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O THE MARINE RECORD. STEEL AND IRON IN BOILER CO STRUCTION. ‘The explosion of the boiler of the tug John $. Robinson, which occurred on September 28 last, while the boat’ was lying alongside her wharf at Albany, N. Y., is likely to re- new the controyersy a8 to the superiority of steel boiler-plate over iron plate, especially since the just published ‘‘Report of the United States Local Inspectors of Steam Ves- sels,” in reference to the cause of tuis ex- plosion, leaves thia particular issue entirely out of consideration. ‘The tacts in the case are simply these: ‘lhe exploded boiler was built by Robert Livingston, of Albany, in February, 1882, out of the best quality of “Pine” iron and “Black Diamond’ steel, was thoroughly braved and stayed, and left nothing to be desired, either in regard to the material that entered into its construction or its workmanship. It was subjected to a hydrostatic test of 150 pounds and allowed a working: steam-pressure of 100 pounds, ‘The Robinson was walting tor a tow which was expected to arrive at about 4 or 5 a.m. Her fire was sliced and covered over for the night, the water gauge and gauge cocks showing the boiler to be full of water, and her steam gauge showing 80 pounds of steam, Atl o'clock a. m., Frederick L. ‘Tinslar, the engi- -neer, called Clary, the fireman, to relieve him and stand his usual watch, Tinlar swears that at this time he tried the gauge cocks, and that he had three solid gauges of water, and that the steam gauge showed a pressure of 50 pounds. ‘This is the last reli- able information in regard to the condition of the fire, steam gauge and water gauge and water-gauge cocks ofthe Robinson which could be obtained, At 2. 30 a. m. the boiler exploded with terrific force, causing the loss of three lives and considerable damnge to adjacent shipping and property. ‘here can hardly be any doubt that there was plenty of water in the.boiler at the time of the ex- ploston, since the back-connection crown sheet, which was subsequently recovered, contained the fusible plug insertea in it, intact. On the other hand, the investigation proves conclusively that the engineer had screwed down the pop-valve so that it would not blow at all, and as several witnesses swore that they never had heard either of the safety-valves of the Robinson blow at times when she was carrying 120 and 130 pounds of steam, it seems certain that the lever-valve was also prevented from blow- ing, either by lashing down, wedging, or the adding of extra weights toit. The inspectors, therefore, arrive at the conclusion “that this _ explosion was due toa direct violation of the rules. on the part of the engineer in tampering with and hindering the working of the safety-valves, and to the negligence and carelessness of the fireman in allowing the boiler to create such an immense amount of steam as to explode it. ‘he latter’s action can be only accounted for on the theory that, after starting up his fires and closing his furnace doors, he must have fallen asleep at his post.” The. force of the explosion was so great as to literally tear the boiler to pieces—send- ing parts of it in all directions, one piece weighing about two tons, being carried 350 feet over telegraph wires and housetops; another, weighing three tons, being sent in another direction about the same distance. The recovered parts present some pecular features of fracture, which the advocates of steel boiler plate have promptly seized upon in support of their predilection. In the first place, in the part of the shell thrown ashore the iron fractures were found oxidized, while the steel fractures were clean and bright. From this circumstance it is argued that the iron was ruptured by the torce of the steam pressure, while the fracture of that portion ot the steel plate is ascribed to the concussion of the fall of the heavy mass. Moreover, at the lines of separation between the iron and the steel plate, the rivet holes in the steel plate show no elongation, but remain per- fectly sound the force, of the explosion hav- ing sheared off the rivets, which afterward had dropped out of the steel plate. Advocates of iron plate for boilers point, on the other hand, to the fact that the accumulated steam pressure which caused so terrific an ex- plosion must of necessity have been so great that noknown material of manufacture could have withstood