Chapter I: Part 1

Transcriber's Note:

Apparent typographical errors have been corrected.

Archaic and inconsistent spelling and hyphenation have been preserved.

TWO CENTURIES

OF

SHIPBUILDING

TWO CENTURIES OF
SHIPBUILDING

BY THE

SCOTTS AT GREENOCK.

[_Partly Reprinted from "Engineering."_]

"Take it all in all, a ship of the line is the most honourable thing
that man, as a gregarious animal, has ever produced.... Into
that he has put as much of his human patience, common sense,
forethought, experimental philosophy, self-control, habits of order
and obedience, thoroughly wrought hand-work, defiance of brute
elements, careless courage, careful patriotism, and calm expectation
of the judgment of God, as can well be put into a space of
300 feet long by 80 feet broad."--RUSKIN.

LONDON:

OFFICES OF "ENGINEERING," 35 and 36, BEDFORD STREET, W.C.

1906.

Contents.

PAGE

PERSONALIA xi

THE ERA OF THE SAILING SHIP 1

THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE STEAMSHIP 15

Table I. Epoch-Marking Steamers built by the Scotts, 1819
to 1841 31

Table II. Progress in the Economy of the Marine Engine,
1872 to 1901 41

A CENTURY'S WORK FOR THE NAVY 43

Table III. Progressive Types of Warship Machinery, and
their Economy, 1840 to 1905 53

Table IV. Particulars of the Successive Large Naval Guns,
1800 to 1905 56

Table V. Size and Fighting Qualities of British Battleships
of Different Periods, 1861 to 1905 59

YACHTING AND YACHTS 63

Table VI. General Particulars of Principal Steam Yachts
Built by Scotts' Company 69

THE TWENTIETH CENTURY 73

Numbers of British and Foreign, and of Oversea and Channel,
Steamers, of over 16 knots speed 75

Table VII. Records of Coal Consumption of Steamship
"Narragansett" 79

EFFICIENCY: DESIGN: ADMINISTRATION 88

THE SHIPBUILDING YARD 94

THE ENGINE AND BOILER WORKS 106

List of Illustrations.

PAGE

H.M.S. "Argyll" (Plate I.) _Frontispiece_

PERSONALIA.

Portraits of William Scott (born 1722, died 1769); John Scott (born
1752, died 1837); William Scott, his Brother (born 1765); and
Charles Cuningham Scott (born 1794, died 1875) (Plate II.)
_Adjoining page_ 1

John Scott, C.B. (born 1830, died 1903); Robert Sinclair Scott
(born 1843, died 1905); Charles Cuningham Scott (the present
Chairman); Robert Lyons Scott (Plate III.) _Adjoining page_ 1

THE ERA OF THE SAILING SHIP. (PAGES 1 TO 14.)

The Beginnings (Plate IV.) _Facing page_ 2

Greenock and Scotts' Yard in the Eighteenth Century (Plate V.)
_Facing page_ 4

A West Indiaman 7

A Typical East Indiaman 9

The "Lord of the Isles" (Plate VI.) _Facing page_ 10

The "Archibald Russell" (Plate VII.) " " 12

THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE STEAMSHIP. (PAGES 15 TO 42.)

Early Steamboats at Greenock, 1820 (Plate VIII.) _Facing page_ 16

The "City of Glasgow" (Plate IX.) " " 20

A Side-Lever Engine of 1831 23

An Engine of 1832 25

Scotts' First P. and O. Liner, the "Tagus" (Plate X.)
_Facing page_ 26

Type of Side-Lever Engine of 1840 29

Double-Geared Engine for Early Atlantic Liner 32

A Pioneer in Water-Tube Boilers (The Rowan Boiler) 35

High-Pressure Machinery in the "Thetis" (Plate XI.)
_Facing page_ 36

The Machinery of the "Achilles" 38

General Arrangement of the Machinery of the "Achilles" (Plate XII.)
_Facing page_ 38

The "Achilles" of 1865, off Gravesend (Plate XIII.) " " 40

A CENTURY'S WORK FOR THE NAVY. (PAGES 43 TO 62.)

