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Improvements in ship building
Improvements in. Shi 1) Building,
i;l
Rodgers' Crcam-coloured Bodies. 1 ~l S] 4[ 5i 6 7 8 9
Nos.
[
B l a c k clay
5¢;;41)i311
B l u e do. C h i n a do. Flint . C o r n w a l l s,,,3,:m Parts
E .;4
i
:;5 3 5 i ; 0 ~51~4
q5!15 :?,t}i :5 1 ![I }1=2514s ' - ' ~ : 1 i .! ! I,, 1;Ll!2il,3il:~:14bc4 5 5: 2: W 1! 0! l! I ! i :. i ' t ! , I i i ! i 1¢~! ! ,2.~
i i1" i ~l 11;iII~ to
T h e s e se,'ve also f o r printing, and No. 9 run t h r m @ l a ~,:2 lawn twice, is v e r y good for printed tea ware. T h e ~ c i g h t per pint is, clay ~Z4 oz., stone ~4 oz., flint .~0 oz.
C,'eam-eoloured Glazes. Nos.
o
I 1 2 3i 4[ 5r 6 71 81 9]10111 12 13114115 1(; [17[1819 2~ i. . . . . . . _ _ _ _ I _ _ ' _ I _ _ 5 . . . . . - - - - I - - ! - - ' ; : :-Glass , I 8(~ I 7 ~ 7t.78i10 i - - I -I 4 i o. . t . .o / 1 I : i - 8- - - 80 t ~ . , ! Red. i ! I 'W. lead 64 60 66 72 55~66 53 57i69 6~ 664715075; 10 412071!g,~ / Cornwall stone~ 24.32 4 145 1,; 15 2S123 25 11 ,~t125 [ ,; 28 91 5 b
Dry flint .
171
................. :o0--III llJ
fill
1491 9~20I' '~9
_6
_
1 _
30 31 32!33 34!35i36!,3713839 4.0 w.
lead
Cornwallstone Dry flint Borax
6s ,ss/so zolzotss:so s~is6 5o s~
,
i 82~I018:253225 510 18 1010 5!10 i10 18 10 15 28 7 i3 0 18 23 1 6 2 0 1"~0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [. . . i. . . . . 1[ lI2i .... 1 ~OoO~a2al~O].lloO~oazS2720i2510
1010
Parts , ' l l ~ ~ ~ ! i i i I N o . ~ is ~,Vedgwood%; 7 is for B r o w n w a r e ; 8 and 11~ ~,Vilson's; 10, Toft"s; 13, Stephenson~s; £7, R i v e r ' s ; 57, 8pode~s; 14~ Mr. ,St. Amands, M o s t of them are e x c e l l e n t on p a r t i c u l a r bodies. M e a n of the five b e s t o W , lead 65~ stone ~4, flint l l .
