A New Form of Ship.

Manawatu Standard, Volume X, Issue 41, 16 July 1885, Page 4

A New Form of Ship.

There is published m " Iron '' of May 15th, a detailed description of a remarkable novelty m slnp-builcliug the aquaerial or wave ship designed by Mr James Dickie, of Leeds. The wave ship is of shallow draught when at rest, and when set m motion its draught decreases with the increase of speed. Instead of ploughing its .way through the water, it is to skin along or over the surface, to avoid the chief cause of resistance to the progress of ordinary ships, viz., wave making. The bottom of the vessels forms a series of inclined planes, placed one after the other. Each plane helps to lift the vessel towards the surface as it progesses, as each ulane after the first is, by a peculiar arrangement of atmospheric ducts, rendered independent of the preceding plane, or the effects oO its action upon the water. The atmospheric ducts referred to communicate between the atmosphere and the bottom of the vassel, and the passage of air through, them is regulated by self-acting valves. The combined action of the planes of the bottom of the air ducts m connection with them will, m the the inventor's opinion, prevent rolling. A practically level deck (he concludes) will always be maintained, and the quality, together with the known steadiness otherwise, the absence of virbration m vessels at extraordinary speeds will, he thinks, do away with the cause . of sea sickness to a great extent. Mr Dickie advances the opinion that his ship will enable us to attain railway express speed at sea, combined with safety and steadiness.