Evolution of the Steamship.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 7, 3 October 1907, Page 10

Evolution of the Steamship.

present; ships of, recentf bcforaf : ~tho public . peribdica]lyv;;iby .; thb-:an«' '• nounceiuontof tta:lauiich;6f : some now ocean loviathan, ,'ea'ch T frasli"giant' hav'ing some new feature,': such-.' as: electric lifts, swimming - baths, or' 'gardens which has-never-before: -been'introduced into any vessel.' The general appointments of/the most up-to-dato liners aro.now on, a scale"'pf,magnifi•ceiico equal-to - tho most-Jusviriojs hotels, but still improvements continue to bo introduced. : Thcso wonderful floating 'pala'ces ''are.-the'-successprs-vor tho ; sailing-ship; iWhich, .a-, feiy years, rjgo was th^Fii^oSlM^ 1111 ' though tho' development' has been rapicHt has: only been after the most oxpensiVo'and exhaustive i experiments 7 that the steamer has forced tho sailer into the back'- : ground.,- And 1 a., short history .of thei earlyr;st^uigg!«s...^ ; ittfo steamship makes interestiiig^readingv. Early Experiences.,. . j, ifiumcrous -invontors-". propounded schemes for applying steam' power -to vessels running on rivers "and .canals as ; far back as tho early, part-Ofi-th'e eighteenth century. In 1707 a small boat was fitted witlr;;a- steam'} engine, designed , t'o: <irivo' J ,tho paddle-wheels » of a little packet Tunning on the river •ffulda. .Tho year 1736 ; .5aw,a patent " produced, ilio'^ffeatjires 1 being similar to tho now , almost extinct paddle ■ wheeler. A stretch of nearly 50 years was covered without any further developments, but in (1769 a double acting' side lever engine was patented by Jajnes Watt, and this was, destined,to,-b.e<the first engine of any real seryicoyin ,;,tho development of ■Steam navigation, -j-' ' ' American Efforts; - > The possibilities/qf/steam'applied to ships appealed to :th(V;:pushful Americans, and as .the' result' of experiments carried out thiire', James Rumsoy gained a victory in 1755, driving a ; boat Slpug-at" four .miles 'an iho'u'r by Jot. of' Water 'stcam-'pumpccr through '-a.pipo-'ajftfhe'st'ern.of ;a vessel. This abandoned as .unsoundl.lvlu.vtho-isdmb'.year an American inventor, -named Fitch; was experimenting with steam'paddles, and in 1787 lie 1 fitted a boat 011 tile Dela- ; ware with a sories ;of single canoepaddles 'worked - by armoring beam. In 1790 another boat travelled for a Short* time, at a'speed of seven- miles.. an hour, between Philadelphia and Burlington. Subsequent trials, however, were not satisfactory,, and Fitch -'retired--from the arena a-dis-gusted and much ridiculed inventor. Further Fruitless Efforts. In'the meantime,.,about ;178.7, efforts. Mn Edinburgh niahiig.l , machinery resulted in r.n engine being fittod ( to si' 'double hull boat in 1788. This freak developed a speed of five miles an flour, and this was in'crdasod to soyon when'the paddle wneel w.as tried over the storn .of -a larger boat., •TJIO costly trials WcrO: at frfngth 1 abandoned,''but one of. thp iiiw'iitprs^ 1 ,'Symingtpn —produced ;tho''; i Ghtfi'lotle~ t 'Dundas in 1802, a vessel intonaed fo?' towing barges on a canal. In spito of ■satisfactorytrials- ;tho. - vessel' j»Jr. -lowed ,'a,way,;Jt-he iif earingynjurytp ; :tho,'-canal tho useioflithea^s'sol'pn ; .tho- 1 c i anal..,.j I ,' The, First S?a. t Yoyages. ' " The first- soiv voyage" per steamer was made • two.; yearsi later, ,whe,n J. Cj. ,Stppheiis|.,.with a qucor-lookihg' screwboat named th(i : Phoenix,.fittetWwithV Watt ongino and tubular boiler;' joiirneyed- :ntj-fp'ur ; •milp§.,an>'.>fhour from Hobo'keiv to'thO'*l)elaw!li'o;'' An inspection of the Charlotte , .Dumlas by ,twp y ijAinerieaiisi,convinced, ' ideas embodied in this craft/Wero.good?' and a similar 'engine was ordered' for- ; -tho ~olerjnoi^b t? j«vlboaji..l|Jft.4jiy. 18ft. by 7ft." ■ She' Was .constru'etcd* 1 ftv'-iBQ?!w ; 'anil her .first Allmny.to.Neiy;. York .was mado . ih";32 hours: ''-This' 'packet Was tho' first"passengeristfeaiiiew to.bo runicontinuously.'and ously. Various experiments' were tried during the succeeding years with 'moro or Jess siiccess until, ".in 1818, . Denny -.built, ~thp , steamer 'in the 'world; Tho woiidcr'of that age was named the Rob Roy, 90 tons, and- sho ran . .between Glasgow: and Belfast-. In 1819 ■the'TaJßot; ll]6Btons, mado her appearance in the Dub-lin-Hoiyhoad steam service, and tlicn tho mighty advance began, improvement after'improveinoiit.-b'dijjg offcQtpd": until'the present position-was reached; Iron Replaces -'Wood. The value of iron for the hulls of vessels was, recognised in, 1818,. when, a boat nanied the Vulcan was built* on -a Scotch canal. .Other inland vessels followed, but imaginary objections retarded the general adoption of iron for sea-;>oing vessels for many years.

