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About The McCook tribune. (McCook, Neb.) 1886-1936 | View Entire Issue (June 10, 1898)
THESE Non-Combatant Vessels That Serve tlu Men- V of-War as Floating Hospitals , Helpers , r > \ etc , Are Never Fired Upon , The finest of our fighting ships , with all their boasted self-sufficiency , their manifold mechanism , and their com plex provisions against accident or mishap , are really helpless creations the moment their coal supplies become exhausted. Nothing could be more pathetically distressed than a great battleship wallowing aimlessly in a seaway , her powers of offense intact but paralyzed , like her great body , for want of energy or its correlative , coal ; her great eyes blind for want of elec trical force ; her lungs fouled by taint ed air because of her halted blowers ; her whole body either feverish or chil led , as the weather dictated , for want of circulation or proper respiration ; and her complement athirst for need of enough heat to transform that tantaliz ing sea water into drink. Such a thing is distinctly possible , and it Is against even the slightest approach tea a like condition that we have taken ample means to provide. The modern , heavy fighting craft carries between eighty and ninety en gines of various sorts , aside from those directly occupied in propelling the ship ; and , under normal circumstanc es , it Is quite safe to say that at .least fifteen or twenty per cent of all steam generated Is taken up in their service. Most of them are vital to the fighting efficiency of the vessel ; but there are a few of them , such , for Instance , as the engineers' workshop , the distillers , and the refrigerating plant , which may be termed auxiliaries of secondary im portance ; and it is the purpose of the government to run these accessories on half-time , so to speak , and to leave just that much more energy for other more needful purposes. To this end , we have fitted up the repair ship , the distiller ship , and the refrigerator ship , while to the colliers has been relegated the common service of supplying coal to all craft distant from ready bases of supply , and the engineer-in-chief has done his utmost to make them cap able. The Repair Ship. The repair ship , fittingly named the Vulcan , was the well-known steamer Chatham , of the Merchant and Miners' line , between Baltimore and Boston. Into the ship has been placed some thing like eighty tons of tools and ma chinery , and today the vessel is a ver itable floating workshop. There are plate bending rolls , and punching and shearing machines that can bite right through an inch of solid steel. There are lathes for turning castings of con siderable size , and planers , drills and milling machines of compass enough to meet almost any need short of that de manded in the complete reconstruction of a large engine. There are pipe cut ters , bolt cutters , forges and grind stones ; and there is a good-sized cupo la for the melting of sufficient metal to make a pretty heavy casting. There are a number of blowers to supply the several forges and to draw foul air from between decks and to send it skyward through the red-mouthed ven tilators above. There are also evap orators and distillers of a capacity equal to a daily output of quite 10,000 gallons of potable water several times more than the needs of the Vulcan could demand. A supplemental elec tric plant has given excellent lighting facilities through the ship , but prin cipally in the workshops on what is termed the third deck. _ The purpose of this craft is manifest. She is to follow in the wake of a fleet her great coal capacity giving her a wide radius of action , and she is to supply fresh water to the other vessels and to make then and there all possible repairs which might otherwise take the ships miles and miles away to some naval station. A broken spindle might render help less two great guns ; but a few hours' work on the Vulcan would remedy the trouble ; and even less time might place the engines of one of our torpedo boats in trim after a considerable break. At the close of an engagement , the wounded 'vessels could hasten to her or she to them , and such work then be done as to place them back in the line of battle , once more a formidable menace to the foe. The mission and the' usefulness of such a craft can not be overestimated , when every pound of coal must tell its tale of work well done in our defense. It is a very modern adaptation of that wise saw , "A stitch in time saves nine , " and a typical instance of the great value of a traveling base of repairs. Tlio Distiller Ship. The distiller ship , now named the Iris , was the British steamer Menem- sha. Unlike the Vulcan , the Iris will make no repairs , but will be devoted solely to converting the ocean's brine into drinking water ; and to this end , she will carry a very large supply of coal and will have four up-to-date dis tillers of considerable capacity. These distillers or evaporators will each con sist of three elements like the modern triple expansion engine , and arc in tended to utilize the steam with the SOME NON-COMBA most economical expenditure demand ed in the output of a total supply daily of at least 60,000 gallons of thoroughly palatable drinking water. The operation is simple. Each of the evaporators consists of a