it, and maintain that if every part of the boiler had been made of steel, the result would have been the same, or per- haps even more disastrous in its effect. ‘The official test of the steel plate made for this boiler by Park Bros. & Co., of the Black Dinmond Steel Works, of Pittsburg, is as follows: ‘Thickness of samples, inch Width “ us Strain on which rupture occurred Strain per square inch of section, id » pound fn Redueed width of sample inch 2318 “. thickness =‘ < +237 Reduction of area, per cent. 46, The advocstes of steel plate point to these tests as evidence that the strength of the steel in the boiler was so much greater than that of the iron, that probably some of the tubes would bave blown out prior to the giv- ing way of the boiler, and that the retief thus obtained would have averted the fatal consequences and destructiveness of the ex- plosion, Neither pacty to the argument seems, ho sever, inclined to take into con- sideration the obvious fact that the steel, be- ing stronger than the iron, and the ultimate strength of the iron having been exceeded by the force of the steam pressure, it is but natural that the debris of steel plate should | be found in a better condition than those of the iron plate. Whether or not the conceded better qualities of steel plate would have been able to Jessen the destructiveness of the explosion will) probably remain an open question, and reminds us of the experience ot the man who had invented a patent safety elevator, Having finally secured its adoption in a newly erected building, the patentee and his three backers entered the cage, ascended to the top of the building and there, to show its absolute safety and independence of the hoisting rope, cut the latter, relying solely upon the patent appliance to land them safely atthe bottom. ‘The result of this proceeding was even less satisfactory that surprising—the whole party landing “all ina heap” at the bottom of the shaft. As soon as the unlucky inventor had re covered his senses he was met by the ubiqui- tous and sympathetic reporter, who asked for “particulars.” “Call it ‘Four Lives Saved said the inventor, ic will make a good hend- ing, and certainly we might all have been killed?’— Mechanics. — LIABILITY OF SHIP OWNERS FOR MEDICAL A'I'TENDANCE. A very important decision relating to the liability of ship owners for medical assistance to sailors injured on shipbuard has recently been given by the Supreme Court of Penn- sylvania, It was an appeal from the Court of Common Pleas, Philadelpbia, and the judgment of the lower court was aflirmed. It appears that the engineer of a tug boat lying alongeide a wharf, was severely scald- ed by a burst of steam from the cylinder head. Medical assistance was immediately summoned, and the injured man was at his own request taken home, instead of to the marine hospital to which place the master of the tug offered to take him. ‘The tugboat owners were called upon to pay for medical attendance to the engineer, but refused up- on the plea that the marine hospital service was offered to the man and his refueal to ac- cept it absolved the vessel owners from any lability for such attendance. This plea would by many ship owners be held well taken. But the lower court decided against it upon the ground that the acts of Congress relative to the marine hospital service ‘do not supersede the right of the seaman under the general maritime law to be: cured at the expense of the ship to which they belong of all sickness or injury occurring to them while in the service of the ship.’ ‘The Su- preme court takes the same view. ‘The lia- bility of the ship tor medical attendance to sick seamen is well settled. Th: tug owners claimed, however, that the ship is not re- sponsible if the seaman be taken home from the vessel, that the sailor should remain with his ship and that if he is removed he cannot of his election choose for his recovery w hat- ever place he may wish. This would leave the election as to place with the ship owner —a position which is untenable. Upon this point and upon that relating to medicine chests and medical attendance on shipboard the Supreme Court gives an opinion which is good law, and what is better, good sense. In the first place it shows that a seaman for injuries incurred in its service is entitled to be cured at the expense of the ship. It fur- ther points out the fact, which ship-owners often overlook, that hospital dues collected tor the support of the marine hospital-ser- yice are paid by the sailor himself and have really nothing whatever to do with the ship. A sallor is entitled, upon proper application, to free hospital service, but that is not a ser- vice furnished by theship-owner. ‘The sail- or can take it or not as he elects. It is a wise provision which the law has made compul- sory upon him, not upon the ship-owner. Ii is not a provision made by ship-owniers ‘in relief of their liability under law maritime.”’ The maritime Jaw protects the sailor in all the seas and seaports of the world. ‘The ma- rine hospital service is confined to some few ofour home ports. ‘The several acts of Con- gress relating to hospital dues are therefore, only auxiliary to the ancient maritime law giving injured seamen the right to be cured at the expense of the ship, and simply aflord seamen an additional safeguard. This view is generally adopted by the courts.—Mari- time Register. Some of our friend: may not be aware that a good deal of time in section lining tracings for blue prints can be saved by laying a wash vpon the tracing. This wash—or, in fact, any wash shading—will print upon blue pa- per justas well as solid lines, and if an ordi- nary shaded drawing, .made either by lead pencil, crayon or india ink, can be made | transparent. blue prints can be taken from it which will reproduce the originals with very great perfection. In one or two shops we have seen blue prints made which were not reversed. ‘The oviginal drawing had been made with a view to this use, and the shades had been put on accordingly. ‘The blue piint then represented the lights and shades of the machine precisely as they would be represented in an ink drawing: In fact, they “ere merely blue drawings on a dark blue ground, Where many copies ot a drawing are needed and it is desirable to send them out tothose not skilled in reading a‘blue print, this method is a very desirable one. As the washed shading takes consid- erably less time than the lining,and as eray- on shading, thongh not as smooth as lining, produces a result so effective and so very cheap, it would seem to be desirable for: draftsmen in their shop drawings to occa sionally adopt this system, for the sake of the certainty and clearness which it gives the workmen in reading the drawing.—£n- gene ring. A NOVEL STOPPER. The Cincinnati Business Observer: ‘The Peiladelphia, a low pressure boat, built at this city in 1826, was grounded in 1830 in Hazen’s eddy, at the foot of Washington s'reet, and cutin twoand lengthened 31 feet. The Philadelphia was floated off. When the water came to float her she had steam up and ready to take her place atthe wharf for business upon the first rise in the river. ‘The boats of that day were provided with cut- waters, bowsgprits and figureheads, a fash- ion shandones more than forty years ago on steamboats, but not until recently on ships. As the Philadelphia turned fiom the shore her cut water struck a passing coal boat, mak- ing a great hole in its side at which the wa- ter poured in. There was nothing at hand to stop it. David Griffy, Lavias Hazen and E. H. Filmore jumped off the steamboat on to the coalboat. picked up one of the coal- boat hands and crowded him down. into the hole, stopping the great flow of water, shov- eled the coal over to muke the break above the water, landed the boat and saved the coal. It is doubttul if there is another in- stance on record where a man was used to stop a leak in a sinking boat, The scholastic philosophy began in the schools founded by Charlemagne, and pre- vailed in Europe from the ninth to the fit- teenth century. BETTER THAN EVER. The Inter Ovean for 1884. More ‘new features have been introduced in THE WEEKLY INTER OCEAN in the last twelve months. than in any other prper in this country. Retaining all the old specialties and departments, the publishers have added illustrated biographical sketehes of persons prominently be- fo:e the public at date of publication; illustrated articles on important historical and current events, or in elucidation of antiquarian research, or in- teresting engineering or mechanical problems; cable letters from London, covering the field of European news for each week; special contribu- tions devoted to reminiscences of army and polit- ical life ; and new series of articles given up largely to personal gossip and recollections