¶[ lml)roveme~ts in ,SV~it) Building. I t is n o w u p w a r d s of t w e n t y y e a r s since Sir R o b e r t S e p p i n g s int r o d u c e d into the R o y a l N a v y various i m p r o v e m e n t s in ship buihling, which are u n i v e r s a l l y a l l o w e d to have i m p a r t e d great additional
(~2
i m p r o v c m c ~ l ~ /~,~ ~;b@ i.'ui/din 3
strength, safety, and durability, to our ships of war: yet, to use the words of Mr. Knowles~ ( h~i~dr.~] inlo /he Jl(.~t~.v which have bee~ lai.'c~ to Preserve the British ~VaU/,} such i~ '~ the jealousy incident to human nature, in pro)erly al)p"eciating and ap ~,l~in'z the inventions of others, or the indolence ()f the mind in not bril;)ing itself to examine new methods or combination~,--these improveu/enls, ~hile they have been eagerlygrasl;ed by foreign m~lion% are hut sl,)wlv introduced in the ships of our merchants, and, with an apathy har('lly to be credited, are totally neglected by the tivst t.'a(ling company in Europe, (the East India C,unpatly.)" Tile advaniages of the improved system, however, are so manitL'st and indi~pmable, that all [hat was wanting to bring it into general use in the mercantile navv, was, that some influential individual connected wi',h shipping should take it up,.-should make it his business to promote its adoption, uot only by his own example, but by pressing it in every possibl.e way on the public attention; should do, in short, fin' the metchants' }ards, what Sir R o bert Seppings has done for the king's. VVe are hapl)y to say that such an individual has at le]lgth been Ibund in Mr. Ballmgadl, the aulhor of a very clever and intt;lligent work, xxhich we have now belbre us~ entitle(f " T h e Mercantile Navy Imlwoved. ~'* Mr. Baliingal[ has brought to the task he has undertaken, not only all the weight of an official situation of considerable prominence, but great practical experience, combined with what seldom accompanies it in men of his class, a very earnest and clear sighted desire of improvement, l[e candidly ac~:nowledges that " t h e greater part" of the alterations in construction which he proposes to have adopted in me,'chant ships, are already " in practice in the Royal N a v y ; " but he has at the sa'ne time enhanced the utility of these alterations by so many new suggestions, and added so many valuable contrivances, entirely his own, that he has a fair claim to be considered as himself an improver of the first order. W e cannot undertake to give, within the limits to which we must needs confine ourselves, the whole details of Mr. Ballingall's system; but we shall endeavour to place in a distinct point of view before our readers, two or three of its more important features. 1. The filling iu of the timbers; that is, bringing the ribs or fl-ames into one compact body up to the gunwal% claims, on account of the immense consequences dependent upon it, the first place in our consideration. A ship is but an arch of peculiar adaptation, and the st,'ength of every archjs in proportion to the mutual dependence of the parts on each other; but, according to the ordinary mode of building merchant ships, not more than one-half the timbers have such a mutual dependence. Every alternate couple of ribs only is connected together, and the intermediate timbers, (absurdly enough termed./i/lings,) are entirely unconnected with eacit other, resting only on tim * The Mercantile Navy hnproved; or a plan for the greater Saf;etv of l.ive~ and Property in Steam Yessels, Packets, Smacks, and Yatehs, with l.'xplanato ry Drawings. By James Balllngal], Manager of the V.irkaldy and London Shipping Company, and Surveyor of Shipping for the Port of Kirkaldy, 183~ Mo> visonj London.
Improvements in ,~Tdp Building.
t;3
outer planking, without contributing, in the smallest degree, towards
the support of the gener'd structure. This loose and dangerous mode of construction has, at the instance .f Sit" Robert Seppings, been altogether abandoned in the construction of our sMps of war. Every couple of ribs, without exception, is closely connected, and all the smaller interstices, as high as the tloor heads, are filled in and caulked; in short, the bottom is converted into one compact solid mass, and that wl, olly exclusive of the outer plaaking. It must be evident that a ship thus constructed may sustain very c,msiderable damage in her outer planking--lo,e actmt(i,; a p]alfi< ~ ~wt,, or cyril her k e e l - - a n d yet reach the place tdhcr dcstimtfi~m; '~:hilc the loss ui t!,¢tJlla purtion eta single plank, or of the keel, xv( u l be the , estruct n ¢ f a vessel b u i l t o n the present mr)de. W h e n v'aicv Kcts (race past the outside planking of an ordinaryves~el, nothin~ but the Immps can save it; and should these get checked, or the crew become exhausted in workingthem, (both very common cases,) she must go down. From nu~ merous iliustrativeinstances adduced b'¢.. .~ "~r. liailingall, of the advantage ~hich shit,~.