built out some twenty feet in order to allow the torpedo to be thrust forward well in advance of the boat.' It needs no demonstration to convince naval architects that the snout ought to be as depicted in Mr. Ten Eyck's drawing per fectly solid. The complete destruction of the snout or ram of the German ironclad Konig Wilhelm in the British Chan nel last year by a very moderate concussion with its consort Grosser Kurfurst shows what would happen to the snout of Admiral Porter's torpedo boat during attack. The super structure of the vessel forming a distinct element it is not necessary on the
built out some twenty feet in order to allow the torpedo to be thrust forward well in advance of the boat.' It needs no demonstration to convince naval architects that the snout ought to be as depicted in Mr. Ten Eyck's drawing per fectly solid. The complete destruction of the snout or ram of the German ironclad Konig Wilhelm in the British Chan nel last year by a very moderate concussion with its consort Grosser Kurfurst shows what would happen to the snout of Admiral Porter's torpedo boat during attack. The super structure of the vessel forming a distinct element it is not necessary on the present occasion to inquire whether by some mysterious process the peculiar deck-house of the Destroyer really appeared on the plan 'submitted to the Naval Department' seventeen years ago. As to the spar employed by Mr. Ten Eyck the method of passing the electric wire through the piston will be approved by prac tical men also the plan adopted of guiding the motion of the spar by a tube as it insures accurate movement under all circumstances. Nor will the simple expedient of introduc ing the torpedo through an oval opening at the top of the tube be overlooked by those who closely scrutinize the ar rangement illustrated in the SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN. But the assumption of Mr. Ten Eyck that his plan of employing a spar torpedo resembles the system of submarine attack inaugurated by the Destroyer is simply absurd. Whether the spar be permanently submerged agreeably to the device of Admiral Porter and Mr. Ten Eyck or sud-. denly submerged as practiced in steam launches its action differs altogether from that of the projectile torpedo dis charged by my torpedo vessel. The transverse-section of this projectile torped it should be mentioned is square and its length 23 feet pointed at both ends thus presenting opposite wedges whose sides are vertical. The weight is 1400 pounds and the initial velocity on leaving the torpedo vessel 290 pet per second corresponding with a rate of 170 nautical
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