The Oregon daily journal., October 22, 1905, Image 29

Tin bnidoM suwpay jzvgiui, KmLAra cut:iay i.z$?jzkgI ocTcim n isa.
Oub Imieot but
and How.ShE; is Qi$i
aw. a MM
a . '
fc . - . I
if
f ' 1,
1
1F
WW
aw
r-
w - ' ' ?ro try. LklM , r-fr. - ' I
"WW
ACL i
V M. VAWYS. 111
l " V.:
Jri I.
J.
o
ORE closely guarded than those of
any other type of vessel tn the
j United States Navy are the secrets
of the submarine boats, the little terrors of the
"deep Mat will probably revolutionise ' naval :
warfares '''' . ' -. : ' '
Carefully and cautiously has Uncle Sam
been constructing his fleet of submarines,'
watching continually ' for improvements. , , '...V
;s .England and France have built boats, of
this type more rapidly, but they have also had
not a little trouble with them. Ghastly trag
edies have' marked their records. r,
; 7! Crack performer of the American under-
water fleet it the' little Plunger, which' took'
President Roosevelt jo the bottom of Long
Island Sound a few weeks ago. "fVonderful,"
was the comment of the nation's head, after
witnessing at close range the manoeuvring
ability of this latest, type of warship. And
wonderful it truly is. ,' V
T
. 1 - - 1 J 'Ml - - -
'1
hJr
J
Undcnwath h la eapabta of maklnf alftht.
. Nelson. Intensely practical, and looking at ererytblntf
with the eye of a man who thoroughly under tandi hi
bualneta, aaya that talea of auhmartnea ever being able)
to make thirty knot nndor water are fanctf ul dream.
Fifteen la the abeolute limit, he bellevea.
A atrong iwlmmer stood on the sldea of the Plunge
when ahe wat on the water and iraklng tea. knot. H
plunged oft Into the water and swam away rapidly In the
other direction, ; He had takea juat nineteen atrokea, when
the Plunger waa with him. picking htm out of the water.
Thla awtmmer waa taking at leaat thirty atrokea to that
minute. Consequently, be had been In the water Juat
thirty-eight seconds, and in this time the Plunger had
turned around, while going at full speed, caught him. and
nerer shipped drop of water
go much for the boat But It la her dutructWe power
which hare a bearing on the real object war.
Aa a plaything, the Plunger may be all that la aa
" aerted for her. but aa an engine of war ahe posseesea vaat
powers, of which the average person would never dream. .
In the forward portion of the boat stands a torpede)
tube, about fifteen feet In length and as many lnchea la
diameter. In thia tuba may bo placed a torpedo, weigh
ing one ton, and costing 13000.
After being given an tmpetua by pneumatic pressure,
the torpedo hlta the water and propels Itself at the rata
of a mile tn forty seconds. ' It can be discharged while
the boat la completely submerged, and the tuba ts sighted
by mesne ot the periscope. On either aide of the tab are .
torpedoes the boat carries three In all.
It la" not expected that a torpedo will alnk a battleship
Inatantly. The modern battleship Is built with many ale
chambers, and. antes a mine la placed exactly wider her,
' ! It la almost impossible to blow the ship entirely out of thai
water, fancy pictures and drawings to th contrary ot
wltbstandlng. . . ,
A battleship, halt a mil away, moving at th speed
which they usually employ, fifteen knot an hour, to easy,
prey forth Plunger. . ; ,
a f HAT th Plunger I well gaud4 from curious eye
I Is mad apparent to every n who seek admuw
'JL alon to Its Interior.
' If yo don't believe this, try to got Inside th
vessel as she lie anchored In tho Brooklyn Navy Yard.
A siuray ssuor, iiiuns m u ibitvi, wm rr ju
to Lieutenant Charle P. Nelson, th commander. Nelson
win ,v vmh ft vmi lun rift ah narmlaslon. Ton tell him
' you hav not. '
- "Sorry, then, but I cannot a now. you in in ooav
aU th answer he will give.
Try th Navy Department Try all th officials la
Washington, and you wIU be confronted with a string of
red tap long enough to ndrcl th boat Itself many
tlmea. - '
Everything about th Plunger Is filled With th air of
secrecy. Nelson,, the commander, aad th seven member
f the crew ar silent when approached foj Information.
