i 1 8 Mr. Atwood's Propositions determining the Positions 
inches (probably meaning at the greatest measure on the side 
of the vessel) : by adding the weight of the men brought to 
the same side, the depth of heeling increased to 24 inches. 
This being a degree of instability, which was deemed too 
great to be admitted in a ship of war, the ship was ordered 
into port, that some remedy might be applied to the defect 
which had been discovered. M. Romme proceeds to relate, 
that a difference of opinion prevailed amongst the engineers 
respecting the cause of this imperfection in the ship, and the 
remedies by which it might be corrected. The chief engineer, 
who was sent from Paris to Rochfort to direct what measures 
ought to be adopted on this occasion, and for rectifying the 
like fault in two other ships of war, L’Hercule and Le Pluton, 
was of opinion, that the stability of the ship Le Scipion would 
be sufficiently increased by altering the quality and disposition 
of the ballast. The original ballast of the Scipio had been 
84 tons of iron and 100 tons of stone ; according to the new 
arrangement of the chief engineer, the ballast was composed 
of 198 tons of iron and 122 tons of stone. But as a ship of 
war does not admit of any alteration in the total displacement 
or immersed volume, to compensate for the additional weight 
of ballast, amounting to 136 tons, the quantity of water with 
which the ship had been supplied was diminished by the 
weight of 136 tons. This alteration must necessarily have 
the effect of lowering the centre of gravity cf the vessel, and 
thereby of increasing its stability : but, on trial, this increase 
was by no means sufficient ; the diminution of heeling mea- 
sured on the vessel's side being only 4 inches. After this and 
other ineffectual attempts, the defect of stability was at length 
remedied by applying a bandage or sheathing of light wood 
to the exterior sides of the vessel, from 1 foot to 4 inches in 
