130 
PROGRESS OF SCIENCE AND ARTS IN AMERICA. 
situation, with the whole weight of the wea- 
therboat suspended in the air,, when, if sail 
be not immediately reduced, a rapid capsize 
must follow, unlike to a well-ballasted boat 
which would be finding her equilibrium. It 
is true that a treble-boat may be under-mast- 
ed for her stability and still answer every pur- 
pose, and then her comparatively superior 
stability would become her best coasting 
quality, and if with a moderate breeze she 
outsailcdevery other boat of her length, that 
Avould certainly be the most prudent course 
to adopt. I only mean to remark, that tre- 
ble-boats similarly to single ones may be 
adapted either for safety, convenience, or 
racing, and that many good qualities are only 
attainable but at the expense of others. 
The experience which I gained with my 
treble-boat (14 feet only in length) was, that 
in sailing free or before the wind, she flew past 
every other boat, and she forereached and 
worked w^ell to wind-ward, but did not hold 
abetter Avind than in common, which I ascribed 
to the circumstance of her stability haAing 
been gained by great breadth of beam with no 
AA'eight of ballast, and, consequently, her pre- 
senting above the Avater-line so much more 
surface of hull than a Avell -ballasted single 
boat Avould have done; however, there is no 
determining upon the achievements of a boat 
of larger dimensions than mine. I had only 
two strong beams to unite my little treble- 
boats together ; of course, longer boats would 
require more, but it is only on a large scale that 
it Avould be indispensable to resort to stronger, 
combinations of unity, as diagonal trussing, 
Ikc. As it is advantageous to have the tAvin- 
boats a good depth, and, at the same time, a 
proper height out of the Avater, I should 
recommend to any person Avho may construct 
one upon a large scale, not to mind should the 
height of the beams require the central boat to 
be lifted out of the Avatcr, or merely, to skim 
upon the surface, when she is bolted to them, 
as she Avould not add much to the stability, 
but on a small scale she cannot so Avell be got 
rid of, and her services must not then be des- 
pised. 
Notwithstanding my haAong said that the 
present plan can only benefit the recreations 
of a quatic amateurs, that I might not appear 
to give it more importance than it merits, I 
think that it is one of the many of those 
plans which CA'^ery naA'al officer should make 
himself acquainted Avith, to enable him to have 
recourse to, in case of need. I can conceive 
many situations a ship may be placed in, Avhich 
would call it into action, especially in the sur- 
vey of coasts and rivers in foreign parts, Avhen 
at any time with the materials she had on 
board a ships cutter might form the central 
boat of a very respectable treble one, possess- 
ing all the advantages already pointed out. 
Again, if a ship were standed on a desolate 
coast without the loss of her materials, she 
could make all her boats treble ones Avith 
sufficient capacities to convey the Avhole of ber 
creAv with a certain quantity of provisions and 
water to any other place of safety. 
I cannot conclude without remarking, what 
a pity it is that a book containing nothing but 
naval inventions and plans relating to nautical 
matters, has not been published for the 
exclusive use of seamen, as many plans, parti- 
cularly “ make-shift ” ones, Avhich have 
answered admirably, and others which have been 
proposed are buried iri oblivion, leaving the 
officer in the time of difficulty to the resources 
of his oAvn mind, unassisted by the labours and 
experience of the many. 
In the hope that I have sufficienly explained 
the plan, and that the above hint may be taken 
by some one of your intelligent readers Avho 
may have the means of compiling a work of 
the kind. 
I remain, Mr. Editor, 
Your faithful servant, 
0 
June 12, 1835. 
THE RAILROAD SYSTEM IN AMERICA. 
The New Brunswick FreeJonian says : — 
“Railway stocks are all the go ooaaa a-days 
among the speculators and capitalists. A 
few days since books Avcrc opened in Phila- 
delphia for subscription to the stock of the 
Lancaster, Portsmouth, and Harrisbugh Rail- 
road. In thirty-one minutes every share Avas 
taken, and a large number applied for beyond 
the ability of the Commisioners to supi)ly. 
The stock of the NeAV Jersey Railroad and 
Transportation Company is gradually advan- 
cing to its real value. It is eagerly sought after 
noAvat 126, and will, it is believed, not stop 
mucb,if any, short of 200?. The stock of the 
Camden and Amboy Railroad is also selling at 
an advance of something like 60 per cent. 
POWER OF THE SCREW.— There is 
ascrcAv-dockin NeAV York, at Avhich a ship 
Aveighing 200 tons can be raised a height of 
tAvo" feet in thirty minutes by the power of 
only fifteen men applied to the scrcAVS. 
PRODIGIOUS FORCE OF EARTH- 
QUAKES. — An English merchant ship, 
which AAms nearly four miles from the land 
(at the time of the late earthqiml^e in Chili) , 
and going seven knots, seemed in a moment 
to be arrested, and her bottom grated as on a 
hard sand. So perfect Avas the illusion, 
indeed, that the master Avas in the act of lower- 
ing his boats to save the crcAv, considering 
the vessel irrecoverably Avrecked on a bank 
when it was ascertained that there Avere no 
soundings even at ninety fathoms ! — Extract 
from a private Letter in the Athenaeum. 
EVAPORATION OF PLANTS.— Forests 
cool the air by shading the ground from the 
sun, and by evaporation from the boughs. 
Hales found that the leaves of a single plant 
of helianthus, three feet high, exposed nearly 
forty feet of surface ; and if it be considered 
that the wmody regions of the river Amazons, 
and the higher part of the Oroonoko, occupy 
an area of 260,000 square leagues, some idea 
may be formed of the torrents of vapour 
Avhich arise from the leaves of forests all 
over the globe. However, the frigorific 
effects of their evaporation are counteracted 
in some measure by the perfect calm which 
reigns in the tropical wildernesses. — Mrs. 
Somerville. 