Origin of thei .P.roDeller.- , dofinito information as to tho history of .tho propeller appears to bo on, record. J One dates back-as far as 1702/-;' P. 'Smith;', of Ericsson and Woodcroft), wore:the first' to 'attain'any success,./ Smith's' culminating in the Archimedes, 237.. tons,- 'launched :'in 1838,. gad which reduced the Dover-. Calais ' passage to under' two/hours, jlii 1837'Ericsson' had tho] Francis ,B. Ogdeh- built by Laird, and' she put up a great performance by towing another vessel at seven miles an'.hour, and moving ah Admiralty barge at ton miles an hour. Tlio Lords-of tho 'Admiralty,' 1 -however',' were hard'to move, and -. tlioy'' Withheld , encouragement, fearing that the-screw would'impede stcoring. -./Others were not so difficult to cqiiyirice, and "an- Aniericatf at once ordci;cd.,.a' boat ' fitted, with Ericsson's Srouhlicr and named lier. after himself j ~ R. Stockton: The vessel eventually sailed' for the' first, iron, vessel to 'cross the Atlantic and .the first screw steamer over" used in America., Early. Atlantic Traders. The early. Atlifhtic. steamers did. not pay their .progressive owners, but -this did not,tlpter the Cunard,. Company,which; commenced a-brighter era by 'des'patbhihg''the'Britannia, 1 .-1139: ton?, in 1840! About tliis time several strong lmes" ! com'mencc(l' operations, and after many ups and downs, tjio steamship was : -fi'rmly'e&tabiiShcd, and-year .-.after ye2r/ : saw']i*rgor,''alid 'moro- elaborately fitted/" vessels' la'iihehed - and despatcl|kV,'t()/all of the, globe, tlio £^i$cW Jr leyfatnan ..-is-'-the outcome';i>f efforts as were To-day,' ifc-sbbm£.;Mrd- to 'realise that ropre'£Bnte,d ''i.i/''tlj'c.', Charlotte Dundas and The progress can bs.''lip 'as .follows':—; Fr«jm/ji^c 1 ,to ;,thc' iroii vpa'tlcllo lioatj': from.,;the. iron, screw steaiii:e 1 jl ll 'tq 1 ;;S!| l e!.itecl screw. steamer-, steamer, and l;hp ,/ : • ■: ■ yesontl'Day' teiiiathans. ' .. '" Thk° /oilsjiiiifj'"tabic gives the largest merchant /vessels .in the . world. which [■isteain fifteen' knot's 'or, more:— .

-i , r ''"Begd: :, Knots ion- ■ per , . . Name. r.'-':na<ce'.'.-hour. .Company.;' Lusitauiawr'i--'32.,500'25. Cunard. ' ManretiHu9k.'-'32,5P0,.25.: , .Adriljiic,;;,2s,ooo.l7 White Star.: Kni'serin-.-I) ' ■ - Augu'sto:.",-',..'Hamburg- ; Victoria' - 2S'oo'oi7 . '-..American.,. -' Baltic;: 11 "','.'.: '23,573 -White Star. ,-. Amorika';22,soo 17 Haniburg-,. /.., : . . Ameiiican; ■ CecjroS',? Star. / Celtra.-i. v •n'i"i2o ) 9o-i : 17 Star. Kaisof'/Wil-' ,1-fJ.i.il'" ' litlirf'TlW., 20,0,00a23i-: -Nortli' Ger- ' ■ '-ty.M' }r ' K: -maij'Lllpydi; Caromfti'i.h.i.i ji), -Ciinard. - ~J9,524 J8 Canard. " ■ Ocoariic',': ,i... . White Star. : . Dodtachlanci; '5X6,500,23i .Hamburg- <••• American.. >. Arabic, ...,.15,801.16 .White Star, ■■ :.Kenubli.c, ... '; : H;()T8'!6. , White Star: , Kransprinz 'vl5;000 North GerWilhelm, ' ; man LloydV -La Provence,'><l4(soo i2IJ . Traiisntlantic.' .1 OK,' :ii '; port. . g-p. Roii- ' • ': jray., ' . Kai^■ „/ »<■•:.' . ..' ■ heliii 'der . Grp^el"• 14,'319 23 ". North,.Goix . / '. .....Lloyd; ./. '; Saxonia,: V.'.14,000 ilfi Cunard, Weiriia',':-;. '.';.- ,14i05H8 '.'/CunartlJ./ "' rCarpiithiai>>.>•' 13,603-15"; Criiiar'd.'' ' ' Minu?al)oilis', ,;,13,401,1G Atlantic Trans--,V.' \c.i '' P w 't'. ir'ifilinpb». 13,^03,1G .Atlantic Trans:i ,irj;-'*■ ■■ .. i • - port-. Mijinctbnka, 13,308 IG Atlantic TransGrosser . . ICurfurst, Gev- ,; ' , .:• man:..-..:-Lloyd, Orotic, 16'' White''Star.' Cviuric, ... -13,096 la-Y-Whit&-Star. Lucania, ... 12,950 22 - Cunard. Campania,9so 22 ■ •■Cunard. Cahopic,iJ2,o96l" - Wlnte Star. StMLouis,., o29 2p American ... 1 • • ..Line,. St, Paul, ~.,<11,029 20 American.',"; \ 'j-ano:' '- • Romanic, ... 11.39416 . TA liitc Star.' - La Savoio;' 11,16821 Transatlalitib Co : ')■' • LafLorraine,lliWß 21 • '! Transatlantic .• Co.-,..--, Victorian,.-, -,ijj7iooo'jß ; : ;<,-.^11an...ij... , yirgiuian,.j'TiOOO 18 ...lAllati. ./. Majestic,', - .10,116 20 '.Whito.'Star. /,.

Teutonic,:' :"10,1'16 20 'White "Star.' " . ■ "■ '20 ■ 'American '-r* ■ 'v—'': ' . 'Y : ' : "'r.-' Phiiadelphia^'io,79B'2o": American Line.