TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 215 



besides increasing the strength of the vessel, will form a resistance to shot or shell : 

 they may be placed from 6 or 8 inches asunder. 



In wood battle-ships, he also fastens along the interior sides of their gun decks, 

 vertical iron plates, from 1 J to 2| inches thick, close secured and bolted through the 

 side. Such are for the purpose of resisting the shot after it has spent its force in 

 penetrating the external wood side. 



For the same purpose, he places fore and aft along the interior of the gun decks 

 of wood battle-ships, angled metal shields, the apex of each being in the centre line 

 of the gun ports, and bolted there through the side of the ship : where the upper and 

 lower edges of these shield plates join the beams above and below, they are strongly 

 bolted to the beams and to each other. 



In an iron battle-ship or ram, he builds the side of the hull above water and plates 

 it with 2 or 2i-inch thick iron or steel. Outside of this he timbers, planks, fastens, 

 and caulks the wood side of a battle-ship, not for the purpose of strength, but for a 

 resisting medium, in which a common ball may spend its force before coming into 

 contact with the internal angle- plated shields, which it is submitted will then turn 

 aside the ball from penetrating into the interior. 



These angled shields answer also for beam knees, the weight and cost of which 

 may be dispensed with. 



It is submitted, that owing to such angled shields, the reduced thickness of shield 

 plates protected by the timber side, the diagonal arrangements of four tiers of beams, 

 and the central diagonal trussings, an iron battle ram so constructed would have less 

 displacement, greater strength, more buoyancy, greater speed, and be more credit- 

 able to the engineering science of this country than those now building at an expense 

 of 1^ million, the designs of which were not thrown open to public competition, 

 although the Exhibition building, St. George's Hall, and some of the first engineer- 

 ing structures in England, are the result of such a course. 



A Novel Means to lessen the frightful Loss of Life round our exposed 

 Coasts by rendering the Element itself an Inert Barrier against the Power 

 of the Sea ; also a Permanent Deep-ivater Harbour of Refuge by Artifi- 

 cial Bars. By Admiral Taylor. 



On Street Railways as used in the United States, illustrated by a Model of a 

 Tramway and Car, or Omnibus capable of conveying sixty persons. By 

 G. F. Train, of Boston, U.S.A. 



In America such a car is drawn by a pair of horses. The tramway is laid in 

 the centre of the street, and the rail is so shallow that it offers no obstruction 

 whatever to carriages crossing" it. In wide streets two such tracks are laid down, 

 one for the going- and the other for the returning traffic. Mr. T. stated that in the 

 cities of America the system was in constant use, and was now an absolute neces- 

 sity there. He saw no difficulty in carrying out the system in our English 

 towns or in London. Where there were inclines, an extra horse would be used ; 

 and where a street was not wide enough for two tracks, he would put down a single 

 track there, and bring the traffic back by a line laid in a parallel street. He had 

 received a concession to bring out his system in Birkenhead, and he hoped by 

 September to be able to show it in operation there. All he required was leave from 

 the authorities in any town to lay down his trams and run his carnages. 



On a Mode of covering Wires with India-rubber. 

 By Messrs. Werner and C. W. Siemens. 



The authors exhibited a very ingenious machine for accomplishing this object. 

 These gentlemen use no solvent or heat whatever, but take advantage of the pro- 

 perty which india-rubber possesses of forming a perfect junction when newly-cut 

 surfaces are brought together under pressure. The core or wire, with the ribbon 

 of rubber applied to it longitudinally, is pushed into an orifice, which serves as a 

 guide to carry them into the machine, so that the superfluous rubber is cut off by 

 what may be termed a revolving pair of scissors, formed by a disc of steel with a 

 sharp edge revolving excentrically against a stationary plate, and immediately, by 



