BELOW DECKS
HOW AMMUNITION IS HANDLED
OH A MAN-OF-WAR.
Just What Will Happen Under Her
Water Line When She does
Into Battle In Directed
From Midair.
OP all the ship of the now nary
the Texan, which anchored at
the Brooklyn Navy Yard last
week, ia in some respects the
most interesting. A ((rent stcol fort
spans her decks. At each end of the
citadel is a tnrret, and in each tnrret
twelve-inch breechloading rifle, a
magnificent monster ol detraction,
an engine of war that wonld be torri
tle if we only knew jnst what it wonld
accomvlish in an emergency aimed
gainst men and cities and ships in-
ABOUT TO FIRE
tend ot stool plates and wooden back
ing. The Texas isn't as heavy a ship
as the New York, for example, bnt her
redoubt makes her a battle ship, and
the New York remains with all her
perieotion only an armored cruiser
after all. II the Texas is only second
class among battle ships, by reason ot
her tonnage, she is, nevertheless, th e
pride of her officers and crew, and
would undoubtedly give a good ac
count of herself in battle.
There is a certain fearful curiosity
to know Just what will take place down
in the submarine wells, cells, maga
zines, engine room and stoke holes ot
this stoel oastlo of the deep, what vast
energies that have lain dormant will
suddenly be released when onoe the
order to prepare for action has been
aigDaled through the ship. In old
times the commander of a frigate stood
on the bridge with his glass under his
arm and gave his orders in full view
of his men, who oheered and "went nt
em."
Nowadays, in the chilled stcol cell
called the conning towor, far removed
TWELVE-IK OH SHELL DEIKO SWUKO INTO
HOISTTNO WILL.
(Showing trolley for conveying shell from
magazine.;
above the smothered din of the deoks,
with no ears to hear and no eyes to
eee him, he puts his ears to the speak
ing tube, and fifty, sixty, seventy feet
below him, here in the iron box oalled
the shell room, there in the seething
pit oalled the fire room ; here in the
dungeon of the engineers, there in the
torpedo rooms, tar away in the very
.bowels of the ships, where the high
explosives and mines are stowed, flies
the mysterious messaget,rousing every
man and every engine to utmost efforts.
In the long steel gallery, suspended
between the sweat boxes, oalled the
fire rooms, of the Texas, is the central
station. Here a midshipman may
connect the conning tower, or the
tiller room, or the redoubts, with any
other part of the ship. There is no
' such thing as shouting an order. The
furnaces going, the engines clanking,
the trump of hundreds of feet waking
sullen echoes from resounding metal,
the chain trolleys bearing their peril
ous burdens of shell and powder and
gun cotton, traveling harshly aloun ;
the mysterious awakening of the com
plicated automata hidden away in
every nook, the sliding of the loading
trays from the ammunition hoist to
the breeches ot the great guns, whose
muzzles, forty feet away, are oven
.now threatening to shatter the air
with the hoarse earthquaking, sea
maddening roar of a disoharge that
will do murder twelve miles away
amid all thia diobolioal saturnalia what
cUar.ee would an old fashioned speak
ing trumpet have?
The oeutial station, in whioh these
peaking tubes are oonoeutrated, must
.be carefully guarded. A steel pipe,
.twelve inches thick, carries them un
der the proteotive deok. Onoe there
they are sate. The side armor, whioh
distinguishes the battle ship, is, ir.
the Texas, twelve inohes thiok, cover
ing two-thirds of her length amid
ahii. The walls of the oonuing tower
are only sine inohes thiok, but its
' diameter ia so small, comparatively, as
to make walls of that thickness prao
tioallv imnenatrable. With the shell
and round shot grape and rifle bulls
trpuihg, bursting, battering on
mVmm
these circular walls, the fighting boss
of the ship, perched there to overlook
the enemy and direot the progress of
the action, feels seenre In his ability
to reach and rally the toilers under
him, for he knows that every tnbe that
leads from him to them is guarded by
twelve-inch steel walls.