[ war possess eve' merchattg vessels in this r e spect, we quote the folluwi~;~:~ ~ On or ablaut the same ledge of rocks on v, hich the Wolf sloop el war struck, and lay thst ft,' two ni;hts a'..nl a day, in March, I S3()~ at the back of the k, l e o ' Wight, the vessel, at the time she struck, going at a considerable rate tht'ough the water, at the very top of high water of a high spring title, and with a consMevable swell on, and which vessel was got off again, and is now in the East h:dies, having been dragged over the rocks fin" half a utile by assistance from Spithead, the vessel beating very hard upon the rocks with the lift of the sea all the time, the Carn Brea Castle, free trader to India, was lust only a few months before, having got ashore under more favourable circumstances lbr getting ell'again. What couhl this be owing to? The ships were nearly, I believe, of similar tmmage. The answer is plain and obvious. The Wolf had a solid bottom o1" fifteen inches thick at the keel, being twelve inches of timbers, ami three inches of outside plank, without allowing her to have had any ceiling. The Carn Brea Castle would only have an outside b()Itu,n plank to protect her, of, I presume, three inches thick. Yet this vessel would have timbers of twelve inches thick, if no more, anti a ceiling plank ot; [ also presume, three inches thick, making three inches move than the sloop of war, but neither of which were of the least use to her in keeping out the water. Ilad her timbers been close and her ceiling been caulked, she wouhl have had m~e more p:otectim~ than the sloop of war, viz. the ceiling plank, without taki,~: ',my thi! G from her stowage, and the fidr itH'erence is, that she ~:uuid have burn g~Jk (~ii" tim{ preserved."--p. 9 . - 9 9 . Mr. Knowles, in a letter to Mz'. lgalllug'all, dated " N a v y Oiticc~ October 04, 1851, '~ states that " the wh(de navy l,'uves lhat the ships with solid bottoms have beett nlol'e durable than they used to be ~xheu openings were left;" and he particularly specifics the case of the Sue-. cess, which went ashore in Cnckbu!'n Smliid, ~h(ut " the whole keel was carried away, also the h,wet piece ,:! Act m ii~c ['c('t l'otlr inche
~?,t
Imp~,ovements in ,~hlp I l u i l d i n g .
of the stern-post, four pieces of the dead wood, nine strakes of the b o f total, amidships, and many strakes in tile bows~ and yet this ship was floated off. Sir Robert Seppings has justly the credit of introducing this practice into tile Royal Dock Yards; but when in office he had himself the liberality to point out to Mr. Bal[ingall~ in the model room at the Navy Office, the model of a brig called the L a d y Nelson, which was built about 1790, under the directions of Admiral Schanks~ on the principle of a perfect union of the timbers, and is now, after a lapse of thirty-two years~ still running, and " light as a bottle." Mr. Ballingall thinks that " nearly all the vessels which have been lost by foundering and collision~ might have been saved, if the vessels had had solid bottoms;" and there can be n~L question that the loss of life and property from tile neglect of this mode ot construction~ is an~ nually immense.
'2. Caulki,~" the whole of the ceiling, or inner p{anMn~" of the ves;~el, and thus making it witter-tight. This is contrary to the practice pursued in tile Royal Navy, and, we are induced to'think, somewhat ~uperfluous, but is strongly recommended by Mr. Ballmgall, on the ground of i t s a t t b r d i n g a d o u b l e security a g a i n s t a l e a k . If this, however, be done, it will be naturally asked how any water, which may have got into the vessel from in-board, is to get to the pumps to be pumped out? The answer to this question brings us to Mr. B.~s third important improvement, which consists i n ~ .9. An improvement in the water-courses, by means of what are called percolators. " I would propose a water-course to be led alongside the kelson on each side, as far forward and aft as may be required fi'om the spring of the vessel raised above the level of the adjoining ceiling, by what I wouhl call percolators, and the bottom of said water-course sunk at least an inch and a halt, or more, below the level of the adjoining ceiling, to allow any water which might get into the vessel to drain off" the ceiling into this water-course. There should be a gradual acclivity forward and aft, to cause the water to ttow readily along the water-courses to tl~e bottom of the pumps. This would be greatly assisted by the spring of the vessel. In men-of-war, E a s t a n d W e s t India ships, and, in general, in all vessels which either carry no eargoes, or their cargoes in packages, these percolators may be readily made of strong and thick oak battens, fastened to the ceiling close to tile water-courses, and raised, say fi'om six or eight inches high above the ceiling, with notches cut in the under edges or sides of them, similar to, I believe, the present practice in the navy. These water-courses to be covered with limber boards, as at present, and the buards would not be required to be tight on the top; the boards to be slipped up to the k e l s o n ? ' ~ p . £0. Mr. Baltingall does not propose these percolators simply because they obviate the objection befbre stated to the caulking of the ceiling, but for this further reason, that, whether the ceiling is eaulked or not. they furnish a better means of conveying the water to the pumps,
Iml)ro'uements in Shi]~ Building.
