Untitled

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XLII, Issue XLII, 18 May 1907, Page 1

> • • "Foor sailors" and 'thosa who dremd the discomfort of an ocean . passage maj r take heart of grace. At the concluding* moetinK of the Institution of Naval Architects. UAd in London. Sir William H. Whito. lato chief constructor to the Brit- ; ish navy, called forth visicv s of stoamers .that do not rock. Sir Willialm was putt'JUE before tthe mombers tho results of experiments*) with Dr. Schlick's gyroscopic apparatus for steadying ships. The experiments were carried out on o German first-class torpedo-boat . tho apparatus (a fly wheel oik metro in diameter, oscillating* on trunnions, and making* ud to 3000 revolutions a minute) being placed in « compartment ihefore tho boiler-room. Your boy's gyroscopic top will illustrate the apparatus used. In all cases, said Sir (William t<he practical effect was to extinguish the rolline* motion of a ship almost immediately. The torpedo-boat was' pratically deprived erf rollms motion, and was simply subjected 'io heaV-imc ' motions. (To use Dr. .ScHlick's I words; "The waves secui to disappear under her, an-d she rose with '-, gentle motion vertically upwards, and sank again just as grn'.ly inlo the trough of the sea without even spray coming on board to any extent worth -mentioning." CrossChannel and coasting steamers of high speed, continued Sir William, formed a class in which the stt-ady- ' ing eftect of gyroscopes would be of Great advantage, and thcr« wouid .be no difficulty in fitting them. It ' might be anticipated t-hat experiments would bo made 'before long .with igyroscopic apparatus in destroyers and in the smaller classes of cruisers. Professor Lambert said neoplo must not jur.ip to tho conclusion that sea-sickn:ss was to be ' | abolished at once. He had boon told :it was the heaving motion which mado people ill. Still, ifi tVb transvorse oscillation of a ship could be minimised, it would add to the attractions of sea voyages and drive another nail into- the coffin of any Channel Tunnel scheme. A new danger appears to have arisen in connection with the removal of the refuse to the Auckland destructor (says the "Herald"), two instances having occurred recently in which live cartridges found their way into the refuse receptacles, and, not being detected, reached the furnace, causing explosions at the destructor. The matter was reported upon by the city engineer to the City Council, and he drew attention to . the serious consequences which might result from such a careless or wilful act. As it was, the explosions had damaged one of the iron doors of the destructor, and one of the *i.okers working at the time narrowly escaped being shot. He believed the cartridges had found their way amongst tho refuse by carelessness, rather than by being wilfully thrown into the receptacles. The Mayor concurred with the engineer in his presumption that the act was one of carelessness, but thought the publicity wliich 1 would be given to the occurrence would tend to make people more cautious in the future. Th/>re are some curious fsc'a about . our ra^eiHar. No century can bog'n on I Wodnesdov, Friday, or Sunday. The 'same cal'-ndars can be v*"d every c .O I yean. Octoher always begins on the I same day of the week as January, April . ai July, c eptem!i<-r as December. . February. March, and November also te^.in on the same day. May, June, and ' I Angrst always bepin on different daya j from each other and frorp every other month in the year. The first and last ! dnvs of the year are nlways the came. '■ The-o rules do not a[>p'y to 1.-»j> year, > who i co-uparison ; 6 made between dtys before and after February 29. I i