employment of Oblique Riders. 335 
to have been exemplified by his experiment of leaving the 
Tremendous for three days on fourteen shores only, without 
injury: but for encountering the stroke of a rock, or of very 
hard ground, Mr. Seppings's ship would probably be inferior, 
since in this case greater stiffness, even with equal strength, 
would be detrimental rather than beneficial ; while, on the 
other hand, she would undeniably be less liable to suffer from 
any injury that might happen to her outer planking only; 
and, from her superiority in this respect, might possibly sus- 
tain, without inconvenience, a stroke, which would be ulti- 
mately fatal to a ship of a different construction. 
13. Durability. 
There does not seem to be the slightest ground for the 
apprehension, that the filling in should render the ship’s 
timbers liable to decay : on the contrary, the timbers of the 
Sandwich w'ere found perfectly sound in the lower half of 
their length, opposite to the wedges which had been driven 
in between them, and completely decayed in the upper half, 
where they had been exposed, in the usual manner, to the 
action of the confined moist air and water ; and this result is 
perfectly conformable to analogy with the few facts that have 
been ascertained, respecting the general causes of decay. The 
utility of the filling in, for preventing the accumulation of 
filth, and for keeping the ship free from foul air, with respect 
to the comfort, and perhaps to the health of the crew, is too 
obvious to require discussion. How far the economy of tim- 
ber may in all cases be so great as Mr. Seppings is disposed 
to believe, can best be ascertained by those who are in the 
habit of estimating its value : but if the durability of the vessel 
Xx 2 