cylindrical steel boiler containing a coil of piping surrounded by cold sea water. The steam is supplied to the first coil di rectly from the ship's boilers. That steam raises the sea water to the boil ing point and gradually evaporates it in that way. The steam thus generated in conjunction with such of the origin al steam not condensed in the first coil in the operation , passes into the coil of the second evaporator , repealing the operation in connection with the sea water there , and finally merging with the steam raised from the salt water in the third evaporator and passing to gether into the condenser. The con densation from the first two coils is caught by traps and carried off to the tanks. In this way the latent heat from the first steam from the boiler is economically absorbed by the three stages of salt water , and a higher per centage of performance's attained than is possible in a single-element evapor ator. After condensation the water is carefully aerated and the result is a thoroughly palatable water devoid of that flatness generally characteristic of condensed sea water. A sediment of salt the residue of the ocean brine gradually forms upon the coils of the distillers , and these evap orators are so arranged that this scale can be readily removed. On the other ships their distillers will be worked as far as possible only to the extent of making good the loss 'of fresh water consumed by the boilers , that the use of salt water must be obviated and the formation of a troublesome scale of salt difficult to reach may be guard ed against In the ship's boilers proper. The hygienic value of sufficient fresh water can not be overestimated when the rigors of warfare are aggravated by the close confinement of shipboard in the tropics ; and it may even be the purpose of this vessel to lend its boun ty to the military branch of the ser vice. Poisoned wells and fainted streams need not be feared under such circumstances ; they can be avoided. Tlio Refrigerator Ship. The refrigerator ship Supply , for merly the Illinois , of the American line , will be used as a traveling base of fresh provisions ; and the tax on the refrigerating plants of the fighting ships will be eased to just that exent. The Illinois was originally built for a passenger ship , but was later relegatejtl to the transportation of cattle and beef to England , still as an adjunct to the American line. In that capacity she necessarily had an extensive system of cold storage.and this has readily adapt ed the vessel to our present needs. She will carry tons of ice and fresh proven der of all kinds but especially of a vegetable nature the surest safeguard against disease in the tropics , and with her extensive coal capacity , her own distilling plant , and 'her ample burden , she will prove an exceedingly efficient part of the fleet. The government is much emphasized by the record of ev ery war. As far as possible , the Solace has been made to meet the more press ing needs of the service for which she has been called into requisition , but she is not that perfect craft suggested by Surgeon-Gen. Van Reypen and care fully planned by the chief constructor. There is one commodious elevator in to which the sick and wounded will be carried from either side , and then rais ed or lowered either to the large , airy operating room , or to the deck on which they are to be housed. The stateroom accommodations already in the craft have been readily adapted to hospital uses , and there is ample room between decks for additional cots. The convalescents will be carried above , where they can be in the fresh air while under the sheltering cover of wide-spread awnings. Steam cutters and large barges will facilitate the easy transportation of the injured and sick , and a well-known apparatus peculiar to our service will lift them from the boats and swing them inboard and onto the rolling cots that carry them to their immediate destination. Every thing has been done to contribute to the efficiency of the vessel and the com fort and convenience of all on board , and there is every just reason to be lieve she will prove herself invaluable from the common point of hygienics and humanity for a fighting ship is a cruel place for sick or wounded after a heavy engagement. Although all these vessels will strict- .TANT SHIPS OP THE SPANISH-AMI making provisions for one or two more vessels of the same sort. The Colliers. The colliers explain themselves , and , being boats of fair speed and great car rying capacity , will form the principal supply links between our fighting craft and our base of supply. As carefully as our coal will be used , still hundreds upon hundreds of tons of it will be used daily to keep the ships always ready for instant service and prepared to meet the enemy at any moment ; and the safe conduct of their precious ebon burdens will be a matter often demand ing good , cool judgment and no mean skill on the part of their commanders. In war time , and sore pressed as Spain is , coal is worth its weight in gold , and a collier will prove a nugget worthy of a good , stiff chase and a moderate tus sle , and the captain that can dodge : such a foe and run his cargo safely Into the intended haven will be doing just as much good , perhaps , as the skipper that sinks a foe. The Ambulance Ship. The ambulance ship is the naval sis ter of mercy , and will minister wholly to the sick and wounded of our officers and seamen , or , if need be , the stricken of our army of occupation as well. The Solace , formerly the Creole , of the Cromwell line , has already begun , perhaps , the duty for which she was hastily prepared ; and what It means to transport comfortably and hastily the wounded from the feverish tropics to some more temperate haven beyond the boom of guns and beyond the exciting ? reach of war's alarms is a boon very . w it itai 01 is in in ai tea a 1 w ta si sp as in bl blm fo a thW W ( ne : spANISH-AMSRICAN WAR. AN AMERICAN TORPEDO BOAT INACTION. I a . -J.U. ji ra.iHuntfs * ! 