of prominent literary people. : THE INTER OCEAN will remain uncom- promisingly Republican; will maintain its present attitude on the question of protecting American industries; will continue to devote special atten- tion to trade, transportation and economic ques- tions; will retain the departments of the The Cue riosity Shop 1 current encyclopedia of curious, interesting, and valuable information called out by inquiries of subscribers; The Woman's King- dom (devoted to the progressive movements in which women are interested); The Farm and Home (covering topics of special interest to far- mers, their wives, and their children); The Vet- erinary (containing answers to questions as to the treatment of horses, cattle, and other animals by one of the best veterinary surgeons in the West); and Complications (taking in puzzles, enigmas, conundrums, etc, all of which are peculiar to the paper; will give as much space as hitherto to seria] and short stories, original and_ selected sketehes and poems, and with increased faeilities for new s-gathering in the shape of special wires to New York and. Washington, and experienced correspondents well placed at home and abroad, will more than maintain its high standard for en- terprise and accuracy in all departments of news. hile so many improvements have been made in the WEEKLY INTER OCEAN; the price has been reduced to ONE JJOLLAR PER YEAR, postage included, This putsa large eight-page (there are frequently twelve pages) paper in the hands of the reader at the low rate of to cents per weck. The réduction in price and the recent improvements make THE WEEKLY INTER OCEAN not only the best family newspaper in the country, but the cheapest. The subscription price of THE INTER OCEAN is as follows: Weekly edition Per year, postage paid... Semi: weekly edition per yezr, postage p: Daily [including Sunday] per year . Daily [excluding Sunday] yer year. . 1000 Wednesday's evition [with Musical Supplement] per year., oe oe ances se Saturday's Cdition (sixteen pages] per year. Sunday's edition [sixteen pages) per year, Postage prepaid in each case. Sample copies of THE INTER OCEAN will be sent on application. Send money in registered letter, money order, bank draft, or by express, at our risk, and be sure and write the name and address of each subscriber plainly. Address THE INTER OCEAN; Chicago, Ill, Without Medicine. A Valuable Discovery for supplying Magnetism to the Hu- man System. Electricity and Magnetism utilized as never before for Healing the Sick. 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Norr.—Send one dollar in postage stamps or curren- cy, in letter at our risk, with size of shoe usually worn, andtry our Magnetic Insoles, and be convince! of the wer residing in our other Magnetic Appliances. ronitively no cold feet whén they are worn, or money . - refunded. . N.C. PETERSON, Boat Builder, PLEASURE BOATS AND SAILING AND STEAM YACHTS, YAWL BOATS, SPOON OARS, STEERING WHEELS, ETO. 385 Atwater st., Near Riopelle, DETROIT, MICH. A. ANDREWS, HARDWARE. Ranges, Stoves & Tinware, No. 259 Detroit St., CLEVELAND, OHTO. FOR SALE, AT THE GLOBE IRON WORKS, SECOND HAND TUBULAR BOILFR, 44 inches di- ameter, 43 tubes 3 inches diameter and 12 feet long, steam drum 30 inches diameter, 40 inches high; front grates, fittings and breechings; g od order. SECONP HAND MARINE BOILER, in good order. Shell, 7-16 inch iron plate; diameter, 9 feet 6 inches; length, 48 feet; 129 tubes 4 {nches in diameter, 11 feet 6 inches long, three flues 18 inches diameter; two flues 14 7 inches diameter, two flues 10 1-2 inches diameter; fire box, 6 feet long, 4 feethigh; steam chimney, 7 feet high. SECON D HAND MARINE BOILER four feet wide, 6 1-2 feet long, 5 feet high, sixty-four 2 1-2 inch tubes. 60 inches long, cast iron breechng, good as new. SEC ND HAND MARINE ENGINE;.double direct- acting 8x8 inch cylinder, shaft and wheel for yacht or tug; good as new. FOR SALE, STEAMBARGE MILWAUKEE. Her length is 135 fect, beam 26 feet, and hold. 10 feet 10inches. Boiler 17 feet long, 7 feet diameter; three thues, two 16 inch and one 17. Engine 22x42. Carries 240,000 feet of lumber. Speed. 11 miles light, and 9 1-2 loaded. Insurance valuation, $15,800. Ad- dress MARINK RECORD Office, No.2 South Water street, Cleveland, O. DAVID BARNHISEL, Agent. DOMESTIC & STEAM COAL, “Meveland, Ohio THE MARINE LAW BOOK —IS NOW READY.—— SEND YOUR ORDERS TO THE MARINE RECORD.