The Mechanical Handling and Storing of Material

328 THE MECHANICAL HANDLING OF MATERIAL off and give it up again. It is most aggravating, for now we must clean up the ship, only to start in coaling again on Monday.” Thus it will be seen that while coaling was begun on the 7th, yet on the 8th, 9th, 10th, and 11th practically no coaling was accomplished, although each and every day the ships needed coal, and it was most important that they should have it. It may be interesting to know that this same collier “ Justine/’ after discharging a single cargo of coal, was returned to Newport News and laid up a long time for repairs, the bill for which exceeded ^200. It is commonly believed that Admiral Cervera’s defeat was directly due to his being short of coal and provisions, which brought him into the harbour of Santiago de Cuba to fill his bunkers. But had he been speedy in coaling after he arrived there, he probably could have escaped from the harbour, because the American vessels were also short of coal, as will appear from the messages exchanged between Admiral Sampson and Commodore Schley and the Navy Department, as they appeared in the report of Captain Crowninshield, Chief of the Bureau of Navigation. The following message was sent from Commodore Schley to Admiral Sampson : “Arrived 21st May off Cienfuegos. . . . Expect difficulty here will be to coal from colliers in constant heavy swell. Other problem easy compared with this one so far from the base.” On the same day Admiral Sampson received this dispatch from Commodore Schley, dated 24th May: “Coaling off Cienfuegos is very uncertain. Having ascertained that the Spanish fleet is not here, I will move eastward to-morrow, communicating with you from Nicholas Mole. On account of short coal supply in ships, cannot blockade them if in Santiago. I shall proceed to-morrow, 25th, for Santiago, being embarrassed, however, by ‘Texas” short coal supply, and her inability to coal in open sea. I shall not be a'4e to remain off that port owing to the generally short coal supply of squadron, so will proceed in the vicinity of Nicholas Mole, where the water is smooth, and I can coal ‘Texas’ and other ships with what coal may remain in collier.” So much has been said on this subject that it is only necessary to remark that had Commodore Schley been in possession of colliers fitted for coaling at sea, especially during his journey from Cienfuegos to Santiago, there would have been no occasion for his leaving Santiago unguarded a day after his arrival. French Experiments.—While the Spanish-American War was in progress the French were making experiments in this problem of coaling at sea. The Paris correspondent of the Times wrote on 28th July 1898, in reference to the coaling with the Temperley transporter, as follows :— “An interesting point in these manoeuvres has been the attempt to coal at sea. The collier is lashed to the ship, and the ship then steams ahead. A speed of 10 knots is said to have been reached, but other information points to a lower speed by some knots. “The ‘Japon,’ a collier, 3,000 tons, furnished with a Temperley transporter, while steaming 6 knots in a rough sea and strong breeze, succeeded in coaling the ‘ Marceau ’ and ‘La Touche Treville’ with 200 tons of coal. It was a successful beginning, but the operation was not continued so long as desired, it being interrupted in the case of the ‘Marceau’ by way of precaution, and in the case of ‘La Touche Treville ’ on account of an accident to the ‘Japon,’ which had to return to Toulon for repairs. This problem does not seem to have been fully solved, as proved by the damage sustained by the ‘Japon.’ The French Admiralty is confident of a decisive result, for it has just decided that the ‘Japon’ is to remain permanently attached to the Mediterranean reserve squadron. “Coaling and revictualling in motion is the question now before all the great