'v * > i > " " ' " - ' " BRICAN WAR , I ly avoid the enemy , still , in their way , they are just as vital to our success as those that take their places in the line and bear the brunt of battle ; and any man might be proud of the duty en- trusted him in their command. R. Q. SKERRETT. Exports and Imports. ' The exports of merchandise for the month of April aggregated $99,426,460 , in Increass of $21,177,674 as compared ivith the same month last year and for iie ten months ended April 30 , $1,025- 126,681 , an increase of § 125,497,435 com pared with a similar period of 1S97. rhe imports of merchandise for April were 555,923,658 , a decrease of $45,398- F48 compared with April of last year , md for the ten months ended April 30 , J511.187.1S6 , a decrease of $89,008,058 ompared with the same period of IS97. RECENT INVENTIONS. To prevent the slipping of wheels oJ stectrlc cars on grades a pair of sup plemental rails is placed inside the nain rails , with grooves cut crosswise n their surface , to engage toothed wheels mounted on the shaft. o Dressmakers will appreciate a new jewing machine attachment , cons'ist- ing of a U-shaped frame attached to he back of the table to support a cloth jasket , which prevents the work from Hilling or getting on the floor. Wires can be easily spliced by a new alr of pliers , one jaw having a slot or the passage of the main wire , while .he other jaw has a slotted ear through vhich the second wire slides to wind around the first wire as the pliers ire revolved. To relieve the sudden pull of winds n swinging signs , etc. , a new hanger formed of an outer casing to screw nto the board , with a coiled spring nside to support a central rod havin 6 eye at the cuter end for attachment up the building. ter Blank gun cartridges can be used in recently patented burglar alarm , vhich has a nietal barrel to be at- ached to the door by a screw , with a illding yoke actuated by a V-shaped pring to strike the cartridge as soon the door Is pushed open. Aluminium balls are coming into use England for golf , tennis , cricket and illliards , the metal being alloyed to My nake it hard , or the balls can be to onned with an aluminium cc"e and sir harder metal covering of the right hlckness to give the ball proper eight The shower that spoils a woman's Cw bonnet is a rain of terror. True friendship between women 13 matter of doubt to most men. 'GRAFTING" INSECTS. SERIES OF EXPERIMENTS WITH LOWER TYPES. Defects niado Artificially In Butterflies , Moths , Chickens , fish and Frogs Monstrosities Calculated to Give One a Sort of Physical Nightmare. Great interest as well as curiosity has been roused in scientific and lay circles throughout the United States by some experiments in what may be termed the "grafting" of insects re cently conducted by Prof. Crampton of Columbia university , New York , says the London Post. Without going so far as to say that the experiment of Prof. Crampton makes it at all probable that the process of grafting will ever be made applicable to more highly developed creatures than grubs , caterpillars and their winged relatives , there appears in the mere fact of the successful "grafting" of these lower types promise enough to warrant an investigation of the amaz ing physiological phenomena which have rendered the operation possible. It is no detraction that the American professor's experiments are not al together new. So far , Indeed , as the artificial production of insect mon strosities is concerned , the idea is much older than many are aware. More than 200 years ago the German physiologist elegist Schwammerdam , having stud ied the metamorphoses of grubs and caterpillars , noticed how often both the wings and the antennae of butter flies were .deformed when emerging from the chrysalis condition , and , thinking that these abnormal results might be due to external causes , he determined to test the matter by sub jecting the insects to certain experi ences during the period of change. So successful was he that In nearly every case he contrived by artificial means to produce the defects he had observed in the emerging butterflies. It is un fortunate for those interested in such experiments that the means taken by Schwammerdam to manufacture hia insect oddities were not recorded in the "Memoires" published by the great Dutch physician Boerhave , hence they are lost to science. But the suppres sion was probably due to the German physiologist himself , for he was when young an intensely religious man re ligious in the sense understood In mediaeval days. He strongly held the opinion that all monstrosities in ani mal life were due to man's primal error and therefore he did not care to