They ar talkative enough among themselves. They
hold their dally councils, whea Nelson sits down with hi
seven trusted seamen and discusses features of th boat
which can be Improved. y
The men ar then on an qal standing with their com
mender. He want them to ask him question, and he. In
turn, throws the moat pointed shots Into their pet ideas.
Nothing, not even th smallest detail, escape the sharp
Intellect of this Intrepid young man, and he la eves look
tog for something which will make hie boat surer In it
, Lieutenant Nelson Daredevil Nelson he is called in
"th navy la a moat optlmlatle believer In th boat and
It destiny. When th question of taking th President
to th bottom of th sea was being discussed pro and con,
b calmly said: "Let him come. Be will be safe. Th
Plunger ha passed th experimental stage, and wtwdo
him no harm." '
To go down in th Plunger la aa experience afforded
but few men outside of th members ot th crew. In
deed, It I aa exprlnc to be remembered a lifetime.
The tnsld of th boat presents rounded aide. A tall
man cannot stand up straight there. Not more than I
feet inches of spec la Jeft open.
In th conning tower, located In th middle of th boat,
two men can stand. Th lookout tower. IS InoHes la di
ameter, will accommodate one man standing upright Th
air tank, water tank and storage apartment take up
the portion from slightly below the, dead centre of th
boat to th bottom shell. Into those' tanks Is allowed to
run th water which sinks th vessel when It 1 desired
that sh shall pluag beneath the sea.
KEEPING THE AIR PURE
Running the entire length of th boat ar these tanks,
with the greatest space in th bow. This la to enable the
vessel to do "porpoise'-diving, the hardest feat In sub
marine work. Along the aides are small holes, loping to
th rear, from which the water la forced when It la de
slred to ascend to the surf see.
On either eld of th Plunger ar the air flasks, con
taining sufficient air to sustain life for eight men through
out a period of nine creeks. Air from these tank I also
Used lr ejecting th water taken In when th boat la sub-
m AnIr pressur of 1000 pound to th square Inch can
be maintained, whereas the ordinary pressure of air In
the open is fifteen pounds.. When the air in the boat
Womeschirged wlt& carbonic acid gas, it la ejected by
mesne f pumps, and fresh air la turned in. -
Dropped Into an indentation In the forward part of th
.Plunger 1 the.gaeollne engine, which la used aa a meau
of propulsivn when the vessel Is on the surface.
Here I a gssollne engine that makea no noise. This
statement muet be qualltled-the ngln makes aa much
noise aa any other, but the enemy will never be able to
hear It, even when the Uttle boat Is but W yarda away.
The exhaust Is sent dlrtctly Into the water, through tube;
In the bow, and- so muffled that not even th slightest
chug-chug can be detected. . . ,
Sack of th gasoline engine Is located the storage bat
tery, which Is used -under water. Enouch electricity I
tored In this battery to keep the boat moving at a steady
gait of elKht mile an hour for weeka. .
Th propeller shaft occupies ths central space back
to the stern. On both aide of tho prenellsr are the rud
ders which eontrol the horlsontal position of the vessel:
and helow the propeller la th regular rudder which
tune the course. '
When Nelson was going down to what hi brother
officer thought would certainly lead to death, be was th
same cool, self-posseeaed-young fellow he la to-day.
' Hi seemed to have the faith of a fatalist Never otio
did he bid good-bye to fneuis; he left them with a smile,
and made an appointment for th hour after he waa due
to come up. ' . ' . ,
So they named him "Daredevil" Nelson. And with htm
In th Plunger are wu other daredevils.
Nelaoa doe not look, at first sight. Ilk a maa who
would lead a cotillon.
Bather, catching a glimpse of his large, atrong hands,
his powerful shoulders and arms, the strength of limb
and the clear glint of the cold, blue eyes, you would think
him a master mechanic.
Tou talk to him, however, and the more he talks th
. mora you becdme possessed of th Idea that he la the
typical naval officer gentleman In blue uniform on
a ho re, a daredevil In amok and grime la th heat of
eager for th duty, too. He respect those men. and . It la
aafe to say that they Idolise their boyish-looking com-
; mander.