(,5
and keeping the pumps clean than any now in use, while at the same time they contribute considerable additional stability to tile vessel. Among the subordinate advantages attending this improved system of ship building, there are two which are particularly deserving of notice: one is the greater security from fire which it affords, in consequence of all the vacancies, which at present act as so many funnels to the ttame, being tilled up; and the other, the protection obtained from vermin, in consequence of their being no harbour left tbr them between the timbers and tl.m inside and outside plauks. Various nbjeetions to the system will naturally suggest lllemselves to the mind~ oF practical mc/~; it is certain, also, that the improve ments which it embraces are not equally applicable to all merchant ships: but betoreanv ship-buihler or ship-owner rejects it on either account, we wouht earnestly advise him to send /'or Mr. Ballingall's book, where he will find ne~h'ly every possible objection very frankly discussed, and every modification which particular circumstances m@ call for, provided |i~r with great intelligence and ability. V~re perceive, from a letter wl~ich Mr. B. has publidled, from Messrs. Ogilvie and Crichton, of Leith, the builders of the l/oval Adelaide steam-ship, (one of those ~hich ply between Imndon ~tntl Edinburgh,) that she has been built, in most respects, upon the plan now reconmmmled,'" and that it is the intention of the compai U to which it belongs to adhere to that plan ~ i n any vessels which they may hereafter build2' liYe trust that so judicious and spirited an example will not be long without numerous imitators. Mr. B.~s book contains also instructions for rendering vessels, already built on the present plan, more secure, at a cheap rate. He particularly recommends a revival of the plan of placing a doubling on ships, as was proposed as far back as 179~, by Mr. 8nodgrass, surveyor of shipping to the East India Company. Mr. S.'s plan was " t h a t no ship should have a thorough repair; but instead of this, that its bottoms and upper works should be doubled with three inch oak plank, fi'om keel to gunwale, and strengthened with knees, standards~ and even iron riders, it' necessary, all which might be done at a small expense." Mr. S. thought that ships so repaired would " be stronger and safer, and be able to keep the seas longer in tile worst weather, than new ships," (that is, new ships on the ohl construction;) and in this opini.n M,-. Ballingall perfectly concurs. The conipany of which ;Mr. B. is manager have had two of their smacks, the Fnterprize and tile Fifeshire, thus doubled; and it appears from the [011owing paragraph, which we extract from the Scotsman of the 28th November last, that the result has been most s a t i s f a c t o r y : ~ ~ W e understand that since the K i r k a l ( v and l,ondon Shipping Company's smacks,Enterprise and Fitieshire, trove been fitted with dou-, ble bottoms, they have f.'equently been deeply l a d e n ~ h a v e encountered very stormy and tempestuous weathe,'-- and we,'e both at seaduring the late ve,'y seve,'e storm on the 10th curce:~t~ when so many vessels were wrecked, and h:,ve :rot admitted a ,1,o 1, of water througt~ their bottoms o,' sides. (/I/coD l [rxe VoL KI1.-- N ~ i,-.~J,'I~,: l~-;3
i;l
Rodgers' Crcam-coloured Bodies. 1 ~l S] 4[ 5i 6 7 8 9
Nos.
