Marine Tattle

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 44, 14 May 1927, Page 2

Marine Tattle

SALE OF EX-ENEMY SHlPS.—According to a return just published, the British Government obtained £81,203,000 for its standard vessels, etc., sold after the war, and £20,197,000 for the ex-enemy ships, or a total of £101,400,000 (states “Fairplay”). Up to January 31, £99,008,000 had been received in cash, £1,201,000 had been or will be written off mainly owing to the default of original purchasers, and £1,191,000 remained to be collected by instalments.

MILLIONAIRE’S YACHT. —Messrs. Sulzer Bros, have received an order for the propelling machinery of a y’acht which is being built at the Friedr. Krupp Germaniawerft in Kiel for Mr. Vincent Astor, of New York. This vessel will be, when completed, one of the largest vessels of the ty’pe afloat. She will be propelled by means of two six-cylinder two-cycle Sulzer-Diesel engines developing together a maximum of 3,200 b.h.p. at 155 revolutions per minute —sufficient power to give her a speed of 155 knots.

“THE VANISHING RACE.”— On her last voyage from Europe to Australia, the Danish five-masted training ship Kobenhavn, the world’s largest sailing vessel, made a noteworthy trip, in that she made the voyage from the Lizard to Adelaide in 67 days 8 hours, the average time for a large sailing vessel for this voyage being about 88 days. The length of the voyage from the Lizard to Adelaide was 13,422 miles, which means that the vessel made an average speed of 8.3 miles an hour. The highest speed logged on the voyage was 15 miles an hour.

ANOTHER TANKER ORDERED.— Messrs. Litligows, Limited, Port Glasgow, have received from the Vacuum Oil Company’, London, an order for an oil tank steamer similar to the Plume and the Pulpit Point, built for the same owners last year. These two ships have both visited New Zealand, and present the last word in up-to-date tanker construction. The addition of yet another vessel of the same class will provide the Vacuum Oil Company with about the most modern tankei fleet afloat.

SHIP’S OFFICER SUFFOCATED.— A fatal accident arising from fumigation with cyanide took place on a German ship in Hamburg recently. The accommodation of the crew had been fumigated by cyanide, and was ventilated for 12 hours afterwards. Another 14 hours later the second officer of the vessel went to bed in his cabin, aftei

closing the door and ports, though he had been warned not to do so. He was found dead next morning, and investigation showed that cy r anide had been the cause. It is supposed that small » quantities of cyanide ras had been retained between the wooden ceiling and the vessel’s skin, and thru these had penetrated to the room late?

on. The sea court held in connection with the accident returned the verdict that the regulations for fumigating vessels should be strengthened, with special reference to the particular circumstances of this accident.

CARI NTH I A’S RADIO WORK.— Much valuable data was gained during the five months’ pleasure cruise of the Cunarder Carinthia from experiments in short-wave wireless communications between ship and shore. The longest distance spanned by the Carinthia’s wireless operators was 12,000 miles. The vessel was in direct communication with Hellis Hill, the research station of the General • Post Office, from the time she left Melbourne until her approach to the English coast. She was never out of touch with England and America, and over 1,500 messages were sent out and about 1,000 received. The operators were heard South Africa when the ship was at New’ Guinea, and they explored some aspects of ship to shore communication which it is believed have never been expenmetned upon before.

BUILDING AT GREEn^T^ Things are looking up at land and Wolffs Greeno*ckl 8 which has been practically the completion of the last“ p d liners in 1925. First of all ' ' announcement that Lord Uu ordered a high-power tusr £ Cap * £• and O. service at Aden wv. r L th « : be built at the old Caird va£ h *• came the placing of a Tk for the Moss lane of I.iy? rr , lowed by another order A OOI - V Inchcape in the shape of? V steamer for the Hain Line V * tar. the news of a fourth crdoV .'“a* Greenock, of a argo stlk?* o *'- James bourse. Ltd.. London the numerous companies “be Lord Inchcape. cc, »trol! w FOR AUSTRALIAN TRaqc launching ceremony of the n» —’ rmotor ship for the Australi? C -U took place from the vards o* Swan. Hunter, and w'in.eham Ri son. Ltd., of Wallsend new vessel has a cruiser stern L t; ‘ gallant forecastle, with utn,, it “ ! - and third decks of steel Th***" fl ve cargo holds. Accomraod,M? *« a limited number of passengers'/* ! “- vided. The vessel is 475 re£ gtlT' in length, and 63 feet in breadth V is fitted with a duct keel r,, lt: Steering gear is of the elect*?® 1 draulic type. She carries uS d.w. The propelling machine™ ?? Sists of twin-screw reversible--1"w 1 " acting two-stroke cycle six-JoS" engines, constructed bv the w.li Slipway and Engineering Corns Ltd., "Wallsend-on-Tyne. Lom s«7 THE ALCANTARA’S ENGINE, The propelling machinery of the cantara is practically identical »T that of her sister vessel the 4«tns‘ namely, two Harland-Diesel ‘ en „* developing 20,000 h.p., which is to’ mitted to two shafts. The eomprii air for fuel injection is providedT three-stage air compressors mourn., in tandem at the forward end of eae engine, and driven off an extensi of the crankshaft. Forced lubricati!: is installed throughout: cylinder lack ets are cooled with fresh water vth£ oil is used for piston cooling ’ jj-1 oeuvring air at 25 atmospheres is storw in six steel reservoirs, which J, charged by three two-stage electricalh driven air compressors. All the engine room auxiliaries are of the latest ty;-■ in accordance with the best praetta and are driven by independent electr:motors: while there is a small emer gency steam-driven compressor, am two oil-fired vertical boilers are ini stalled for cooking purposes, etc. The electrical equipment is very completthe extensive demand for power neceasitating the provision of four Diesel, driven generators with a combined capacity of 1,600 k.w.; while there i, also a 75-k.w. emergency dynamo whirl can supply the electrical er. -gy f OT the lighting and other essential services if required. In nil there are sent 4,000 lights distributed throughout tkvessel, including those for naviguAr working cargo, and boat illuminatisi