Well, back to' the boat Sh Is plowing along, with
her conning tower above th water, when you go aboard.
She stops this boat can atop inside her own length th
conning tower 1 opened, a hatch lift up. and you
squeeze In.
If tall, yo ar liable to bump your head against th
iron sides, so narrow la th passageway.
There Is a slam, th hatches arocJascd: sailor presses
a screw, and they are hermetically sealed. - .
With his head and. shoulders in the conning tower,
Nelson steers the boat. -at the same time closely watch-
ing the periscope.-", ...-. . i-
This periscope Is a sms!l brass tube, U feet long, run
ning straight up from tho conning tower. On the top
It shoots off at a small ngnt snsiat ana m iw
nowerful lens. Back of th main lens sre other lenses
sloped at various angles. i .
On the other end. In the conning tower. In front of the
steersman, is still another lens, reflecting down on to a
glass. Her the outside world In the direction In which
way. Is due t a racial memory of attempt to shake off
an enemy. .
HORSE'S PRIMITIVE STATE LEFT BEHIND
H
' AS th horse been more
advanced physically
by th processes of
th age than manT - -
ftclentlflo research seems
to show that this Is true.
Maa has retained more ot
th primitive feature com
mon to all mammals, while
th hers of to-day la far
mora specialised than his an
cestors. This Is particularly
notlcetble In th struoture of
its limb and 1U grinding
teeth.
A remote ancestor f th
steed of to-day was th
protohlppua, a Httl ani
mal similar la structure la
many ways, but no larger
than th bead of a modern
horse.
Aa time went on thla lit
tle . animal grew, changed
some . of Its characteristics,
until it developed into th
useful and bsndsome domes
tic animal of th present
Away back In th begin
ning of horse life th animal
had five toes. Th number
decreased to four In th Ht
tl hyracotherlum. of th
Koeen period; to three la
th hlpparlua of later data,
until fli ally th tec diaap-
peered, or were inergtd into
hoofs as they appear at
present
ulenc has a ready ex
planation of this disappear
ance of toe. The -horse
race, as dp other specimen
of snlmat life, furnish ex
amples of adaptation r ad
. Justment af organism to Its
us or surroundings.
When attacked by
Mies In the earlier days, aa
bow, th Httl horses sought
safety in flight Bpted be
cxm necessary to preserve
tloa. As 'their habit of
graslng upon plains became
fixed, there waa leas us for
th aid and rear toe a.
In tanning, the front toe
n
' In their respective position ar th seven member
of th crew every man at his station, lying flat or sit
ting on a small stooh
- One looks after the dynamo, another the air pumps,
another the gasolin engine, and so on.
Nelson gives at command. Th man in charge of th
eJr open a valval and. with a whirring sound," the sir
forces out what Httl water I in th tank, and the boat
skims along tho surface. . -
Then another command. The' maa In charge of th
tanka ooena a valve, and you can hear the lnrushlng
sound of water. Nelson work th horlsontal rudders,
water rushes Into th for compartment, and th boat
plunges, her stern In the air. Mor water come In. and
down ah goes. ' -
Th sensation of going down In th Plunger Is very
much Ilk descending an Inclined plane. It resemble th
sensation of a quick drop In an elevator, except that you
ar moving on an angle. Thla angle Is fixd by the maa
In the tower, who regulate th rudders and fixe th
amount of th flow of water.
In a few second the boat rests upon the bottom, la
forty feet of water. It la calm down there not a -wave,
bo difference bow hard a storm may be raging on the sur
fee. The boat sinks slowly Into a restful position, on a
- perfect keel, and without th least. Jar..
Coming up la a different proportion. Th lr la turned
Into th water tanks. 4he aea valve opened, and. with a
rush, wtr I forced out It takea the Plunger lea than
five seconds to Jump to th surfae out of forty feet of
water. " . .
On the surface th boat's speed la ten knot an hour.
. FIRING A TORPEDO
Th Httl boat can skl-o to wjtbla MO yard ot her, and
shoot out th torpedo. Nelson, however, prefer to talk
of working at a distance ot halt a mil.