[
B l a c k clay
5¢;;41)i311
B l u e do. C h i n a do. Flint . C o r n w a l l s,,,3,:m Parts
E .;4
i
:;5 3 5 i ; 0 ~51~4
q5!15 :?,t}i :5 1 ![I }1=2514s ' - ' ~ : 1 i .! ! I,, 1;Ll!2il,3il:~:14bc4 5 5: 2: W 1! 0! l! I ! i :. i ' t ! , I i i ! i 1¢~! ! ,2.~
i i1" i ~l 11;iII~ to
T h e s e se,'ve also f o r printing, and No. 9 run t h r m @ l a ~,:2 lawn twice, is v e r y good for printed tea ware. T h e ~ c i g h t per pint is, clay ~Z4 oz., stone ~4 oz., flint .~0 oz.
C,'eam-eoloured Glazes. Nos.
o
I 1 2 3i 4[ 5r 6 71 81 9]10111 12 13114115 1(; [17[1819 2~ i. . . . . . . _ _ _ _ I _ _ ' _ I _ _ 5 . . . . . - - - - I - - ! - - ' ; : :-Glass , I 8(~ I 7 ~ 7t.78i10 i - - I -I 4 i o. . t . .o / 1 I : i - 8- - - 80 t ~ . , ! Red. i ! I 'W. lead 64 60 66 72 55~66 53 57i69 6~ 664715075; 10 412071!g,~ / Cornwall stone~ 24.32 4 145 1,; 15 2S123 25 11 ,~t125 [ ,; 28 91 5 b
Dry flint .
171
................. :o0--III llJ
fill
1491 9~20I' '~9
_6
_
1 _
30 31 32!33 34!35i36!,3713839 4.0 w.
lead
Cornwallstone Dry flint Borax
6s ,ss/so zolzotss:so s~is6 5o s~
,
i 82~I018:253225 510 18 1010 5!10 i10 18 10 15 28 7 i3 0 18 23 1 6 2 0 1"~0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [. . . i. . . . . 1[ lI2i .... 1 ~OoO~a2al~O].lloO~oazS2720i2510
1010
Parts , ' l l ~ ~ ~ ! i i i I N o . ~ is ~,Vedgwood%; 7 is for B r o w n w a r e ; 8 and 11~ ~,Vilson's; 10, Toft"s; 13, Stephenson~s; £7, R i v e r ' s ; 57, 8pode~s; 14~ Mr. ,St. Amands, M o s t of them are e x c e l l e n t on p a r t i c u l a r bodies. M e a n of the five b e s t o W , lead 65~ stone ~4, flint l l .
