14 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[October 1. 1"14. 



l>ut for the rubber used, tn these two directions alone, nol to 

 mention others, the safetj oi .1 ship in time of accident mainly 



ids, for a leaky manhole or an insecure door might easily 

 lead to gr.m- consequences it nol to the loss ol the craft itself. 



I a ship t Ii .n can keep the sea in all kinds of weather, either 



How TiiF. United States Navv Lays Naval Defense Mines. 



guarding the paths of commerce or pursuing the foe, must he 

 ething more than merely secure below decks. It is quite 

 impossible for her to drive along into heavj seas and to have 

 her decks smothered with the great tumbling masses of water 

 unless her hatches and her sky-lights as well as portholes be 

 against thi sea's invasion. Here, once more, rubber pack- 

 ing and rubber seatings meet the emergencj and make it pos- 

 sible i" close these openings perfectly. But there must be com- 

 munication at many points beneath the waterline between the 

 sea and the interior of a man-o'-war. Some of these openings 



for the purposi oi tl ling compartments in case of fire, 



• ■titer- are passages by which the 



-ater can be drawn into the 



ship for a variety of services. In 



ase, howe\ er, a suitable 



stands sentinel between the 



1) and the inner vitals of the 



craft, and that these valves ma 



tight when closed, rubber packing 



is employed. Indeed, one might g 1 



on interminabl) and enumerate 



necessarj but not spei tai ul tr 



1 i india rubber, but I I 



has been said to show how the 



fundamental fitness of the ship as a 



structure hinges in certain essenti il 



particulars upon the part played by 



aluable material in the humble 



form of mere packing 



When it comes to thi acth ities 

 of the craft, such, foi in 

 the motive ma ! hen rubber 



packing of a different sort is di - 

 manded- The modern dr. 

 carries steam at a higher pressure 

 than that generate. 1 in the boiler of 

 a racing loi 1 .tin itive, and that 



scorching energy has to lie held within bounds at every joint. 

 stuffin \ premium is paid to the engim ice in 



our men-o'-war which keeps its consumption of coal and water 

 and oil below a certain standard or maximum. ( )il is sent into 

 the machinery for lubrication under pressure and no more and 



no less than the amount required must be used to meet this gauge 

 of efficiency, Piston rods and valve stems must not exude an 

 excess, and here is where rubber packing saves the day. The 

 coal and water problem is a still nicer one. Salt water is not 

 ii-ed in mil ne boilers 'he ship starts upon her voyage with 

 her boilers charged with fresh water 



and with a reserve supply in suitable 



lank- r m the double bottom spaces. 

 When nion is needed, it is obtained 

 .0 distilling the sea water. Distilling 

 sea "ater calls for heat in the form 

 oi steam, and the steam is produced 

 ;r. the coal or the oil fuel, as the 

 ..is, ma> be. It is surprising what a 

 leak) joint in a hot water pipe or a 

 small escapement in a steam feed or 

 a stuffing box will represent in the 

 \\,i\ of waste in the course of twen- 

 ty-four hours. Therefore, only the 

 best of rubber packing will answer. 

 Of course, many of the decks not 

 exposed to the weather are covered 

 with rubber tiling and rubber mats 

 at the foot of ladders and the ap- 

 proaches to Ih.iw steel doors are a 

 necessity ; likewise so are the treads 

 on gangways covered to prevent slip- 

 ping as the lighting men hasten up and down upon their various 

 missions. Rubber stop* keep doors from banging, and similar 

 buffers check the blows of the innumerable ponderous masses 

 that swing and move in their different services on shipboard. 

 Naturally, there are miles of rubber hose for cleaning decks and 

 for battling with fire, and Jacky must have his rubber boots as 

 well as his rubber clothes in order that he can stand watch when 

 the storm blows and the stinging spraj sweeps the ship from 

 stem to stern. Down in the sick hay and tin- dispensary the 

 surgeon has his rubber bandages, and vulcanized rubber utensils 

 of in. in> sorts, not to mention rubber tubing and the insulations 



\ It m 11.1 a of Italian Submarines. 



of his X-ray equipment. Indeed, rubber is just .is ...uch pre m 

 as it is in the operating room of a large hospital, for the 

 ship's surgeons have a crew of more than a thousand to minister 

 to in the biggest of up-to-date dreadnoughts. There are SCQres 

 upon scores of lesser directions in which rubber is plone ade- 



