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Personal Sketches of Marine Men Amos S. Hebble, Superintending Engineer, Southern Pacific Steamship Lines By je Se Kreutzberg "] MOS SHERMAN HEBBLE for many years has 41 been recognized as figures in the field of marine engineering and ship design. As superintending engineer of the Southern Pacific Steamship lines, he is responsible for the design, construction and physical con- dition of the entire fleet. Inasmuch as this fleet com- prises 25 ships and some 75 harbor craft, it at once becomes apparent that this is no ordinary task. As a naval architect he has won renown for his fearlessness in making departures from standard practice. His latest exploit is the design of a Southern Pacific express liner, now under construction by the Federal Shipbuilding Co. at Kearny, N. J. This ship will have a steam boiler pressure of 350 pounds per square inch and 200 degrees of superheat, which is 100 pounds in excess of any pres- sure previously employed in marine power plants. From Mr. Hebble’s start in life it would never have been suspected that he would develop into one of the country’s foremost marine engineers. He was born in Gloucester county, Virginia. His father was a native of Lancaster, Pa., who had moved to Virginia, married there and set up a 2700-acre stock farm. While Amos was still an infant, his folks moved to Lancaster. When he was seven, the family moved back to Virginia. It was at that time that the boy first developed an interest in steam engines. Among his father’s interests was a saw-mill and young Amos used to like to watch the machinery at work. The power unit was a 10 x 12-inch, horizontal, center-crank engine, mounted directly on the boiler, the whole unit placed on wheels so as to be port- able. Under the tutelage of his father, who was a man of considerable mechanical ability, the boy was able to one of the outstanding | PTTTVUGUHTAUULCUUUHHHAULILOLUUEHALULTUUUULIULULILOGLLEAULLLLGoeE LULL E HAS the courage of his convic- tions and will not give up if he thinks he is right. IS responsibilities are great but he is prepared to meet them with originality and good sense. LWAYS courteous and calm, he has the full confidence of his su- periors and subordinates. VUYYUOOUNUOTENNEVOUUYEOUUUTOOEYTTOUUYETOUTEO COUT TPET CUTTS EOD eT get pretty well grounded in the workings of this engine. The family moved to Baltimore when Amos was 12, and it was in that city that he received his schooling. After finishing his education, he went to work in a machine shop in Baltimore. But he felt the lure of the sea and at the age of 20 went ,with the Baltimore & Washington Steamboat Co. which operated the NoRFOLK and the WASHINGTON, since rechristened the LEXINGTON and the Concorp. The following year he went with the Bay Line, plying between Norfolk and Baltimore. With this preliminary experience he was ambitious to move up a peg. At the age of 22, he came to New York and shipped as an oiler on the steamer Et Paso of the Southern Pacific Co.—Atlantic Steamship lines, now known as the Southern Pacific Steamship lines. Mr. Hebble served as an oiler for only a few months. He served in various capacities as assistant engineer and then was made a chief engineer and served in that capacity on several Southern Pacific ships. In 1905 he was appointed assistant superintending engineer, with headquarters in New York. In 1907 he was appointed superintending engineer, the post which he continues to occupy. In July, 1926, therefore, Mr. Hebble rounded out his thirty-first year in the marine business, a con- tinuous service of 29 years with the Southern Pacific, and his nineteenth year as superintending engineer. Mr. Hebble has designed and superintended the con- struction of the following boats for the Southern Pacific Steamship lines: En Sou, Ex MUNDO, EL ORIENETE, EL OCCIDENTE, TOPILA, TORRES, EL CAPITAN, EL ALMIRANTE, Eu Isteo, Eu Laco, EL Estero and the TAMIAHUA, EL Coston, Eu OcEANO, as well as the new vessel now under construction at Kearny. 30