Model of H.M.S. "Prince of Wales," 1803 (Plate XIV.)
_Facing page_ 43

The Launch of the First Clyde-Built Steam Frigate "Greenock," 1849
(Plate XV.) _Facing page_ 44

Machinery in H.M.SS. "Hecla," and "Hecate" 1839 (Plate XVI.)
_Facing page_ 46

Machinery of H.M.S. "Greenock," 1848 48

Machinery of H.M.S. "Canopus," 1900 49

H.M.S. "Thrush," 1889 (Plate XVII.) _Facing page_ 50

Engines of H.M.S. "Thrush," 1889 (Plate XVIII.) 52

H.M. Battleship "Prince of Wales" (Plate XIX.) 58

Propelling Engines of H.M.S. "Argyll" (Plate XX.) 60

YACHTING AND YACHTS. (PAGES 63 TO 72.)

The "Erin," Owned by Sir Thomas Lipton, Bart. (Plate XXI.)
_Facing page_ 63

The "Clarence," an Early Racing Cutter (Plate XXII.) " " 64

The "Greta" of 1876; the "Greta" of 1895 (Plate XXIII.)
_Facing page_ 66

The "Margarita"; the "Tuscarora" (Plate XXIV.) 68

The Saloons of the "Beryl," Owned by Lord Inverclyde (Plate XXV.)
_Facing page_ 70

Typical Yacht Engines (Plate XXVI.) " " 72

THE TWENTIETH CENTURY. (PAGES 73 TO 87.)

Dining-Saloon in a Mail Steamer; Drawing-Room in the Steam Yacht
"Foros" (Plate XXVII.) _Facing page_ 73

The Donaldson Liner "Cassandra" (Plate XXVIII.) " " 74

The Holt Liner "Achilles" of 1900 (Plate XXIX.) " " 76

The Largest Oil-Carrying Steamer afloat--the "Narragansett"
(Plate XXX.) _Facing page_ 78

The Launch of a China Steamer (Plate XXXI.) " " 80

The China Navigation Company's T.SS. "Fengtien" (Plate XXXII.)
_Adjoining page_ 81

The British India Company's SS. "Bharata" (Plate XXXIII.)
_Facing page_ 82

One of Twenty Thames Steamers Engined by the Scotts
(Plate XXXIV.) _Facing page_ 84

Engines and Boilers for Twenty London County Council Steamers
(Plate XXXV.) _Adjoining page_ 85

Typical Propelling Machinery (Plate XXXVI.) _Facing page_ 86

EFFICIENCY: DESIGN: ADMINISTRATION. (PAGES 88 TO 93.)

Shipbuilding (Plate XXXVII.) _Facing page_ 88

The Launch of H.M.S. "Argyll" (Plate XXXVIII.) " " 90

Engine Construction (Plate XXXIX.) " " 92

THE SHIPBUILDING YARD. (PAGES 94 TO 105.)

The Moulding Loft (Plate XL.) _Facing page_ 94

Beam Shearing Machine; Bevelling Machine; Hydraulic Joggling
Machine (Plate XLI.) _Adjoining page_ 95

In one of the Platers' Sheds (Plate XLII.) _Facing_ " 96

Punching and Shearing (Plate XLIII.) " " 98

The Fitting-out Dock (Plate XLIV.) " " 100

The Graving Dock (Plate XLV.) _Adjoining_ " 101

The Saw Mill (Plate XLVI.) _Facing_ " 102

Two Views in the Joiners' Shops (Plate XLVII.) _Adjoining_ " 103

Electric Generators in the Power Station; Hydraulic Pumps and
Air-Compressors in the Power Station (Plate XLVIII.)
_Facing page_ 104

THE ENGINE AND BOILER WORKS. (PAGES 106 TO 116.)