After being h6t trom th Plunger's tube, th torpedd
will hit th surface 100 yards distant and aklm along.
Th battleship may see it coming, but there Is no help.
It I moving too rapidly, and th great momentum of th
huge mass of steel and iron forbids rapid manoeuvring.
Twenty seconds from the time the torpedo leaves th
tubeseventeen seconds from the time it comes Into sight
It has found Its mark, and a ton of dynamite, guncot
ton and chemical explosives has been hurled against the
armor plate. ' ' "
"A muffled sound, a great gaping wound, and th
1 tleshlp is useless for a year. Bh cannot move, aad is
entirely at th mercy of Vnelt Sam's guns. Th other two
torpedoes might sink her, but the mala purpose hag been
accomplished whea she la disabled. '
The Plunger Inside Is a glow of electric light Sma3
Incandescent globes, protected by wire netting, ar every
where. It require no air to run Incandescent lamps, aa"
air is valuable on th Plunger.
So perfecUy trained Is th vrew. that Nelson, with
out a word of warning, will often turn oat every B ht.
Th men work around In the dark a conveniently a the
do when everything la clear before them. Thl I a rs
of months snd months ot practice. ,
There ar no sleeping arrangements maid th Plunger
" in th event of war, however, eight folding cots) a 1
takes on board, th wbol lght occupying- a spa f Isc
than eight cubic feet Provisions sufficient t last tt
men for weeks may also be taken In. But, artth ti
rapidity with which the vessel moves, her quick and dead;
work, Nelaon aaya that tw days at a time ar an the
he vr needs to be submerged.
Part ot the duty of the officer and Ms a 1 t t
able to get along without Bleep for two day.
Smuggling' Sharpens the Wits of the Crooks
OP. ,nAini nv wins ot oo rr? f tU BDRIKBPI
INGENIOUS DEVItca Auuricu ox inio vui.oo.ur ivAn-jjnwui
MANT and lngaalous are th devices ot th smug
gNot long sine upon th Batss-ItaUan frontier
It was discovered that schoolgirls were being
used In a scheme to avoid the payment ot customs duties.
Forty Httl glrla, attending school, in a border town,
war ccustomd to go out walking with their teachera
each afternoon. The euthorltles permitted them to cross
th boundary line without molestation. ,
Finally, it dawned upon the-offlclala that th children
appeared thinner upon their return than when they set -out
' A watch waa kept, and one day. when th llttl ones
seemed stouter than usual, thjy were taken to pollc
headquarter and searched. Stowed away in their cloth
ing wer found clgara. tobacco and other dutlabl gooda.
They confessed that at th command of their mis
tress, they had -systematically carried tobaeoo across,
the border. It is needless to say that their walka hav
been restricted.
A wily Individual contrived to get a targ quantity
of glove Into England, practically duty fre,. om tlm
To a town on th south cost he imported b'g lot
of gloves, snd refused to pay duty on them. Tt ui
torn inspectors seised the consignment. hen
were opened every glov waa lound to b a Tight
hnAfew weeks Ister the sm person Imported another
Urge order, this time to London. Again he
pay the dutv. nnd again the glovea wer seised. These
wer ll "left banders." 1 ,
.A CHINESE SCHEME
In course ot Urn, th two lot "r ,or ".l!
One night an official put hi ey t th keyhol ef t
warehouse. Aa astonishing sight was reveaiea. on
table lay th dead body of a Chinaman, aad through
tub Inserted In th nostril a wily countryman We busT
blowing gold dust -
Th Chinese had utilised j ermlsston for traaavortatic
ef their dead to smuggle out gold dust In this gmesor
manner. Bine that tlm Chinamen dying la Utah,
have been burled there. ',
COULD NOT WISH THEM LONG LIK
N'
0T LONG since, la England, a paper X th
country announce, a couple who eomblBed ear
reached in yeare war married.
Th, wr- XVanrla R Russell M year O'
and Annie Harvey, aged rv. Both war resident of t
Villag of Ludgvan, near Pensanre.
It was a love match purely. The vlllDrer did not
prove the union, and, for several daya be for th m
riage. protested by rattling tin can en th Iron I of U.
prospective bride's house. - ' . , ".
