1864. | SamuEtson on Steam Navigation. 243 
ing of 4 cylinders, 88 inches diameter and 6 feet stroke ; on the shaft 
of the engines a great drum, 18 feet diameter, was fixed, and the screw 
shaft was also provided with a drum 6 feet diameter, and the motion 
was communicated from the engine to the screw shaft by means of four 
chains, so that the screw made three revolutions to one of the engine. 
She had six masts, with iron rigging, as offering less resistance to a 
head wind than the ordinary rigging. The mid-ship section of the 
ship is of a peculiar form, the sides falling in very much, so that at a 
light draught she would not be nearly so broad at her water-line as at 
a deeper immersion; but before she left the works it was deemed 
advisable to put her machinery on board. The effect of this was tht 
she was brought to her bearings at the greatest beam, and having to 
pass through a lock, it was found that the widest part of the ship came 
in contact with it, and it was necessary to widen the upper portion of 
the lock to enable the vessel to pass through into the river. At last 
she started on her trial trip, and her machinery and propeller gave the 
greatest satisfaction. She made the voyage across the Atlantic in the 
most successful manner until she was unfortunately stranded in Dun- 
drum Bay, where she lay a whole winter ; but by the unceasing efforts 
of Captain Claxton and Mr. Bremner, she was at length raised, removed 
from her perilous situation, and taken to Liverpool, where she was 
thoroughly repaired. Her machinery having been most seriously 
injured, it was taken out and replaced by a pair of oscillating geared 
engines, by Messrs. John Penn and Son, of 500 horse-power, or only 
half the power with which she was originally provided ; but with 
these new engines she accomplished even a greater speed under steam 
than she had attained with the old machinery, which was altogether 
disproportionate to her size. Her rig was also altered, and she is now 
ship-rigged, and as handsome as any steamer entering the port of 
Liverpool. She has made some of the fastest voyages to Australia and 
back on record, and may fairly be deemed one of the most successful 
and splendid steamers ever built. 
The ‘ Great Western’ having led the way, there were soon plenty 
of followers, and magnificent steamers began to multiply, amongst 
which we may mention the ‘ British Queen’ and the ‘ President,’ the 
total loss of which was such a terrible disaster in the early days of 
transatlantic steam navigation. Then we have the splendid fleet of 
the West India Mail Company; the Collins’ line, with its ‘ Arctic,’ 
‘ Pacific,’ ‘ Baltic, ‘ Atlantic, &c. ; the Cunard line, with its ‘ Acadia,’ 
‘ Asia,’ ‘ Arabia,’ and the magnificent ‘ Persia’ and ‘Scotia.’ The 
‘Persia’ constituted another great advance in size and speed. This 
magnificent steamer was built by Mr. Robert Napier, of Glasgow, and 
was launched the 3rd July, 1855; her extreme length is 3889 feet ; 
breadth 45 feet, and over the paddle-boxes 71 feet 6 inches, and her 
depth 31 feet 6 inches. She is fitted with side-lever engines of 850 
horse-power ; cylinders 1004 inches diameter, with a stroke of 10 feet ; 
she has eight boilers, with five furnaces in each; and her paddle- 
wheels are 38 feet 6 inches diameter, the floats being 10 feet 8 inches 
by 2 feet, and 28 in number. She carries 1,200 tons of coal, and her 
displacement at 22 feet draught is 5,400 tons. 