¶[ lml)roveme~ts in ,SV~it) Building. I t is n o w u p w a r d s of t w e n t y y e a r s since Sir R o b e r t S e p p i n g s int r o d u c e d into the R o y a l N a v y various i m p r o v e m e n t s in ship buihling, which are u n i v e r s a l l y a l l o w e d to have i m p a r t e d great additional
(~2
i m p r o v c m c ~ l ~ /~,~ ~;b@ i.'ui/din 3
strength, safety, and durability, to our ships of war: yet, to use the words of Mr. Knowles~ ( h~i~dr.~] inlo /he Jl(.~t~.v which have bee~ lai.'c~ to Preserve the British ~VaU/,} such i~ '~ the jealousy incident to human nature, in pro)erly al)p"eciating and ap ~,l~in'z the inventions of others, or the indolence ()f the mind in not bril;)ing itself to examine new methods or combination~,--these improveu/enls, ~hile they have been eagerlygrasl;ed by foreign m~lion% are hut sl,)wlv introduced in the ships of our merchants, and, with an apathy har('lly to be credited, are totally neglected by the tivst t.'a(ling company in Europe, (the East India C,unpatly.)" Tile advaniages of the improved system, however, are so manitL'st and indi~pmable, that all [hat was wanting to bring it into general use in the mercantile navv, was, that some influential individual connected wi',h shipping should take it up,.-should make it his business to promote its adoption, uot only by his own example, but by pressing it in every possibl.e way on the public attention; should do, in short, fin' the metchants' }ards, what Sir R o bert Seppings has done for the king's. VVe are hapl)y to say that such an individual has at le]lgth been Ibund in Mr. Ballmgadl, the aulhor of a very clever and intt;lligent work, xxhich we have now belbre us~ entitle(f " T h e Mercantile Navy Imlwoved. ~'* Mr. Baliingal[ has brought to the task he has undertaken, not only all the weight of an official situation of considerable prominence, but great practical experience, combined with what seldom accompanies it in men of his class, a very earnest and clear sighted desire of improvement, l[e candidly ac~:nowledges that " t h e greater part" of the alterations in construction which he proposes to have adopted in me,'chant ships, are already " in practice in the Royal N a v y ; " but he has at the sa'ne time enhanced the utility of these alterations by so many new suggestions, and added so many valuable contrivances, entirely his own, that he has a fair claim to be considered as himself an improver of the first order. W e cannot undertake to give, within the limits to which we must needs confine ourselves, the whole details of Mr. Ballingall's system; but we shall endeavour to place in a distinct point of view before our readers, two or three of its more important features. 1. The filling iu of the timbers; that is, bringing the ribs or fl-ames into one compact body up to the gunwal% claims, on account of the immense consequences dependent upon it, the first place in our consideration. A ship is but an arch of peculiar adaptation, and the st,'ength of every archjs in proportion to the mutual dependence of the parts on each other; but, according to the ordinary mode of building merchant ships, not more than one-half the timbers have such a mutual dependence. Every alternate couple of ribs only is connected together, and the intermediate timbers, (absurdly enough termed./i/lings,) are entirely unconnected with eacit other, resting only on tim * The Mercantile Navy hnproved; or a plan for the greater Saf;etv of l.ive~ and Property in Steam Yessels, Packets, Smacks, and Yatehs, with l.'xplanato ry Drawings. By James Balllngal], Manager of the V.irkaldy and London Shipping Company, and Surveyor of Shipping for the Port of Kirkaldy, 183~ Mo> visonj London.
Improvements in ,~Tdp Building.
t;3
outer planking, without contributing, in the smallest degree, towards
the support of the gener'd structure. This loose and dangerous mode of construction has, at the instance .f Sit" Robert Seppings, been altogether abandoned in the construction of our sMps of war. Every couple of ribs, without exception, is closely connected, and all the smaller interstices, as high as the tloor heads, are filled in and caulked; in short, the bottom is converted into one compact solid mass, and that wl, olly exclusive of the outer plaaking. It must be evident that a ship thus constructed may sustain very c,msiderable damage in her outer planking--lo,e actmt(i,; a p]alfi< ~ ~wt,, or cyril her k e e l - - a n d yet reach the place tdhcr dcstimtfi~m; '~:hilc the loss ui t!,¢tJlla purtion eta single plank, or of the keel, xv( u l be the , estruct n ¢ f a vessel b u i l t o n the present mr)de. W h e n v'aicv Kcts (race past the outside planking of an ordinaryves~el, nothin~ but the Immps can save it; and should these get checked, or the crew become exhausted in workingthem, (both very common cases,) she must go down. From nu~ merous iliustrativeinstances adduced b'¢.. .~ "~r. liailingall, of the advantage ~hich shit,~.