The order to olear for action having
been given, the eight Are rooms, down
next to the keel, with only a few
inches of steel shutting out the cool,
rnshing waters, into which many a
fireman wonld already like to plunge,
are crowded with half naked men,
forcing to still greater fervor the fires
boneatb the four donble-endcr boil
ers of the Texas. There arc, porhaps,
fifty of these men, and thanks to their
exertions, the temperature of these
fire rooms is already 130 degrees.
There are eight men in each of the two
engine rooms nearby sixteen fierce
looking heroes, each working in a
pair of tronserscnt oft" below the knees,
as if his life depended on it. Many
TORPEDO GUN.
other lives do. There are two ma
chinists and four or five oilers in at
tendance on each of these engines.
Without her engines the Texas would
fall a prey to the first unnrmored
oruiser that came along, swift to cirolo
about the helpless leviathan, ready
now and then to pour in broadside
after broadside, any one of whioh
might disable the 12-inoh guns and
pierce the magazines. The engine is
the master machine, and everybody in
tne Texas realizes this. There are
ninety men in the engineer's foroe,
and all but twenty of them are on duty
at the fires, engines and boilers.
But what of those twenty? What a
fateful and all important labor is
theirs I Home of them, by tho glow
from the glass cased electrio light
boxes, let down to them from above,
are raising slowly out from the maga
zine bins tho deadly treasures of high
explosive, shell and cartridge. Here,
the mines are making ready, there the
torpedoes are preparing, and yonder
in the shell room tho vast missiles to
be hurled from the throats of the 12
inch guns are being hoisted through
the wells to the loading trays far
above. Were the dynamos to stop and
these light boxes to become suddenly
dark, what a horror ot blaok muck
would envelop these toilers and para
lize every energy of their frames. It
was such a casuality ns that whioh
caused the collision in the harbor of
Havana soma weeks ago by whioh a
Spanish oruiser went down, with her
crew and captain.
Let's look at tho steam steering en
gine. There are six whoels by whioh
the Texas can be direoted in her course.
There is one in tho cbsrt house on the
flying bridge, just over the conning
tower, for steam steering. There's
another in the oonning tower, for use
in action ; a third on the after gun
deck ; a fourth in the steering room.
away down in the after hold. There's
a big hand wheel in the steering room
for use if the steering engine breaks;
a wheel on the steering engine itself.
in the tiller room. Onoe disarranged
or broken, the steam steering engine
it aisoonneotea and the hand wheels,
any one ol them, brought into imme
dlate use.
But take a look into the compressor
room, where the air is compressed by
steam for the torpedoes. Like all
these vital elements, this room is down
below the proteotive deck. The tor
pedo ohar;e is oonfined at a pressure
ox laau ponnds to the square inon, and
AMMUNITION HOIST FOR HTX-INCH OUN,
when desired a prossuie of 2000
pounds can be (obtained. The first
will send a torpodo four hundred
yards at a speed of thirty-two knots
an hour, .bight hundred yards range
may be reached, but without aoouraoy
of aim. Through the submarine tor
pedo room proper into whioh the
throe prisons open, the submarine
mine room is reaohed. Here also the
trap doors over the gun cotton and
torpedo head comportments, each
reaohed by a shaft, aru to be seen,
Just forward is the fore hold, where
the wet stores, lumber, spare gear and
beef are stored.
Down in the shell room, twenty
feet below the sea level, eight men
would work in time of action. It
six feet wide, 0.0 leet high, and some
twenty feet long, a steel tunnel, shut
in by the wooden partition of the
various ammunition compartments)
here at least wood may not be d
placed by steel, owing to the danger of
concussion. A great sqnare shaft runs
far np betweon steel walls to the re
doubts, from which the twelve-inoh
guns are fired. Down this shaft eomea
a car, on which a shell, with its firing
charge of 425 pounds of powder, must
be loaded. The steel itself wonld be
no mean burden, with its bursting
charge of twenty-five pounds of ex
plosive, for it is thirtv-fonr inches
long, 11.9(1 inches in diameter, and I
weighs 830 pounds.
or handling room, on tue after plat
form dock, is immediateley over the
magazines, for whioh it is a oovor. It
is out off from the berth deck above
by the battlo plates, weighing about
1000 ponnds each, and handled Iby
steam gear. The water line is ten feet
above. Every hatohway on this pro.
tective dock, which oovers the ship's
vitals as a cuirass covered a warrior of
old, is supplied with these steel platos,
water tight, which isolate every room
and compartment below from the gun
deck and orew spaoe above. It is the
machinery, not the men, that must be
first considered. From abreast the
upper end of the vertical armor, whioh
does not cover the ends of the ship,
this protective deck begins to drop
down over the preoions storehouse of
mechanism amidships. Where it was
only two inches thick, horizontally, it
is now threo inches thick, inclining
at an angle of seven to ten degrees.
