184 ELECTRIC AUXILIARIES ON MERCHANT SHIPS. 



machinery. We lay it to conditions that are temporary. We lay it to the lack of skill of 

 our own people on board the ship, and we expect in the future on the North Dakota a de- 

 gree of efficiency that will become comparable with what we have been getting on the New 

 Mexico ; for example, the New Mexico burned about one^half to two-thirds as much fuel 

 when steaming in squadron with the North Dakota as the North Dakota burned. 



In port, on the electric auxiliary question, we have extended very considerably the use of 

 electric auxiliaries. That has been done notably on the Tennessee. The fuel consumption 

 of the Tennessee is less than 1 1 tons a day in port, and nothing is steam driven except an 

 electric generator, condensing or non-condensing, forced draft blower, and a few pumps. 

 The exhaust steam from the auxiliaries and the non-condensing generator is used for the 

 operation of the evaporators; also when sufficient exhaust steam is available for heating the 

 ship and in the galley. The pressure of the exhaust steam is maintained at 12 pounds gauge 

 in order to provide sufficiently high pressure to operate the boilers in the galley. That ships is 

 running with materially less fuel than any other battleship, and we figure that the electric 

 auxiliaries on that ship are saving us approximately $165.00 a day. 



Mr. Ernest H. B. Anderson : — May I make one comment in regard to the North Da- 

 kota in relation to the other ships? I do not know if it is clear to everyone here that the rev- 

 olutions of the propellers on the North Dakota are 240 a minute, as compared with 170 for 

 the Tennessee and sister ships. 



Rear Admiral Robison : — That is true^ — the North Dakota has single-reduction gears. 



Mr. Anderson : — She has single-reduction gearing, but when the change was made it 

 was not possible to renew the shafting and reduce the propeller revolutions to 125, we will 

 say — it could have been done so far as the geared turbines were concerned, but it was really 

 a question of cost and structural limitations. 



Mr. Emmet : — When we were figuring on the alterations for the North Dakota we were 

 told it was not worth while to change the propellers, although I said that it would be a prac- 

 ticable thing to put new shafting and propellers into the ship, but I was told we would not 

 gain much. 



Mr. Anderson : — It could not have been done, Mr. Emmet. 



President Capps : — The Chair wishes to suggest that in making responses to these re- 

 marks, which could not be covered in the rejoinder by the authors of these papers, that very 

 great care be taken to reply only to questions which have been brought up in the main dis- 

 cussion of these papers ; in other words, we cannot have a continued discussion of opinions 

 interjected from time to time during the consideration of these papers after the main dis- 

 cussion has taken place. It is rather irregular to have that sort of discussion arise, simply 

 because if every opinion expressed in the discussion is itself subject to indefinite discussion, 

 there will be no end to it. That is just a word of caution. Mr. Dickinson, have you any- 

 thing you desire to say? 



Mr. Dickinson : — I do not think I would have time to go into the matter ad infinitum. 

 I think, however, that you will, perhaps, bear with me for five minutes if I refer to one or two 

 remarks which have been made. Mr. Pierce got at me rather hard. I deserve it, because I 

 very carelessly on page 167, I think it is — that is a page referred to quite often this after- 