View in Main Machine Shop (Plate XLIX.) _Facing page_ 106

Vertical Planing Machine; Multiple Spindle Drilling Machine
(Plate L.) _Facing page_ 108

Surfacing and Boring Lathe (Plate LI.) _Adjoining_ " 109

Brass-Finishing Shop (Plate LII.) _Facing_ " 110

Tool, Gauge, Template and Jig Department
(Plate LIII.) " " 112

In the Boiler Shop (Plate LIV.) " " 114

Hydraulic Plate-Bending Machine 114

Personalia.

JOHN SCOTT (I) founded the firm in 1711, and engaged in the building of herring busses and small craft. There is, unfortunately, no engraving of him extant, so that our series of portraits on Plates II. and III. adjoining page 1, is to this extent incomplete.

WILLIAM SCOTT, his son, born 1722, died 1769, succeeded him, and, with his brother, extended the business alike as regards the extent of the works, and the types of vessels built. His first square-rigged ship--of 1765--was the first vessel built on the Clyde for owners out of Scotland.

JOHN SCOTT (II), born 1752, died 1837, son of William, greatly developed the works and built the dry dock and basin now included, with the original Yard, in the establishment of Messrs. Caird and Co., Limited. Under his _régime_ many ocean-going sailing ships were constructed, ship-work for the Navy was undertaken, the manufacture of steam machinery commenced in 1825, and Admiralty orders undertaken for engines for dockyard--as well as Greenock-built frigates. He built the Custom House Quay in 1791, bought Halkshill, the family seat, in 1815, was a partner in the Greenock Bank, and otherwise promoted the industries of the town.

His brother, WILLIAM SCOTT (II), born 1756, migrated to Barnstaple, where he carried on an extensive shipbuilding industry, obtaining engines for the most of his steamships from the Greenock Works.

CHARLES CUNINGHAM SCOTT, born 1794, died 1875, son of John Scott (II), along with his elder brother, John Scott (III), born 1785, died 1874, carried on the business as "John Scott and Sons," developing still further the progressive policy of his father, who had been responsible for the works for about half a century. The Cartsdyke Yard was commenced in 1850 by Charles Cuningham Scott, and his son John, under the style of "Scott and Co.," and this firm is the one which has maintained the continuity of the Scotts' association with shipbuilding.

JOHN SCOTT (IV), born 1830, died 1903,[1] and ROBERT SINCLAIR SCOTT, born 1843, died 1905, sons of Charles Cuningham Scott, were responsible for the progress for nearly forty years, and the former was created a Companion of the Bath (C.B.) in 1887. During their _régime_ the firm took a large part in the introduction of the steamship for over-sea voyages; in the development of high steam pressures and of the multiple-expansion engine, which greatly improved the economy of the steam engine; and in naval work, with its incidental advancement. They completely reconstructed the Cartsdyke Works, and greatly improved what is now known as the Cartsburn Dockyard, modernising the equipment. The co-partnery was, for family reasons, registered in 1900 under the Limited Liability Company Law.

CHARLES CUNINGHAM SCOTT, son of John Scott, C.B., is now the head of the concern and Chairman of the Company (Scotts' Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Limited), and with him on the directorate are his brother ROBERT LYONS SCOTT, C. Mumme, and James Brown.

FOOTNOTE:

[1] This date is incorrectly given as 1904 at the end of the third paragraph on page 66.

The Era of the Sailing Ship.

The maintenance of an industry for two hundred years by one family, in the direct line of succession and in one locality, is almost unique in the history of western manufactures. Such a record proves that the successive generations have displayed diligence, prudence, and enterprise; otherwise it would not have been possible for them to have held continuously a foremost place in the face of incessant competition consequent upon the general advance in science, the introduction of superior constructional materials, and the invention of new machinery. It indicates also the maintenance of a high standard of workmanship as well as integrity and business capacity; because time is the most important factor in proving efficiency and in establishing credit for durability of work, without which no reputation can be retained for such a long period.