[ war possess eve' merchattg vessels in this r e spect, we quote the folluwi~;~:~ ~ On or ablaut the same ledge of rocks on v, hich the Wolf sloop el war struck, and lay thst ft,' two ni;hts a'..nl a day, in March, I S3()~ at the back of the k, l e o ' Wight, the vessel, at the time she struck, going at a considerable rate tht'ough the water, at the very top of high water of a high spring title, and with a consMevable swell on, and which vessel was got off again, and is now in the East h:dies, having been dragged over the rocks fin" half a utile by assistance from Spithead, the vessel beating very hard upon the rocks with the lift of the sea all the time, the Carn Brea Castle, free trader to India, was lust only a few months before, having got ashore under more favourable circumstances lbr getting ell'again. What couhl this be owing to? The ships were nearly, I believe, of similar tmmage. The answer is plain and obvious. The Wolf had a solid bottom o1" fifteen inches thick at the keel, being twelve inches of timbers, ami three inches of outside plank, without allowing her to have had any ceiling. The Carn Brea Castle would only have an outside b()Itu,n plank to protect her, of, I presume, three inches thick. Yet this vessel would have timbers of twelve inches thick, if no more, anti a ceiling plank ot; [ also presume, three inches thick, making three inches move than the sloop of war, but neither of which were of the least use to her in keeping out the water. Ilad her timbers been close and her ceiling been caulked, she wouhl have had m~e more p:otectim~ than the sloop of war, viz. the ceiling plank, without taki,~: ',my thi! G from her stowage, and the fidr itH'erence is, that she ~:uuid have burn g~Jk (~ii" tim{ preserved."--p. 9 . - 9 9 . Mr. Knowles, in a letter to Mz'. lgalllug'all, dated " N a v y Oiticc~ October 04, 1851, '~ states that " the wh(de navy l,'uves lhat the ships with solid bottoms have beett nlol'e durable than they used to be ~xheu openings were left;" and he particularly specifics the case of the Sue-. cess, which went ashore in Cnckbu!'n Smliid, ~h(ut " the whole keel was carried away, also the h,wet piece ,:! Act m ii~c ['c('t l'otlr inche
~?,t
Imp~,ovements in ,~hlp I l u i l d i n g .
of the stern-post, four pieces of the dead wood, nine strakes of the b o f total, amidships, and many strakes in tile bows~ and yet this ship was floated off. Sir Robert Seppings has justly the credit of introducing this practice into tile Royal Dock Yards; but when in office he had himself the liberality to point out to Mr. Bal[ingall~ in the model room at the Navy Office, the model of a brig called the L a d y Nelson, which was built about 1790, under the directions of Admiral Schanks~ on the principle of a perfect union of the timbers, and is now, after a lapse of thirty-two years~ still running, and " light as a bottle." Mr. Ballingall thinks that " nearly all the vessels which have been lost by foundering and collision~ might have been saved, if the vessels had had solid bottoms;" and there can be n~L question that the loss of life and property from tile neglect of this mode ot construction~ is an~ nually immense.
'2. Caulki,~" the whole of the ceiling, or inner p{anMn~" of the ves;~el, and thus making it witter-tight. This is contrary to the practice pursued in tile Royal Navy, and, we are induced to'think, somewhat ~uperfluous, but is strongly recommended by Mr. Ballmgall, on the ground of i t s a t t b r d i n g a d o u b l e security a g a i n s t a l e a k . If this, however, be done, it will be naturally asked how any water, which may have got into the vessel from in-board, is to get to the pumps to be pumped out? The answer to this question brings us to Mr. B.~s third important improvement, which consists i n ~ .9. An improvement in the water-courses, by means of what are called percolators. " I would propose a water-course to be led alongside the kelson on each side, as far forward and aft as may be required fi'om the spring of the vessel raised above the level of the adjoining ceiling, by what I wouhl call percolators, and the bottom of said water-course sunk at least an inch and a halt, or more, below the level of the adjoining ceiling, to allow any water which might get into the vessel to drain off" the ceiling into this water-course. There should be a gradual acclivity forward and aft, to cause the water to ttow readily along the water-courses to tl~e bottom of the pumps. This would be greatly assisted by the spring of the vessel. In men-of-war, E a s t a n d W e s t India ships, and, in general, in all vessels which either carry no eargoes, or their cargoes in packages, these percolators may be readily made of strong and thick oak battens, fastened to the ceiling close to tile water-courses, and raised, say fi'om six or eight inches high above the ceiling, with notches cut in the under edges or sides of them, similar to, I believe, the present practice in the navy. These water-courses to be covered with limber boards, as at present, and the buards would not be required to be tight on the top; the boards to be slipped up to the k e l s o n ? ' ~ p . £0. Mr. Baltingall does not propose these percolators simply because they obviate the objection befbre stated to the caulking of the ceiling, but for this further reason, that, whether the ceiling is eaulked or not. they furnish a better means of conveying the water to the pumps,
Iml)ro'uements in Shi]~ Building.
