94 Book of Steamships 



What puzzled me then and for many 

 years after was " Where was the funnel?" 

 The answer would have been: " Tucked 

 away out of sight for emergency use." I 

 mention this as an illustration of what our 

 grandfathers of the Navy thought of 

 steam this at a time when the Atlantic, 

 and other seas, had fine liners speeding 

 their way with great regularity to all parts 

 of the globe. 



One of the greatest objections to steam 

 in the Navy, prior to the general adoption 

 of the screw propeller, was the fact that 

 paddle-wheels would offer such a fine 

 target for the enemy. You could easily 

 carry spare jury masts and rigging, but 

 where could 28-ft. paddle-wheels be 

 stored? Once a paddle-wheel was fairly 

 hit the steam vessel was done for. 



Now for a moment let us go back to 

 the second branch of the " family tree ", 

 and take the date 1839 an d the ship 

 Nimrod. This, let me explain, was not 

 the first steamship the Navy possessed. 



