ENGINEERING BEFORE AND AFTER WAR 39 



White often referred to the work of Brunei as the de- 

 signer of the Great Eastern, and spoke of him as the 

 originator of the cellular construction of the bottoms of 

 ships, since universally adopted, as a means of strengthen- 

 ing the hull and for obtaining additional safety in case 

 of damage. Scott Russell was the builder of this great 

 pioneer vessel, the forerunner of the Atlantic liners, and 

 the British Association may rightly feel satisfaction in 

 having aided him when a young man by pecuniary grants 

 to develop his researches into the design and construction 

 of ships and the wave-line form of hull which he origi- 

 nated, a form of special importance in paddle-wheel ves- 

 sels. 



So much discussion has taken place in the last four 

 years as to the best construction of ship to resist torpedo 

 attacks that it is interesting 1 to recall briefly at the present 

 time what was said by White in his Cantor Lectures to 

 the Royal Society of Arts in 1906: "Great attention has 

 been bestowed upon means of defence against underwater 

 torpedo attacks. From the first introduction of torpedoes 

 it was recognised that extreme watertight subdivision in 

 the interior of warships would be the most important 

 means of defence. Experiments have been made with 

 triple watertight skins forming double cellular sides, the 

 compartments nearest the outer bottom being filled, in 

 some cases, with water, coal, cellulose, or other materials. 

 Armor plating has been used both on the outer bottom 

 and on inner skins." He also alludes to several Russian 

 ships which were torpedoed by the Japanese, and he con- 

 cludes by saying : "Up to date the balance of opinion has 

 favored minute watertight subdivisions and comparatively 

 thin watertight compartments, rather than the use of in- 

 ternal armor, whose use, of course, involves large ex- 

 penditure of weight and cost." 



The present war has most amply confirmed his views 

 and conclusions, then so lucidly and concisely expressed. 



While on the subject of steamships, it may perhaps be 



