33,200 33,200 25,000 25,000 22,250 19,594 19,524 30,000