ON THE SHIP.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1723, 14 April 1913, Page 6

ON THE SHIP.

I IMPRESSION OF BIGNESS. \ . & ELSEWHERE. HER GREAT SPACES FOR COAL. The size of the ship impresses the visitor as soon as he stands on the deck, the wiclg expanse of white decks, most of all. The ship looks big from the distance, much bigger from' close alongside, and still 'bigger from the deck or tho topmost navigating bridge. And yet this impression of bigness is elusive. , The bigness 'of the ship, the great expanse of deck, ' makes everything else look small. At any distance men look like little beetles. It is impossible almost to believe that the great turret guns .havo.-a-calibre-of 12 . inches, and impossible.'to believe that when the turret revolves the weight of steel moved is G7O tons. Tho. turret moves by hydraulic power, operated by a little wheel that the smallest child could turn. . ...Itos» no new experience for landsmento" be struck by tho size of a big steamship', but usually they conclude that tho ship 19 large ljy the length and width of tho spacious corridors along which they walk and by tho roomy and lofty dining saloons' and lounges through which they pass.- They*will find no suggestion of bigness below the mam deck 'of the Now Zealand. Every available cubic inch, it seems, - has been saved, in order to leave more space'for coal. Three thousand tons is a full load of coal for this ship, and three thousand tons of coal require somo space. The engines are tucked away in about a quarter of the space that would be allowed to them in a liner. Coal, the engines, electrical, and hydraulic appliances, and fighting equipment occupy nearly all tho ship. ' v HABITABILITY. Into the space that is left the 700 officers and men hfive to crowd themselves. Tho officers' .quarters, which are a great deal moro roomy and more convenient than on many fighting ships, are all on a flat, tho maximum height of which is six feet. Nono hut a shortish man can walk about on it without instinctively stooping his head all tho time. In length and breadth ns well as in height all tho rooms aro small, and the only reason why they aro habitable is because every unoccupied corner is filled with a locker or a cupboard or I a shelf in which to store bolongings. Good ventilation is secured by electric fans, and nothing is left _ to clianco in the matter of cleanliness. Every spot in the ship is scrubbed at least onco a day, so that germa find 110 resting place. There never are any epidemics nowadays on warships. The' men's quarters are no less oramped, but scrupulously clean, and the order is perfect. Moving about above or below the main decks is by no means easy. Nearly all tho stairways are better than ladders, and a loose chain is tho only substitute'tor a hand-rail. Below decks there are no spacious halls, but only the narrowest passages, partly obstructed .at very frequent intervals by all sorts of fittings. Everything is crowded into the minimum of space, but there is 110 disorder, FIGHTING THE SHIP. About the actual fighting equipment and the operation of it, columns mipht bo written, and many pfsentialn still be omitted. There is enough mechanism in nnft turret, for instance, to hold a lands-

