396 . Notices of Books. [July, 
appears to have been carefully compiled, and is furnished with a 
useful Appendix of Tables and a good Index; and it will doubt- 
less be found a valuable hand-book for students, to whom we can 
commend it with confidence. 
Our Ironclads and Merchant Ships. By Rear-Admiral E. Gar- 
DINER FISHBOURNE, C.B. London: E. & F. N. Spon. 
1874. 
Tuis work is evidently intended as a reply to the principles of 
Naval Construction as laid down in ‘“‘ Naval Science.” The 
discussions and differences of opinion, which disclose themselves 
from time to time in our daily and scientific journals, regarding 
the modern type of war vessels, clearly show that there are two 
sides to the question as to whether those recently constructed 
have been built upon proper scientific principles. Now we know 
that the designs of Mr. Froude and Mr. Reed have long pre- 
vailed at the Admiralty, and the Schools of Naval Architecture 
disseminate the rules laid down by these authorities. Against 
the principles thus taught Admiral Fishbourne brings forward 
strong arguments, based upon scientific reasonings, and until 
his propositions are overthrown by still weightier arguments we 
shall continue—as we always have done—to have but little faith 
in the architects of a vessel that will flounder, as did the Captain, 
or that require ‘‘ so much ballast to make them less dangerous,” 
as the Sultan and Invincible. In consequence of Mr. Froude’s 
propositions, deep empty spaces in the bottoms of ships were 
introduced by Mr. Reed, ‘“‘ expressly to facilitate the raising the 
engines, boilers, and other weights, because it has been ascer- 
tained that the tendency of ships to roll has been reduced by 
these means;”’ but, as is clearly shown by Admiral Fishbourne, 
this caused the errors of calculation to be on the wnsafe side,— 
that of decreasing the stability below the quantity assigned by 
it. This principle of construction appears to us to be totally 
opposed to all previously accepted means of ensuring stability, 
as is practised, for instance, in the construction of a life-boat, 
where the spaces are arranged on the sides and ends of the 
vessel. To construct such deep hollow spaces at the bottom of 
the vessel must tend to give that part of it increased buoyancy, 
which, as we have already shown, has to be overcome by a heavy 
amount of ballast, as would be the case if a boy covered the 
bottom of his little yacht with cork. The plan adopted of cal- 
culating a ship’s stability upon the metacentric method in a still 
basin is justly condemned by our author as not enabling a safe 
estimate to be made, ‘*‘ because a vessel, when in motion ahead, 
possesses a greater total stability than her inclination indicates, 
for it is necessary to provide for sufficient stability when a ship 
is without motion ahead, and, therefore, without hydrodynamic 
mera 