The Scotts began the building of ships in Greenock in 1711. To-day, their descendants of the sixth generation worthily maintain the high traditions which have accumulated during the intervening two hundred years. It is impossible to form an adequate conception of the service rendered by this one firm to the science of marine construction and to Britain, the leading maritime nation of the world. We should require to review in detail the successive steps: firstly, in the perfection of the sailing ship, from the sloops and brigantines of the eighteenth century, to such beautiful clippers as Scotts' _Lord of the Isles_, which in 1856 made the record voyage from China, and did much to wrest from the Americans the "blue ribbon" of the ocean; and, secondly, in the development of the steamship from its inception early in the nineteenth century to the leviathans of to-day. In successive epochs in the history of naval architecture the Scotts have played a creditable part, and to some of the more important improvements initiated or advanced by the firm reference will be made in our brief survey of the work done during the past two centuries. Unfortunately, some years ago, most of the old-time records were destroyed by a fire at the shipyard, so that our review of the early work is largely from contemporary publications, and is unavoidably incomplete.

The beginnings were small, for Scotland had not yet attained to industrial importance, and had little oversea commerce. The first trans-Atlantic voyage made by a Clyde ship was in 1686, when a Greenock-built vessel was employed on a special mission to carry twenty-two persons transported to Carolina for attending conventicles and "being disaffected to Government."[2] American ships were most numerous on the western seas, and the East India Company had a monopoly of the eastern seas, so far as Britain was concerned, and preferred to build their ships in India, although many were constructed on the south coast of England. This monopoly checked progress. There was little or no incentive to improvement in merchant ships, and the naval authorities were too busy fighting Continental nations to risk extensive experimental work. We have it on the authority of Sir Nathaniel Barnaby, K.C.B.,[3] that neither Government nor private builders made much progress in improving methods of construction. The first letters patent granted for improvements relating to ships bear the date January 17th, 1618, but the result of a thorough investigation of all patents between 1618 and 1810 discloses no improvement worth recording, except in the manufacture of sheathing and the construction of pumps.

The Scotts, like a few other shipbuilders on the Clyde, were concerned for the greater part of the eighteenth century in the building of fishing and coasting boats. There belonged to Greenock, in 1728, as many as nine hundred of such fishing boats, locally built, each carrying from twenty to twenty-four nets and manned by a crew of four men. For many years the business of the firm consisted almost entirely in the building of herring busses and small craft employed in the fishing trade, the first establishment being at the mouth of the West Burn, on land leased from the Shaw family. The shipbuilding industry was carried on intermittently, and the Scotts were the first to give it stability and continuity. In 1752, the Greenland whale fisheries were engaged in, and this led to a development in the size of craft. The first square-rigged vessel built in the port was a brig, named _Greenock_, constructed in 1760, for the West Indian trade. In 1765, William Scott, who had succeeded the original founder--his father, John Scott--built a large square-rigged ship for some merchants of the town of Hull, the timber for which came from the Ducal woods at Hamilton. This ship is notable as being probably the first ship built on the Clyde for owners out of Scotland.[4] To take a fairly representative year (1776), eighteen vessels, ranging up to 77 tons, and of a total of 1073 tons burden, were constructed in Greenock, and of the number six were built by the Scotts.[5] Although the work could be more cheaply done on the Clyde than at London or Bristol, there was for a long time a strong prejudice against English owners ordering vessels from the north, and against Scotch vessels taking any part in the oversea trade.

The Jacobite risings had also affected the industry, but the War of Independence in America had far-reaching beneficial results. It is true that prior to this the rich fields of the English colonial possessions, as well as the English markets, had been opened to the commerce of Scotland, and that the merchants of Glasgow had developed extensive commercial operations with the West Indies and British North America; but, although there was thus a considerable oversea trade between the Clyde and the Western hemisphere, all the large vessels trading to the Clyde were built in America.[6] The shipbuilding industry in the States was thus a very extensive one; and, in 1769, there were launched, in the North American Colonies, three hundred and eighty-nine vessels of 20,000 tons burden, which was far in excess of the annual British output.[7] This was largely owing to the limitless supply of timber in America, and to the import duties on constructional material imposed in this country to suit the English growers of oak, the price of which advanced in the eighteenth century from £2 15s. to £7 7s. per load.[8]

The _Brunswick_, of 600 tons, carpenters' measurement, to carry 1000 tons real burden, built by the Scotts in 1791 for the Nova Scotia trade; and the _Caledonia_, of 650 tons, built by the Scotts in 1794, for the carriage of timber for the Navy yards--each the largest ship in Scotland of its respective year--signalised the beginning of a period of greater activity, especially in respect of large ocean ships. Some years before--1767--the Scotts had feued ground for a building yard on the shore east of the West Burn. They added a graving dock of considerable size, and the inaugural proceedings included a dinner held on the floor of the dock.