stultify himself to a certain extent by showing that these freaks could , with in certaJa limits , be produced artifi cially , and thus provide his antagonists with a powerful weapon against what was then deemed religion. But the experiments of M. Alme Barthelemy of the Lycee at Jau are well known to all students of that singular branch of physiology known as teratology , and there is no doubt that the example he first set inspired the transatlantic professor of Columbia college. It is true that M. Barthelemy did not do anything in the way of grafting or at tempting to graft the creatures on whose bodies he made his investiga tions. But that was because he suc ceeded in obtaining insect freaks by simpler means , which helped to ex plain the manner in which the deform ities usually observed in these crea tures were ordinarily caused. His ex periments were made principally with the grub of the Bombyx mori , pre sumably the ordinary death's head moth. By slight compression carefully applied in certain parts during the continuance of the metamorphle prog ress M. Barthelemy succeeded In ob- . tainins monstrosities with no heads , hunch backs and reverted antennae. Seme he secured with enormous beads and others consisting only of abdomen and legs , with neither head nor tail. He gave some insects double spines , caused others to devolp an enormous abdomen , while In yet other instances he suppressed the growth ot t jdful organs altogether , without , stra. 4e to say , otherwise affecting the creatures. He reduced the eyes to the size of pin heads and at will deprived them of the organs of sight entirely. Other French men and Germans , too , have since the date of M. Barthelemy's investigations , about thirty years ago , taken up the experiments , and the result. It may be worth pointing out to English read ers , demonstrates the soundness of the views regarding the development of such lower forms of animal life as the caterpillar and grub which were first set forth by our distinguished countryman Harvey , who , it may be remembered , considered the chrysalis physiologically identical with on egg. Kfflclcnt Guns for Artillery. The United States will employ a light artillery cf breech-loading guns of 3.2 caliber. They are the inost effective cannon for field purposes constructed to date. They can deliver projec tiles with a muzzle velocity of a quar cf a mile in a second , end their ef fective range la four miles. The pro jectiles employed are usually shrap nels , each one In bursting being re solved into about 300 fragments. Ex. Ono "Way of Tellinjj J'npa. Young Man "Mr. Gotrccks , let roc congratulate you on the marriage of your daughter. " Gotrocks "Married ! daughter , married ! To whom , sir , whom ? " Young Man "Excuse me , ; but , er you see , I er modesty forbids me , sir ; but the fact is. sir , she married me. " Adams Freeman. Why Isn't a bridle for a woman's tongue a necessary part of her har ness ? Don't judge a man by the clothes he I - A -i. Was Not Able to do Her Work Until Hood's Sarsaparllla Cured. "I was troubled with headaches , ner vousness and that tired feeling. I read in the papers about Hood's Srrsaparilla and began taking it. I am now able to do my work , as Hood's Sarsaparilla has relieved me. " MBS , T. F. RICH , Hampshire , 111. Hood's Sarsaparilla Is America's Greatest Medicine. $1 ; six for $5. Hood's Pills cure Indigestion , biliousness. The Bachelor Netro Killed thous ands just to hear the death rattle in" their throats. " The Benedict ( exten- uatingly ) "Maybe he had a baby to amuse. ' ' New York Journal. Don't Tobacco Spit ana Smoke "Tour Life Away. To quit tobacco easl'.y and torever. be mnp- netlc. full of life , mrve , and vigor. tabeNo-To- Bac. the wonder-wcrker. that makes weak men strong. All druggists. 50c or 81. Cure guaran teed. Booklet and sample free. Address Sterling Remedy Co. . Chicoco or New York. "What bum poetry that is ! " "What other kind would you expect to find in a magazine ? " Chicago Tribune. COSMO BUTTERMILK TOILET SOAP makes the skin boft , white and healthy. Sold everywhere. The American navy has practically all been built since 1S83. To Cure constipation Forever. Take Cascarets Candy Cathartic. lOc or 25a If C. C. C. fall to cure , dmsslsta refund money. "Mamma , " said Tommy Tucker , "how much older will I hare to grow before I can go to war ? " "You would have to be at least twelve years older , " answered his mother. And Tommy took another look at the last bulletins , went out to the barn , broke his wood en sword to pieces , crawled in the hay mow and wept. Chicago Tribune. He : ( wondering If that Williams ha * ever been accepted ) : "Are both your rings heirlooms ? " She : ( con cealing the hand ) : "Oh , dear , yes ! One has been in the family since the time of Alfred , but the other is newer and ( blushing ) only dates from the conquest. " Harlem Life. Electricity In Its various applica tions is said to give employment to 5,000,000 persons. Go to your grocer to-day and get a 150. package of It takes the place of cof fee the cost. at 5the . Made from pure grains it is nourishing and health * fill. Insist that yonr KTOCCT glrea you GKAIX-O. Accept no lmit toiu FAULTLESS STARCH , THE BEST FOR Shirt \tfaists , Shirt Fronts , Collars , Cuffs and Delicate Clothes. 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