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The Steam Turbine 205 When the idea of driving a ship by turbines was first mooted, the inventor was disposed to shoulder the whole of the responsibility and financial burden himself. It was plunging into the unknown and failure might be recorded. When discussing the pro- ject, the Honourable C. A. Parsons declared that the only successful means by which the turbine could be driven home as an engine for propelling ships was to embark upon a vessel which could give a higher speed upon the water than had ever been attained before. Speed would attract widespread attention, not only among the general public but in the technical world as well. The experiment was bound to involve a considerable outlay, because anything of such a radical character in the realm of navigation is in- evitably expensive, involving the construction of a special vessel and in this instance of machinery as well. However, his friends decided to stand in with him. In the event of failure the individual loss would not be pronounced ; while if it succeeded each was certain to meet with an adequate reward. The foundation of the syndicate furnished the sinews of war for the construction of the vessel and its machinery, and the inventor hoped that upon its trials the new boat would show a speed of 32 knots. The vessel, christened Turbinia, was completed in the autumn of 1894. It measured 100 feet in length, 9 feet beam, and when ready for the trials displaced 44J tons. It was fitted with a single turbine driving a single propeller-shaft. The first tests were made upon November 14th, 1894, but they were not satisfactory. The vessel