All the work of the battle ship is
down in her midst. The forward end
of the ship is used for stowing only.
But this concentration amidships is
curiously contrasted with the still
more crucial rule in a battle ship that
she can oonquer only by division. Di
vided by innumerable water tight
walls and bulkheads the stands ; united
one whole ehe would fall.- New
York Herald.
A Frog Foot and Half Tail.
The king of frogs was caught re
cently at Kahway, N. J. He weighed
ten and three-quarters pounds. His
right leg weighed 2 J pounds, and his
left leg' 2 1 pounds. He was eighteen
inches long and twelve inches wide.
COMTAItATTVE SIZE OF THE BIO FBOO AKD
A SILVER DOLLAR.
The width ot his mouth was eight in
obes, the length of his leg 13 inohes.
The biggest frogs on earth are found
in this country. Nowhere else are
frogs so large a feature of swamp and
marsh life. A year ago twelve enor
mous American frogs were sent alive
to Europe, where they exoited much
wonder, but none of them was as large
as the Kahway frog here described.
Lived Llk a Pauper, Died Elch.
Miss Elizabeth B. Cook, of Bridge
port, a little hamlet in Fayette Coun
ty, Fenn., always lived as though she
were a pauper. Recently she died
without medical attention or friends
present, and the exact oircumstances
of the death are not known. She was
found lying upon the floor some timo
after her death. Dr. a. J. Engiisn
was made administrator, and he got a
firm of attorneys to look around and
see what her few effects amounted to.
The inventory of the estate shows that
she was the owner of over $22,000 of
bank stock. She also had over (23,000
in cash on deposit, and was the holder
of ten abaree of atook in the Eittsburg,
Virginia and Charleston Railroad Com
pany. Nearly 82500 in gold coin and
$100 in silver ooin and bank notes
were found sealed up tight in an old
fruit can in her borne after her death.
The property will go to nephews,
neioes, and grandnephews and grand
nieoes. Philadelphia Times.
A Town Under One Koof.
There exists in Wieden (borough of
Vienna) an immense house oalled
"Freihaus. .This colossal building
has thirteen courtyards, thirty-one
stairoases and 2112 inhabitants. It
has its own postman, and the letters
if they would reaoh their destination,
must bear the Christian name, sur
name and also nickname of the ad
dressee, the number of his room, stair
case and courtyard. .
Sawing a Church Asunder.
In order to enlarge St. Agnes's Bo
man Catholio Church, which stands on
Maaonio avenue, between Page and
Oak streets, it has been literally bi'
HI;.
THE Cdt'RCH THAT WAS SAWM ASOKDBB.
seoted. The western portion has been
moved twenty-five leet further west
and the interveningspaoe is now be
ing pieced out. The insertion will
doable the seating oapaolty of the
church. Baa Francisco Examiner,
CYCLING COSTUME,
fTORFOLK JACKET AND SKIRT
FOR WHEEL-WOMEN.
A Favorite" Ilasque for Riding' the
Bicycle and for General Wear
Stylish Ladles' Waist With
Applied nasque.
TTf HE Norfolk basque is a favorite
M gnrment for cycling, shop-
I ping and general wear, as its
d trim outlines are becoming to
all, and it looks comfortable and business-like.
