PARRATT’S LIFE-RAFT.

Evening Star, Issue 3893, 16 August 1875, Page 3

PARRATT’S LIFE-RAFT.

{From the Hour, May 24.)

On Saturday a “ deck-seat life-raft,” the patented invention of aMr Parratt, was publicly launched at Messrs Burney’s wharf, Millwall. The raft in its normal condition, it is intended, shall be utilised on ships as a deck seat, and the details of construction are as follows: —A longitudinal air and water tight wrought-iron tank or cylinder forms the backbone or main structure of the raft. This cylinder is fitted with lockers, and these should bekeptstocked with provisions, water, and manipulating gear, so as to avoid loss of valuable time in case of emergency. Lashed to the sides of the longitudinal tank, by means of netting which forms the rear deck when the raft is open, are very stout indiarubber tubes closed up. The raft shown on Saturday measured 23ft. long, 2ft, Sin. wide, and 2ft. in depth; When necessity for using the apparatus arises there is nothing necessary but to extend the deck-netting and rubber tubes,' by means of transverse scissor stretchers fixed in the backbone, and make fast the bulwark stanchions. The raft is then ready for launching, and when launched becomes practically an iusubmergible lifeboat (given an average load). It is, however necessary to secure a very J> nigh ’ floating capacity, and this is done by two methods. The indiarubber tubes referred to are inflated by means of special apparatus, as is also the powerful indiarubber sacking under the deck netting. Additional floating power is also given by means of strong unsinkable cylinders of cork clamped in iron fiamework, and hitched to jackstays running round the raft. The preparation of the whole apparatus, fiom its condition ias a deck seat to the time when the hands engaged stood by ready to shove off, took between three and four minutes. The total weight of the raft is between scwt. and 6cwt., and the estimated buoyancy when all the air tubes are inflated is from 300 to 400 cubic feet, or nearly four times the carrying capacity in superficial area. The inventor claims that a large vessel may be fitted with his rafts in numbers sufficient to accommodate 1,000 and this without loss of room’ in the ship, the rafts being stowed under the bulwarks and making very comfortable seats. This is not a critical notice of Mr Parratt’s raft, bub we may venture to say that the invention should receive attention from maritime authorities. One such raft would certainly be worth a dozen boats. If the occasional manipulation of these rafts were made a part of the routine duty on board any ship to which they might be fitted, they would soon be handled with the precision and neatness for which sailors are remarkable, barely, out of the various contrivances now coming to the fore, our Government and merchant shipowners will be induced, and that speedily, to make some selections, and try to reduce as far as may be, the dangers of voyaging by sea. The raft we have had now under notice was very highly eulogised by the nautical gentlemen who were spectators of Saturday’s proceedings.