The gd Franol and th more aged Annie lmr
emlled at these demonstrations. They. were old enou
they said, to know their own minds a proposition so o..
could controvert
. Ftom th galea tine America.
aiona took up th strain. Skeleton of t Man and a Hone Mounted for, Comparison. Note
They responded to increasing tt- n.t,1rtr,m,f of the Horte'fi Limb and Grinding Teeth
,13 ""..r,r"-r - . h. i mirht he snHf . oemana upon weir strength r " "
to aay a few words ot Lieutenant Charles P. Nelson. Its by growing larger, while the other toes, being used less More neeful than any Other animal for cavalry pur-
enmmander, ror h is on ot tn moot " na less, atropnieo. until (hey finally shrank away. And poses Is the horse, because of It long-poasessea wsuno
so. in um. oniy a Mngl and solid foot piece was for con aerted actios wnu neraea togetner.
needed, th hoof took th place of toes.- - In th primitive horse th bone of th legs, while re
Many of the characteristic of th hnrse can be traced eembllng In a general way th structural form of to
back to th instinct and habile of former dsys. day. were shorter and not so well adapted speedy ano
Th habit of carrying the head high, tor example, - eaey locomotion. Thes hv changed conalderably Our
come from the watchfulneae of the patrlarcha of anoieat , tng the ag?e. . ...
, . Man nun ifliu iiw;i irr 111 inn w mrw, "
at puhllo. auction one -ot in wra r ..;;
outh coast.- As each lot was comnaraUvely valaelee
elone. It Went for a mere song. The shrewd Importer
irchasca notn iota, ana, pairiug v
On the morning ot th wedding th bride, who Uv
nils from the home at the srootn. walked euleUy I
the latter' home. Th pair then took a eerriaa aa
drove to Pensance. ' . .
After they had been duly married, the Reelstrar e
gratulated them. "I cannot wish you long life,' he s
Tfor you have had that already. But I wish r hapi.
Be aa muoh longer as you do live. . .
At last acounta the old couple wer Bvtog aaie
and, happily in thlr little home.
Seventy per cent of Japan's war eapenouur i
a anent In Janan. Many strwrgUng oneern h.e i
roiM succeeaful undertakings aa a consequence i
poller. ..... . . - . e
a afaaauliiarta man. not war sw, am s
vy.
' radiiAla af Anna noiia. Ha has been In the submarine
service for five years, and. perhaps, knows mor about
such boats than any ether man in America.
He started going down In submarine when men eo
employed bade good-bye to friends and relatives, and
battle, utterly f oar less-endowed with rar education,
outiy ability end. eopdenc In thj Stars and Btrioe.
herds, who wer continually on th lookout for foes.
aprl
vy,
Shying comes from the quick Jump said to vold th estlng study is furnished by
Ing oca beast of preyl while bucking. In the earn that of a horvcwhlchi have
ry. Nelaoa was allowed to take hi choice. They wer ., by a New York museum for . I
furnished by the sketches of a man snd
r oeen mount ea siue or
the parpoM of eons par uton.
si
Particularly keen are the Chinese In d via tng smog
Hng) echeroea. aa .lluatrated by a story from Irkutsk,
Aftsr a company ot Cossacks, who had rea ap
pointed to look after gold duet end ere take from the
in I nee by prisoners, had 6camped with rg quantity
of the precloua mstal, aged andderptt Chinamen wer
appointed night watchmen at the- warehouse. It we
sraued that they ere too Inflna esepe with any gold.
Several of these Celestial guards died I course of a
few months, and the authorities permitted their friend
to send the oodles horn t - r ' 1. . . M
It waa noticed that " l t -rrX ali
watch waa kept apoa
Two Australian black swan were recently .
off lrtolk liland. In the Paclfle. Th.y mu h.v.
led 0 mile. Th birds were In very ashau.l
dltloa but after a fresh-wstar bath and pi-oty '
- ?i.y rvlv"ht Uok .wan I. la.-ul sa
hut M mile at la a long swlny va fw L. j.
A remarkable f t an
f Aleaka. Aooi't t
t fct !-t ef s i i '
miv, ra- J a ef
-V t s 1 ' '
I
I ... i . 'i
'i to et h '