man s attentiou for hours. Shut in away troin the view of other biy things, llio bleach ends of tho big 12in. guns look tremendous, inoro 1 ike Iho cylinders of some huso engines than mero guns. J lie loadiu'n' of thaw giant weapons is not done by hand. The projectile and tho two packages of explosivo mini red for overy load como up from far below tho waccrlme, by ihiuiaturo but powerful electric lifts or hoists. Inside tho turret ingenious siraplo devices bring tho separate portions of tho load opposito tho breach, an electrically-operated ram with a flexible shaft pushes first tho projectile and then the two portions of the e:tplosivo charge into position, the broach block is swung back into place, and the gun is ready to shoot. None of the fire control, properly 60 called, is dono within the turret. The sighting of guns with an effective rango of 11 miles, themselves on a rapidly moving ship, aud being trained on another ship moving rapidly in a different direction, involves somewhat difficult .matheniatical calculations. They are not made in the turret, but down below out of tho excitement and racket of tho battle, and of the 50 officers itnd men in. control of tho ship's fire, cveryono has his own particular operation. This he is (aught to practise so often that he can do it in (lis sleep almost. The result is the maximum of efficiency in these operations; nothing difficult or complicated is left to subordinates, and very little to anybody, so that even under extreme excitement the fire will be properly regulated. Up in the turret a man sits with his eye on a telescopic eight. His duty is to keep tho sights on tho object, and to fire wjien he gets his order. Everything (is co-ordinated, every man works as ouo of a team, and there is no room for genius. The business of fighting a ship or fighting a fleet is subject to the same laws as all other businesses, and competition • has demanded specialisation, and division of labour. The heroes of to-day face very much graver dangers, and they must not feel the lust of battle. They do not even see tho enemy. Their heroism must consist in doing a Kpecial little task, and in doing it quickly and well. When one considers how much depends upon tho proper co-ordination of the men who fight the ship, one can readily understand that the cfl'ective strength of a fleet or of a ship depends only partly upon thickness cf armour or gun power. ■ "KNOW SHE'S A GIFT SHIP?" Do the men on the ship know that she was a gif: from New Zealand? "Of course they know it. Why, there's lot a school chill in. England who does not know it," was the very satisfactory reply given to a very natural question put to .a young 1 office: of the New Zealand. "I believe that a great deal of tho cordiality of our welcome at South Africa and afte.'wards At Australia was due to the fact that ours was a ship presented by one'of the sister Dominions." On all hands one heard of that welcome at South Africa. To say that ths officers and men. on the ship wevo pleased with it is to use a quite inadequate term. They refer to it frequently, and they say that they simply could not imagine a' move kindly welcome or a better time given to any visitors. "Everything possible was done to ensure that we "h id a good time," said ono officer. "The only thing their programme did not provide for was sleep." THE WARD ROOM PLATE.. Tho ship brought away many tangible emblems of South Africa's good will—a magnificent silver punch bowl and quite 'a number of other beautiful pieces of plate all purchased, by .public, subscription.. 'These axe all stored and displayed in « specially-built glass case on tho dock in which the officers' 'quarters aTe. Stored along witl the other trophies,is the cup presented by Mrs. Seddon,\ in memory of her late husband. A few familiar signs, meet the eye c£ the visitor as soon as lie steps on deck, reminding him that the ship has in some way an acquaintaice with his country. The first of these is the New Zealand coat of arms, beautifully carved in a flue piece of teak above that deck which in tho new typo of ship takes the placo of tho quarter-deck. At the other end of the same.section of deck is the native name of New Zealand, "Ao Tea Roa." SPECIAL COMPLIMENT TO SHIP. Ono special compliment also has been paid to the ship. The crest of the New Zealand is a crown, and the reason why the New Zealand is allowed to have this crest is that she is the first Imperial ship in the navy. The crown is on all the brass caps on the gun muzzles, and at night the only illumination displayed is a giant crown of electric lights. HERE AND THERE. The ship has three funnels, of different sizes. They are called by her crew, "Faith, Hope, and Charity," and the forward funnel—"the greatest of these"—is called ''Charity." Something has been written about the ship's mascotte, a fine bull-dog called "Pelorus Jack." In Africa two, present?, each of a silver collar, were given to Jack by admirers in different cities. Jack, broke his leave in Melbourne one night, aud fears were entertained for his safety, but he came back the next day safe and well. There are two other dogs, picked up in Australia, a pair of very precocious puppies. There is also a jackal, not a very well-mannered pet yet, and dozens of cockatoos and parrots. It may please New Zealanders to know that-the officers and men love their ship. She is comfortable, a splendid boht in weather, and' very fast—rolls a little in a lon» swell, as all battleships do, but scarcely moves in a short, choppy sea. Such officers as it was the privilege of press representatives to meet were most courteous and gracious, anxious to do everything possible to make every stranger welcome. They will , certainly make themselves very popular during their stay in New Zealand. Tho men are a younger lot than wo have usually seen on British ships, but all crews are kept up to battle strength, and naturally, since this change is comparatively recent, tho percentage of young men has increased. They are a fresh, happy-looking lot of lads, and there is a sufficient leaven of older anil more experienced men among the warrant officers and. men to ensure efficiency.