18-14.] 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECT'S JOURNAL. 



233 



terms that it must now be put, and it is believed that thus put, it is not ne- 

 cessary to bo a seaman to comprehend it, if even to judge it. 



If, in the comparison attempted to be instituted above, no account is taken 

 of the expences of maintenance and renewal of material, it is because on this 

 point only hypotheses more controvertible could be brought fonvard. How- 

 ever some data exist derived from official documents, and which may be con- 

 sidered suitable to furnish an important element of comparison. Experience 

 proves that in the African service, the mean duration of boilers is five to s\x 

 years. Then, if this duration be admitted, and if it be admitted at the same 

 time that in steamers, the deterioration of boilers is one of the most active 

 and efiicacious causes of expense, it may be asked if sailing vessels subjected 

 to the same duty, on duty summer and winter, subjected moreover to the 

 chances of shipwreck from which steamers are free, if these sailing vessels 

 would not occasion expences for maintenance and renewal of material equally 

 considerable. It is besides to be remarked that the expense arising from the 

 wear of boilers would be materially diminished if the use of copper boilers 

 were generalized on board of the steam navy. Not only do these boilers re- 

 quire almost no repairs, but they last at least three times longer than sheet 

 iron boilers, and when arrived at the limits of workability, the materials pro- 

 duced on their demolition still preserves almost all their value.'" 



Moreover, on this point [of com[iarative expense] all we ask is equality ; 

 but if it is not thought right to concede this to us, if it be proved to us that 

 we have been deceived, our calculations will not the less have served to de- 

 monstrate our proposition, namely that in a military navy, the services of 

 steamers, compared with sailers are much less costly than is thought. 



If another thing had been asserted, if it had been attempted to discover 

 which of the two navies, costs the state most, it would have been necessary to 

 have taken an account of the expenses of first establishment, and calculate 

 the primary value of tlie two sets of stock. We however know that for steam 

 stock this primary expense is more considerable than the stock for sailing 

 vessels. But what will that come to? That in ordinary times France must 

 take fifteen years instead of ten to put its steam fleet on a right footing ; that 

 is all. 



.Such is not tlie end which we have proposed ; we only wished to contest 

 false or exaggerated notions, slill more dangerous as they would naturally 

 have for their auxiliaries the economical views of the Ch.imbers. 



APPKNDIX C. 

 Eiplimation of Table, No. 3. 

 On the data furnished by the budget for 1843, the exjiense of maintenance 

 in pay and provisions of armed sailing vessels, and sailing and steam vessels 

 in commission have been calculated, and it has been found to amount to 



18,.553,616fr. £742,144 

 From the same data (he expense has next been cal- 

 culated of the maintenance in pay and provisions of 

 armed steamers; to this is added the 1,800.000 francs 

 (£72,000). put down in the same budget as the cost 

 of fuel, and it has been found that the expense of 

 steamers is 5,517,004 fr. £220.080 



Total for the maintenance of vessels put down in 

 the budget 24,070,620 fr. £162,824 



The expense of a fleet composed according to llie ideas laid down in the 

 preceding note has been sought, always on the same terms, and this is the 

 result : — 



For Political Pni-poses. [War and Demotistration.~\ 



I ship of line, first rate 

 1 „ third *•■> 



1 ., fouith 



5 steamers 450 h. p. 

 5 „ 320 „ 

 10 „ 220 „ 



1st. 



Fleet thus 

 composed. 



3 ships of the line. 



(-20 steamers. 



2d. Stalions : 



West Indies and Mexieo, Brazil^ Pacific, Oreanica, [Tahiit], 

 South Sea, Bourbon and China. 

 Large frigates only have been put down because they 

 only are fit to oppose wilh success the new ;Englibh 

 frigates, such as the Warspite, Vindictive, &ic., armed 

 with 50 guns and also 500 men. 



3d. Missions. 

 Steamers lof450h. p. 'J 



4 of 220 ,, J- 



5 of 160 „ I 

 20 gun brigs 



22 first class frigates. 



