APPLICATION OF BUOYANCY BOXES TO THE STEAMSHIP LUCIA 

 FOR THE UNITED STATES SHIPPING BOARD. 



By W. T. Donnelly, Esq., Member. 



[Read at the twenty-sixth general meeting of the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers, held in 



Philadelphia, November 14 and 15, 1918.] 



The unprecedented sinking of vessels by submarines in the early part of 19 17 

 directed universal attention to the possibility of protecting ships against the attacks 

 of the submarine. 



The result was a tremendous influx of ideas, scientific, practical and imprac- 

 tical, to all the departments in Washington. 



It soon became apparent that some organization must be gotten together to 

 handle this mass of material and meet by counter endeavor, if possible, the menace of 

 the submarine. 



This resulted in the creation jointly, by the Naval Advisory Board and the 

 United States Shipping Board, of the Ship Protection Committee. 



The original members of this committee were Admiral H. H. Rousseau, 

 chairman, appointed by General Goethals as general manager of the Emergency 

 Fleet Corporation ; A. M. Hunt, a member of the Naval Advisory Board to repre- 

 sent that board on the committee; and the writer, who was recommended by the 

 chairman of the Naval Advisory Board, W. L. Saunders. 



The preliminary work of the committee consisted of classifying and considering 

 several thousand suggestions dealing with many real, and more imaginary, methods 

 of overcoming the submarine. 



The method of rendering a ship safe against sinking by internal buoyancy boxes 

 was the outcome of the writer's experience in the construction of floating dry docks, 

 and this experience has been embodied in United States Patent, dated April 17, 191 7. 



The idea first took shape before the committee in a copy of this patent sub- 

 mitted from the Patent Office by a clerk of that department. 



Fundamentally there is nothing at all new in providing internal buoyancy for 

 ships or boats. On reference to the "General Rules and Regulations Prescribed by 

 the Board of Supervising Inspectors" of the Department of Commerce, United 

 States Government, there will be seen, referring to lifeboats, on page 78, paragraph 

 17:— 



"The internal buoyancy of a wooden boat of this type shall be provided by 

 watertight air cases, the total volume of which is at least equal to 7>^ per cent of the 

 cubic capacity of the boat." 



A further paragraph reads as follows: — 