Other developments contributed to the prosperity of the port of Greenock, the chief of the establishment being John Scott of the third generation, who was born in 1752, and died in 1837. His brother, William Scott, also the second of that name, migrated to Bristol, where he carried on an extensive trade as a shipbuilder. The latter was the father of James M. Scott, who is still remembered by some old inhabitants as the founder, about 1847, of penny banks in Greenock and of the Artisans' Club. John Scott, after his brother's departure, carried on the business under the name of John Scott and Sons, and did great service not only for the town, but also for the advancement of the business. In three successive years, 1787, 1788, and 1789, he bought three large plots from the ninth Lord Cathcart, for the extension of the works.[9] These then extended almost from the West Quay to the West Burn. He also, in 1791, constructed the old steamboat or custom-house quay,[10] and played a large part in developing the banking facilities of the town. He bought, in 1815, Halkshill, near Largs, which has continued the residence of the family. In view of the association of the firm with the town, it may be worth interpolating here a statement of the growth of the population of Greenock, with the sources from which the figures have been taken.

Year. Population. Source.
1700 1,328 Campbell's History, page 23.
1801 17,458 Weir's History, page 120.
1901 68,142 Census Returns, vol. i., page 212.

Shipbuilding work, however, was still in craft which to-day would be considered insignificant. The increase of the mercantile fleet of England throughout the eighteenth century was only fivefold in respect of numbers, and sixfold in tonnage; the average size shows an augmentation from 80 tons to only 100 tons, and there was no improvement in labour-economising appliances for the working of the ship, as the ratio of men to tonnage was at the beginning of the century practically one to every 10 tons, and at the close one to 13 tons.[11]

In the nineteenth century, the tonnage increased eightfold, but in view of the adoption of steam the actual carrying capacity was augmented nearly thirtyfold; the average size of ship increased to 760 tons. Practically, every ship in the eighteenth century carried guns, the average being two per vessel. It was not until 1853 that there was omitted from the mail contracts the clause which provided that each mail vessel must be built to carry guns of the largest calibre in use.

The nineteenth century brought every incentive to the development of shipbuilding. Nelson taught the lesson, never to be forgotten, that sea-power is essential to the commercial expansion--even to the existence--of our island kingdom, with its corollary, that the merchant fleet is as necessary to this mastery of the sea as fighting squadrons. The sea became our home; there arose a renewed love of exploration, and an ambition for colonisation. Success brought the chastening influence of responsibility, with a higher appreciation of the advantage of a conciliatory policy towards foreign nations. Contemporaneously with the growth of this conception of empire there arose a war of retaliation in shipping with the newly-formed United States of America, which continued for half a century. Although not without its regrettable incidents, it stimulated a rivalry in the shipping and shipbuilding industries which was ultimately as beneficial as it had been pronounced. The monopoly of the East India Company in the Eastern shipping trade terminated, so far as India was concerned, in 1814, and as regards China in 1834. This removed an influence which had hitherto retarded enterprise in naval construction--especially on the Clyde--due to the Company's preference for building their ships in India, and in the south of England ports. Private owners, too, entered more vigorously into competition with American clippers which had first commenced trade with China in 1788.

With the widening of the maritime interests and the intensification of competition there was awakened a general desire to increase the strength of ships. In this respect, as in others, there had been little advance either in the Navy or in the mercantile marine. It was exceptional for a ship of the eighteenth century to continue in service for more than twelve or fifteen years. This was due partly to defective constructional details, and partly to the ineffective methods of preserving timber.