(,5
and keeping the pumps clean than any now in use, while at the same time they contribute considerable additional stability to tile vessel. Among the subordinate advantages attending this improved system of ship building, there are two which are particularly deserving of notice: one is the greater security from fire which it affords, in consequence of all the vacancies, which at present act as so many funnels to the ttame, being tilled up; and the other, the protection obtained from vermin, in consequence of their being no harbour left tbr them between the timbers and tl.m inside and outside plauks. Various nbjeetions to the system will naturally suggest lllemselves to the mind~ oF practical mc/~; it is certain, also, that the improve ments which it embraces are not equally applicable to all merchant ships: but betoreanv ship-buihler or ship-owner rejects it on either account, we wouht earnestly advise him to send /'or Mr. Ballingall's book, where he will find ne~h'ly every possible objection very frankly discussed, and every modification which particular circumstances m@ call for, provided |i~r with great intelligence and ability. V~re perceive, from a letter wl~ich Mr. B. has publidled, from Messrs. Ogilvie and Crichton, of Leith, the builders of the l/oval Adelaide steam-ship, (one of those ~hich ply between Imndon ~tntl Edinburgh,) that she has been built, in most respects, upon the plan now reconmmmled,'" and that it is the intention of the compai U to which it belongs to adhere to that plan ~ i n any vessels which they may hereafter build2' liYe trust that so judicious and spirited an example will not be long without numerous imitators. Mr. B.~s book contains also instructions for rendering vessels, already built on the present plan, more secure, at a cheap rate. He particularly recommends a revival of the plan of placing a doubling on ships, as was proposed as far back as 179~, by Mr. 8nodgrass, surveyor of shipping to the East India Company. Mr. S.'s plan was " t h a t no ship should have a thorough repair; but instead of this, that its bottoms and upper works should be doubled with three inch oak plank, fi'om keel to gunwale, and strengthened with knees, standards~ and even iron riders, it' necessary, all which might be done at a small expense." Mr. S. thought that ships so repaired would " be stronger and safer, and be able to keep the seas longer in tile worst weather, than new ships," (that is, new ships on the ohl construction;) and in this opini.n M,-. Ballingall perfectly concurs. The conipany of which ;Mr. B. is manager have had two of their smacks, the Fnterprize and tile Fifeshire, thus doubled; and it appears from the [011owing paragraph, which we extract from the Scotsman of the 28th November last, that the result has been most s a t i s f a c t o r y : ~ ~ W e understand that since the K i r k a l ( v and l,ondon Shipping Company's smacks,Enterprise and Fitieshire, trove been fitted with dou-, ble bottoms, they have f.'equently been deeply l a d e n ~ h a v e encountered very stormy and tempestuous weathe,'-- and we,'e both at seaduring the late ve,'y seve,'e storm on the 10th curce:~t~ when so many vessels were wrecked, and h:,ve :rot admitted a ,1,o 1, of water througt~ their bottoms o,' sides. (/I/coD l [rxe VoL KI1.-- N ~ i,-.~J,'I~,: l~-;3