We here present one of its
simplost modes, made of greenish drab
covert cloth, closed with round white
pearl buttons, and finished with ma
chine atitohing in tailor style. The
basque is shaped with single bust darts,
under arm gores, and a curving centre
seam in back. The plaits are gradua
ted at the waist line, and applied on
back and front with a single row of
NORFOLK JACKET AND
machine stitching near the edges, or
they can be blind stitched on if so
preferred. The fronts are reversed at
the top to form coat lapels that meet
the rolling collar in notches, a chemi
sette with bow tie being worn at the
neck. The sleeves, in gigot style, are
shaped with two seams, and are of
fashionable size, the wrists being fin
ished with stitohing to simulate cuffs,
that are decorated near tho back seam
with three buttons. A narrow leather
belt encircles the waist. Tho graceful
skirt is specially designed for wheel
women, its distinguishing features be
ing an underlying box plait laid in tho
centre of front goro, the edges of whioh
meet and are flatly pressed, so as to be
hardly noticeable when standing and
when mounted give ample room for
the free aotion of tho limbs, and pre
vent the ugly eirded appearance so
often seen. Two backward turning
plaits at tho back conocal the saddle
gore in the centre that keeps the skirt
in proper position. Plaoket openings
on eaoh side ot front gore are finished
by pointed overlaps and decorated with
buttons. Suits in this style can be
made from all kinds ot cloth, tweed,
cheviot, serge, or cycle olotb, and
worn with knickers and legging to
match.
The quantity of material required
to make this basque for a lady having
a au-lnoh bust measure is three yards.
To make the skirt it will require 4
yards of the same width material.
ORO.ANDIB WAIST WITH APPLIED BASQUE.
May Manton says this very stylish
waist, depioted in the second large en
graving, is made from white orgaudie,
ORGANDIE WAIST
over violet silk linings, and U deco
rated with laoe, insertion and ribbon
to match the .color of linings. The
waist linings are glove fitting and
close in centre front. A narrow vest
trimmed crosswise with insertion is
sowed to the right front and closes
over on the left Wide bos plaits that
taper towards the waist are formed on
the edge of each front meeting those
on the baok at the shoulder seams. A
blouse effeot is given in front by gath
ers at the lower edge of vest and box
plaits. The ripple basque is Joined to
the lower edge ot waist, box plaits
meeting those of the waist at the baok.
A narrow belt with buckle enclroles
the waist. The crush collar of violet
silk has lsrge fans of lace on each side.
Fashionable puffs reach to the elbow
and era stylishly arranged over com
fortable sleeve linings thnt can be cut
elbow length or faced to the wrists, if
so desired. The epaulettes are made
from lace mitorod at the edges to form
three points over the full puffs. The
mode is very generally becoming and
the ripple basque or epaulettes, or
both oan be omitted if not desired. All
kinds of silk, linen, cotton, or light
weight woolen fabrics are adapted to
develop waists in this style, any fash
ionable garniture being chosen for
decoration.
The quantity of material 80 inches
wide required to make this waist for a
lady of medium size is four yards.
LADIES' AfJD HISSES' COAT SLEEVE.
The demand for smaller sleeves is
steadily increasing, ladies not being
loth to disencumber their arms from
the weight ot material hitherto pre
HKtRT FOR WHEEL-WOJtEN.
scribed by fashion. Two styles of
medium sized leg o mutton or ciaot
sleeves for coat jackets, etc., are here
given as one pattern. No. 1, made ot
fancy cloth, is shaped with single
teams, ana can he gathered or plaited
at the top. A single box plait is laid
at the shoulder, forward aud backward
turning side olaits adjusting the re
mainder ot the fullness. No. 2 is of
BTYLE9 IN COAT SLEEVES.
mixed oheviot and is shaped with two
seams, having a smooth onder-arm
portion. When linings are used they
are shaped exactly like the sleeves,
thus giving the necessary room for
the dress sleeves. The wrists are
plainly completed with inside facings.
These sleeves can be made or silk, vel
vet or cloth, to contrast or match with
the garment iu which they are placed,
WITH APPLIED BASQUE.
In remodeling top garments this pat
tern will be found useful aud eoononv
ioal.
The quantity of material 44 inches
wide required to make either No. 1 or
No. 2 design is 21 yards for a 86-luoh
size. To make these sleeves for a miss
fourteen years of age it will require
11 yards of the same width material.
