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14 MARINE REVIEW. Submarine Boats. Now that the Columbian Iron Works cf Baltimore is about ready to launch the Holland submarine torpedo boat, which is being built for the United States government, it is quite probable that the news- ' papers will be filled with accounts of the revolution in methods of naval warfare that will follow the completion of this craft. As a mat- ter of fact, there is, however, considerable doubt as to whether the sec- retary of the navy, who is authorized to spend $175,000 for two more such crafts, will decide to go ahead with the contracts for them. Ex- penditures of the leading maritime governments on submarine boats LONGITUDINAL SECTION OF GOUBET SUBMARINE BOAT. have all been made with a view to encouraging experiments, rather than with a hope of accomplishing wonders inasingle vessel. France has of late years given most attention to the subject. The ministry of that country only recently invited competition for designs, in which the following conditions were to be filled: A speed of 12 knots; a radius of 100 miles at 8 knots; a radius when submerged of 10 miles at 8 knots; limit of displacement 200 tons, and to have two torpedoes ready to discharge. Very complete plans must be submitted and a prize of $1,930 will be awarded for the best, and lesser prizes for others possessing merit. A second set of prizes, amounting in all to $1,930, will be awarded for the best solutions of special features of submarine navigation, as follows: First, the motive power and its control; second, the regulation of the immersion, stability and directive force under water; third, safety. apparatus of all sorts; fourth, means of sighting and keeping lookout; fifth, offensive and defensive ap- paratus. . French builders now have contracts for five boats of the Goubet type for Brazil. Two of them have been completed. This new type is known as the Goubet II and is a spindle shaped vessel 26.2 feet long and 5.7 feet in diameter, the hull being formed of a series of broad rings with flanges for bolting them together. On top, midway of the length, is a circular hatch or manhole 14 inches high, with a dome- shaped cover. There is a fin keel at the bottom, and side keels as well, the latter supporting skeleton discharge tubes for automobile tor- pedoes. Oars working through universal water-tight joints afford a means of propulsion in case of accident to the motive power. A screw propeller projects from the stern, completing the list of external feat- MECHANISM, AFTER END---VENTILATING. LEVERS, FORE END. ures of the hull. The hull plating is of bronze, varying from 0.27 to | 0.86 inches in thickness. The vessel rises or sinks with the expulsion or admission of water, the reservoirs being in what might be called | the double bottom. The amount of water in the reservoirs is con- | trolled automatically by means of a hydrostatic apparatus set for some -- particular depth, which controls the electric current driving the dyna- | mos that fill or empty the reservoirs. If the buoyancy should be Suddenly altered by the loss of the detachable weight from the keel, or other cause, the original plane of immersion would be restored automatically by the admission of water. A similar device maintains the longitudinal stability, even when the crew move forward or aft. With crew and stores on board the boat is awash, but additional buoy- ancy can be obtained by detaching the weight at the keel. The pro- _ peller works in a system of ball and socket joints, enabling its use for steering, as well as for propulsion. A telescope can be projected up- ward through the dome, when near the surface of the water, for about 10 feet. Itis fitted with reflecting mirrors, enabling the captain to see above the surface. Fresh air is furnished by reservoirs of oxygen, and the accumulation of foul air may be pumped out. The torpedoes carried at the side are balanced for a certain depth, and are started by a lever from within the boat, which acts on a strong spring and on the tripping lever of the torpedo, and so sets the screws of the tor- pedo in motion. There is also an apparatus for cutting cables or nets and for removing obstructions under water. The boat weighs about nine tons, and can be driven at a speed of 7 knots by 1.5 horse power. The steaming radius is forty miles, and it must be habitable for eight hours. Cost, $48,250. The latest report from the office of the commissioner of naviga- tion directs attention more forcibly than ever, to the steady decline of our foreign trade' Taken altogether our deep sea commerce--that is, our trade with foreign ports--was conducted,as far as our flag was con- cerned, for the past year in fewer than ninety ships, about half of which were engaged in plying to and from the West Indies. Of the ten maritime nations owning nine-tenths of the sea going tonnage of the world the United States and Italy alone have a less carrying capacity than twenty years ago. Within the past ten years Germany has outstripped the United States, her steam tonnage increasing from 414,000 tons in 1885 to 893,000 tons in 1895; and Norway has drawn ahead of France and is rapidly drawing close to the United States. While our rank is third among nations, it must be borne in mind that we hold this rank not by virtue of our trans-oceanic voyages, but because of our extensive navigation of the West Indies and the waters of the Caribbean sea, together with the addition of the enormous Ameri- can tonnage steaming about the great lakes. As proof of this the com- missioner states'that from the entire coast of the United States only two American vessels last year made the voyage to Liverpool and none made the voyage to Hamburg or Bremen. Garlock's High Pressure Packing. It isan old saying that everything changes, and to be up to the times the steam engineer must be ever on the alert. Itis but a few years ago that steam at six atmospheres was considered a very high pressure, and was about the limit on steamships and steam plants. Today on the modern compound or triple expansion engines 150 pounds is a common pressure, and in many cases a pressure of 250 pounds is used. One change usually necessitates another, and engineers have found that valve and piston packings that have given satisfactory results when used on engines working with 100 pounds pressure, or under, can not be used ou the compound and triple expansion engines working under a high pressure. The Garlock Packing Co., ever alive to the requirements of engineers, about two years ago perfected, and placed on the market a high pressure piston packing made of selected material and used in combination with the celebrated Garlock packing compound, which has so successfully withstood the trials and hardships of stuffing-box life on the largest engines for so many years. This packing is particularly adapted to high pressure work on locomotive, stationary and marine engines. It is being used with success in the United States navy and in the merchant marine service. The construction of this packing is without question designed to insure long service. It is made in all sizes, and a free sample will be mailed to any of our readers who will apply for it. The address of the company is Palmyra, N. Y. Holiday excursion tickets are on sale via the Nickel Plate road on Dee. 24, 25, 31, and Jan. 1, 1897. Return limit Jan. 4. 409 Dec. 31