MARITIME MATTERS.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 5731, 28 October 1905, Page 15

MARITIME MATTERS.

CDy ‘'Mainsail.’’) Everybody knows that the form of a ship has much to do with her speed, but it has recently recognised (says the London “Daily Telegraph”) that speed is also affected by the depth of water in which a ship floats. Messrs Yarrow had engaged to build destroyers for the navy that should steam twentyfive , knots and a-lialf. and when ' the trials were made on the ipanlin mile, off the month of tho Thames, the contract speed was not reached. Tho builders then tided tho craft in deep water over a mile near Dover, where tho destroyer, easily accomplished all that wins expected of them. Similarly, at SkelniQilio, on the Clyde—which, in tho opinion of Sir W. White, is tho only satisfactory mile for high-speed trials — one of Tiiornycrcrft’s destroyers went a knot faster than on the Maplin mile. Between Maplin and Skchnorlio, when the state of the tide was least favourable, a difference ,of three knots was recorded.

Twenty-four thousand cabin passengers from Europe landed at. New York during, August, and the promise that September's arrivals would be even greater in number gives evidence of the extent of transatlantic tourist travel—a boon for tho steamship lines in the absence of remunerative freights. Tho German turbine cruiser La-heck does not appear to have done so well os was expected with her four ehafte and eight propellers. The speed attained was no greater than that of her sister ships, Hamburg and Bremen, -which are fitted with reciprocating engines, while tho consumption of coal was greater up to 16 knots. Three ‘ additional surgeons for the steamship Rotterdam, of the HollandAmerica Lino, were engaged at New York recently for service during tho prevailing danger of tho importation of cholera, this provision having been ordered by the New York Health Officer, and tho selections' being -made by the doctor of tho steamship Potsdam, who was instructed by tho lino to engage competent men. Owing to the extensive immigration of Russians and Slavs by this line, it is necessary to employ this additional staff on each ship to tako daily temperatures, watch suspicious cases, etc., among steerage passengers, and it is understood that there is an opening for a number of additional physicians for tho purpose—a good chance for competent young men to see something of Europe and tho Atlantic. Tho attention of the Board of TrifCle has been called to the serious risk of misunderstanding which may arise when British ships are in charge of foreign pilots, who use steering orders in a sense contrary to the meaning they bear in Britain. In a letter to the Merchant Service Guild tho Board points out that, although German, and Dutch Government pilots are instructed to carry out the amended steering rule, which requires the order “starboard” when the ships head is intended to go to starboard, and “part”-—i.e., “hackboard”—when the ship’s bead is intended to go to port, they are in no wise authorised to give that rudder command on board British ships, but are bound to indicate to tho officer in charge the direction in which Urey desire the vessel’s head to be put, so that the officer in charge may issue his own command as in ' use on board British ships. A'essels shipping cargoes of ore from Australia for oversea ports may (say,-. Now York "Shipping”) learn a lesson from the experiences of the two French barques Gael and Jacobsen, each of which recently had to put into port shortly after the voyage had been commenced, their frames having been seriously injured during heavy weather. It is explained that the ore has to be stowed in such a manner as to guard, against it shifting, while, a. ves-. sel so loaded may enjoy as much buoy-

ancy as possible. To this end or® is placed in large trunk-ways specially erected along the bottom of the vessel and in the Tween docks. Tlio trunkways, which are of great strength, ftro kept in their place by largo beams fixed between them and each side of tho ship. When a vessel so loaded moots with bad weather and is labouring in, heavy seas, the weight of tho loaded trunk-ways upon tho beams is natural very great, and consequently her frames, unless of groat strength, are liable to bo badly strained or broken by the pressure put upon them. Tills is what occurred to tho two vessels named, and shows the necessity for tho frames, when the cargo consists of ore, being 1 considerably strengthened. According to a New York exchange advices in regard to tho progress of work in tho Ihinanm Canal are not- reassuring. The Commission is waiving the civil service examination and offering largo salaries to got enough engineers to go to Panama to fill tho corps, but even this expedient does not ocean to bo meeting great results. It is intimated that the paper which forme? Chief Engineer Wallace was expected to publish in tlio “Engineering Magazine* 1 is deferred until October, by which time ho may materially modify hia views. Ho was getting things in good working older wliilo he was in ttw harness, but now evidently nothing ii done. The French had good constructive tracks in place and wore working along reasonably well with a small force of labourers, lees than, a thousand moil, but what the present commission is accomplishing remains largely aa yet to be seen.