10 steamers. 

 5 



4 8 Some very good remarks will be found by Capt. Wheelwright on this subject, in his 

 recently published correspondence on Pacitic Steam Navigation. 

 49 The should be 1 lirst rate, I second rate, and I third rate. 



4th. Locnl Service in the Colonies, Fisheries, and West Coast oj Africa. 

 Gun boats, sloops, cutters, &c. . . 27 ,, 



In time these 27 vessels might be replaced at the same cost of maintenance 

 and wilh advantage to the service by 18 steamers of 120 to 80 h. p. 



5lh. African Service — Correspondence, Transport of Troops and Stons. 

 Steamers of 160 h. p. ... 20 



Corvettes or transports . . . 13 



A considerable reduction on the maintenance of (he corvettes might be 

 eflected by fitting lliem out commercially. 



Steamers of 120 h 



6th. 

 I'- 



Marine school ship 

 Batimens de servitude. 

 According to this plan. 



Sailing vessels 



Steamers 



Dockyard and Colonial Servica. 

 7th. Sundry Duties. 



10 



1 



he cost of armed vessels would he 



15,219,107 francs £608,764 

 8,'J16,,565 356,682 



24,135,672 96.5,420 



The expense of vessels put down in the budget of 1845 is : 



Sailing vessels . . 18,553,616 francs £742,144 



Steamers . . . 5,517,004 220,680 



24,070,620 962,824 



Balance of increase on the |)lan 65,052 francs (£2,402). 



Note. The steamer appears to be the most complete solution of a problem 

 now attracting much attention, and which the Minister of Marine is liaving 

 examined by a Commission, and which the budget of 1845 introduces in the 

 composition of armaments. We mean the Commission of road or port duty, 

 (commission de rade,) that is to say, an intermediate position between arma- 

 ment and disarmament, between active service and inactivity, a state which 

 unites at once economy and the obligaliun of keeping up a naval force im- 

 mediately or speedily disposable. On board ship, we must have a numerous 

 crew; the crew, is the engine, and this engine causes a consumption daily, 

 whether in port or at sea. at anchor or under sail. On board a steamer, tlie 

 engine which supplies the place of a number of liands, only consumes while 

 at work, in proportion to the amount of power required, and which when 

 compared with sailing admits of no comparison, as to rapidity and certainty 

 of communication, while it cnnslitvites an element of military piwer; in port 

 this engine costs nothing. 



This is why by giving a great development to steam power, it has been 

 thought unnecessary to make in prtJvision in the plan for vessels on commis- 

 sion de rade. 



TABLE NO. 1. 

 List of Steam ships afloat. 



23 I.e Papin of 160 h. p. 



24 Le PImeton idem. 



25 Le Pliure idem. 

 20 Le Sphinx- idem. 



27 Le Styx- idem. 



28 Le Tartare idem. 



29 Le Tenare idem. 



30 Le Tonnerre idem. 



31 Le Vaulour idem. 



32 Le Rarnier of loO. 



33 Le Castor of 120. 



34 Le Brazier idem. 



35 Le N.. .. idem. 



36 Le Flambeau of 80. 



37 Le Galibi idem. 



38 Le Voyageur idem. 



39 LEre'be of 60. 



40 UAlecton idem. 



41 L'Eridan idem. 



42 Le Basilic of 30. 



43 Le Serpent idem. 



List of Steamers being built. 



1 j^e Vauban of 540 h. p. 



2 Le Descartes idem. 



3 Le Sane' of 450. 



4 Le Monge idem. 



5 Le Colbert 320. 



6 Le Newton idem. 



7 Le PlatoH idem. 



8 Le Socrate idem. 



9 Le Roland idem. 



10 ie Cassini of 220 h. p. 



11 Le Titan idem. 



12 ie Coligny idem. 



13 N. . .. idem, iron. 



14 Le Chaptal idem. 



15 Le Brandon of 160. 

 IG Le Solon idem, iron. 



1 7 /.a Salamandre of 80, iron. 



18 L'Anacre'on idem. 