Two' farmers in Christian County,
Kentucky, Lad. a snit about the own
ersbip of a mule. The jury stood six
to six, and they agreed to match pen
nies to decide the cars. The verdiot
was ia favor of.th uifenuaut
Across the Way,
Across the way from mo she kneels,
A dainty lass In sober Bray,
Who will not lift her eyes to see
Her neighbor Just across the way.
Bhe bows her head In silent prayer,.
In attltudo devout and quaint t
Blie prays for all the world, while I
I pray for her, my little saint I
a
Ah I little girl, though well you hide
Those long-lasher orbs of tender gray,
You know there prays, with open eyes,
A sinner Just across the wny I
Florence A. Jones, In the New Bohemian.
HUMOROUS.
A masked ball weeping behind .
your handkerchief.
The difference between firmness and
obstinacy is merely a matter of sex.
Some men are so awful slow that the
nly time they get ahead is when they
buy cabbage.
A paper . advertisos for sale a pew
which "commands a view of nearly
the whole congregation."
Bakers are bred to habits ot early
rising ( but is that any reason why
they should pan out so crusty?
It is a common aaying that lovely
woman cannot keep a secret, but who
besides herself knows where hot
pocket is?
"Men'll do anything fur money,"
said Plodding Pete. "Yes," replied
Meandering Mike. "Some fellers'l)
even work fur it."
She (in fifteenth story, encourag
ingly) Supposing I were to full, whal
would yuu do? He I should send
for the uudertaker.
She Take care, Alfred. That isn't
the remedy for sea sickness. Don'l
yob see the bottle is marked "Poison?"
He That's the one I want
'She killed herself because she
couldn't cook." "How absurd I"
"Well, she couldn't help it. She had
to eat her own dishes, you know."
'Why was the bee seleoted as a
model of industry?" asked Tilling
hast. "Because business with him is
always humming," replied Gilder
sleeve. 'Does the bicyole hurt your busi
ness?" "Yes. The junior partnei
and the confidential buyer are both in
the hospital." And the man of affairi
sighed heavily.
Turn Jack, old man, why is it 1
never seem to be appreciated by my
friends? Jack Smith, old fellow, why
is it your f riouds never seem to bo
appreciated by you?
Mistress Anna, whatever has be
come of all your pretty curls? Maid
You see, ma'am, the regiment has lefl
our town, und so I have had to give 'a
lock of my huir to several of my ao
quuiutauoes. Emily (playing "house") Now I'll
be mamma, and you'll be papa, and
little Ben and Bessie will be our
babies. Willy (after a moment.
anxiously) Aiu't it about time to
whip the children?
Mrs. Wriggles The rain is spatter
ing right through this umbrella all
over my new hat. Mr. Wriggles 1
know it, I got badly fooled on thai
umbrella J but I pioked out tho best
looking handle in the rack.
Mrs. Skinner (the bonrding-houM
keeper) I can say this, my table al
ways literally groans uuder the weigh)
of the food upon it Mr. Hall Rhums
You bet it does, Mrs. Skinner! Why
the table would groan under the weigh)
of these biscuits alone.
"What a grasping old creditor yon
are, Hawkins! You've bothered m
about this bill fifty times in ten days."
You wrong mo, Jarley. I'm not
grasping. I've bothered yon about
the bill, I admit, but I havuu't been
able to grasp anything yet."
New Use for Bald Head.
A clever Parisian has discovered a
new use for bald-beaded men. He se
lects one whose cranium is hairless, has
an advertisement lettered on the pate,
and then has the owner occupy a plaoe
in the oarauet of the theatre during
the performance. In many coses the
animated advertisement has attracted
more attention than the performers,
but, as the cause ot the trouble main
tains a quiet demeauor the managers
have found no excuse for ejeoting him.
During the coronation oeremouies
ot Alexander If., at St Petersburg
thirteen years ago, there was a gala
performauoe of Italian opera, The
stalls were reserved for military men
of exalted rank, aud they were se-arranged
that when the imperiul. party
entered the building they saw the let
ter A outlined with bald heads. In
this case the owners at the heaiiu were
ignorant of the use to whioh their in
(trinities were put .?
Sir Arthur Sullivan it said to have
realized 150,000 by lis song, . "The
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