COMPENSATION AWARDED.-In August last year Fred. J. B. Crowder 53 years, and the holder of a master’s sea-going: certificate, while working as an A.B. for the North Coast Steam Navigation Company at Winyham, met with an accident. He ww loading piles, when one slipped and knocked him down, fracturing his pelvis. Crowder had been paid at the rate of £ 4 a week since the date of the accident, but he made a claim before the Workers’ Compensation Commission, that this was insufficient for his nedes, and suggested a lump sum which would enable him to return to England, where he had proipects of finding employment as a sea The insurance company concerned offered £250, but the commission considered this was insufficient and by agreement an award was made for £3BO. SALVAGE BY REFRIGERATION.Successful experiments have been made by a German company with a new process for salving vessels, with the help of refrigeration at the Government yard in Wilhelmshaven. Thidea is to close up all openings in th.‘ vessels, whether caused by damage or hatchways or similar openings, by ice which is generated with the help of submerged refrigerating appliances The experiments proved that it is potsible to generate large ice blocks und?r water in a short time and that the closing of openings in this way is effective. When the vessel is made tight the salvage itself is done by blowing the air out in the holds. The new proced,ure is thought to be useful, especially for the salvage of men-of-war and merchant vessels which are not wholly submerged.

SUGGESTED MEDICAL STAN-

DARD.—Representatives of the International Labour Office of the League of Nations, the Health Section of the League of Nations, and the League of Red Cross Societies, met in Paris recently to cm sider measures for facilitating the medical treatment of seamen. Tk? committee considered three questions the contents of ships’ medicine chests, medical manuals; and the transmission of medical advice by wireless It decided that a list should be drawn up of the drugs and appliances provided for in the various national codes, showing those which were require by all the codes, and those which were required only by some codes. together with a standard list <» drugs and appliances which, m the opinion of the commiaee, should be included among the contents of every medicine chest. Tcis standard list will submitted no only to the members of the tee, but also to associations of snip doctors and officers, shipowners a» seamen. The observations of the* bodies will be taken into account the compilation of a definite list. 1 health service of the League was entrusted with the sketching .X outline for a medical manual wj " should contain what was regaraec the minimum of essential informal^

BIG STRIDES BY MOTOR SHIPS.' In view of the interest aroused the completion in January, the 22,000-ton motor liner Alcan which, with its sister ship, •epresents the largest oil-engineo '■ ’sels in the world, it may be n * that equal progress is being the construction of motor cargo sels. and that some owners a irely discarding steamers. * « 3 miple of this policy is recorded the “Motor Ship,” which ■*“***„ less than three years ago a we* —g shipowner with a fleet of® csse i took delivery of his first rnoto> Since that time he has ° h * oilof this type, and now has eig on engined ships in service, and OT,e order. All his steamers excep have been sold, and it can concluded that this course ol is the result of the proved c crn* the motor ships in * er T%:L arn ers ° n pared with corresponding steau the same routes. T.B.D. AMBUSCADE Messrs. Yarrow and Co., toun, have now completed tn boat destroyer Ambuscade, for launched in January of last y veffe j the British Admiralty. i» ran her official full-speed oi March, maintaining easily a 37 knots. The Ambuscade is , on warship laid down and covap the Clyde since the weir, an pav*! destroyer of the British post- Sb* programme to run official t gained is the outcome of expene during the war, and m \JF OT . ro w fim 5 work on the part of the Ya Her length is 322 ft., b<;am t draught BJft., and displace contons. The propelling mac ”,“Skii** sists of Brown-Curtia w obtaining steam from Yar pressure water-tube boiler® fuel. ■