Progress in Science.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XLV, Issue 17, 26 October 1910, Page 46

Progress in Science.

RAISING THE MAINE.

A MENACE TO NAVIGATION.

PRESIDENT TAFT has approved of plans for raising the wreck of the United States battleship Maine in Havana Harbour, which exploded and sank just before the outbreak (if hostilities with Spain. The wreck is reported to be a menace to navigation. ißy the mysterious explosion which sent the Maine to the bottom of Havana Harbour on February 15, 1898, a great hole was torn in the battleship’s bottom. Divers who examined the wreck

said that the explosion occurred underneath the bow, and damaged so much of the vessel that only by turning the part of the harbour in which she lies into dry land could the Maine ever be raised and repaired. Two years ago it was planned to raise the great warship by a method which was entirely different from the usual way of lifting vessels, and which provided for a hole bein’’ made in the middle of the harbour in order to accomplish the feat. The harbour of Havana is one of the largest on the western continent, ami is entered by ships drawing 30ft. of water ami more. At the place where the holq

would have to be made the depth is about 40ft., but beneath are many feet of soft mud, through which the wallmakers must penetrate in order to have their work on a solid foundation. When it is stated that this hole would be 350 ft. across, and circular in form, a further idea of the great task involved will be obtained. The original intention was to repair the Maine so that she could be floated and taken from port to port in the United States, to be exhibited as a sort of memorial museum.

Parts.of the equipment were to be made into souvenirs of brass, -bronze, and copper, and sold to relie-h unters. The appropriation by Congress of £ ('.0,000 for raising the wreck of the “Maine'’ in Havana Harbour, and the opinion rendered by the Acting AttorneyGeneral that it is the duty of the Secretary of War to undertake the work, make it certain that, if the task is within the compass of modern engineering, tli<> wreck of the ship will be raised, and the entombed bodies of the sailors, who were lost over a dozen years ago, will he given honourable burial in the National Crtnetery at Arlington

We illustrate a practical method by -which it is proposed to do this work. Briefly stated, the plan contemplates the building of heavy pile, wharves along each side of the wreck and the sinking between the wharves and the ship of pneumatic caissons. Heavy steel cables would be slung underneath the ship’s bottom, and by means of powerful jacks carried upon the caissons, the wreck would be lifted clear of the water. In speaking of his method, Mr O’Rourke says: “The wharf building, the caisson sinking, the passing of pipes between air chambers, the placing of cables underneath and around the ship, the construction of the lifting structure, and the fitting and operation of the screw jacks are all operations well understood, easily carried out, and independent of any questions of depth of mud or condition of the ship. The mud, however deep, does not complicate the question or add materially to the cost; and should there be obstructions at any point preventing the passing of the cables, tunnel, ing to and removal of the obstruction is a simple matter. Damages to the ship, however great, would not prevent its being brought up intact because of the distribution of the weight and the flexi-

lliliiy, contiguity, as well as rigidity, of the means employed.’’ With the ship thus placed upon a stable platform, not only would it bo possible to recover the bodies of the men w ho perished in the disaster, but in all probability the cause of the explosion could be determined beyond all question of doubt. «>■s><s> The Value of “ Hard Tack.’’ Dr. Robins, an English writer, calls attention to the development of the jaws of English boys who were taken out of the streets of London and sent into the

British navy. He says: “Undoubtodtj) the important notable improvement in them, next to their superior stature ana healthy appearance, was the total changd in the shape and expression of theip faces. On analysing this, one finds that it was to be mainly accounted for by tho increased growth and improved angle oi the lower jaw.” The change is due to th* rations of “hard tack” and “salt junk’* upon which these lads jhad subsisted. j Workmen Prefer the Night Shift, To accelerate the work on the Gatun dam this portion of the Panama Canal -has been illuminated so that the worje of discharging the barges of rock and sand may be continued night and day. The illumination consists of sets of flapping arc lamps, strung between the towers of the three cableways used to ha-ndja the material. In addition to this searchlights are used which throw a beam of 'light along the cables and over the dock, The illumination is so efficient that the workmen prefer the night shift to day shift under the tropical sun. <?><?><s> The Use of Niagara. It is -gratifying to learn that tha United States and Great Britain have signed a treaty which will serve to regelate the use of water for commercial purposes at Niagara Falls. According to the provisions, the New York side will be permitted to take 20,000 cubic feet from ■the river above the falls, and the Canadian side may divert 36,000 cubic feet. The treaty contains a provision which allows the Canadian companies to transmit and sell on the United States side at least fifty per cent of the power generated in Canada.