Ships were then built up[12] of a series of transverse ribs, connected together by the outside planking and by the ceiling. There was no filling between the ribs. The ship's structure thus suffered severely from hogging and sagging stresses. The French tried to improve this by introducing oblique iron riders across the ceiling, or by laying the ceiling and the outside planking diagonally, while in other instances the whole was strengthened with vertical or diagonal riders; but none of these systems gave complete satisfaction. The Sepping system was introduced about 1810, and was early adopted by the Scotts. The bottom of the ship was formed into a solid mass of timber. The beams were connected with the side of the ship by thick longitudinal timbers below the knees, and by other stiffening members. A trussed frame was laid on the inside of the transverse frame in the hold of the ship, and the decks were laid diagonally. These members bound the ship in all directions, so as to resist the stresses due to the ship working in a seaway.

The method of preserving the timber adopted at the beginning of the eighteenth century was to char the inner surface of the log, while the outer surface was kept wet; but this was superseded early in the century by the stoving system, which consisted in placing timber in wet sand, and subjecting it to the action of heat, for such time as was necessary to extract the residue of the sap and bring the timber to a condition of suppleness. This process continued until 1736, after which the timber itself was steamed. Copper sheathing was first employed on warships in 1761; prior to this lead had been used, but only occasionally.

American shipbuilders held an important position, even in the British trade, for some time after the Declaration of Independence; but there was then developed a pronounced spirit of emulation amongst the British firms, which had a marked effect on competition in western seas. At the beginning of the nineteenth century much of the oversea work done by the Scotts was for the West Indian trade. The vessels were not often of more than 600 tons, but the firm continued steadily to develop their business.

Between 1773 and 1829, the period of expansion under the second John Scott, to which we have already referred, the output was 16,800 tons.[13] This output included a succession of fine ships for the West India trade, to the order of some of the old Glasgow companies, amongst the number being Stirling, Gordon and Company; J. Campbell and Company; James Young and Company; and Muir and Fairlie. We may mention as typical ships, the _Grenada_, of 650 tons burden, and the _John Campbell_, of 446 tons, built in 1806, the first ships launched on the Clyde with all rigging in position.

Thus early, too, the Scotts had entered upon the construction of that long series of yachts, sailing and steam, which has brought them considerable repute, and even more pleasure, since they were in successive generations noted yachtsmen. In 1803 they launched the 45-1/2-ton cutter for Colonel Campbell, of the Yorkshire Militia, which was pronounced one of the completest of the kind ever built in Scotland up to that time. It may be incidentally mentioned, that the Scotts also showed thus early their practical sympathy with the auxiliary forces of the Crown by being at the head of the volunteer Sea Fencibles formed on the Clyde in the stormy years of the Napoleonic wars.

As soon as the monopoly of the East India Company was removed in 1814, private shipowners entered the lists, and the Scotts were early occupied in the construction of Indo-China clippers. In 1818 they built the _Christian_, and in 1820 the _Bellfield_, the latter, of 478 tons register, for the London and Calcutta trade. She was one of the first of a long series. The _Kirkman Finlay_, of 430 tons, built in 1834, suggests the name of a firm long and honourably associated with the development of trade in our great Eastern dependency. The effect of competition was a reduction in the average rate of freight per ton from India to Britain from £32 10s. about 1773 to £10 in 1830.

The East India Company about the year 1813 paid £40 per ton for their ships, as against about £25 per ton by other traders; the latter sum was about the same as that paid in America. The East Indiaman had a crew in the ratio of one to 10 or 12 tons, while one to 25 tons sufficed for the West Indiaman. The speed of the western ship was greater, largely by reason of the difference in proportions and lines. The clipper built on the Clyde and in America had a length equal to five or six times the beam, against four times the beam in the case of the East India Company's ships. In the design of these clippers the Scotts took an important part. Charles Cuningham Scott was then at the head of the concern. An ingenious method of making model experiments in the graving dock at the works was evolved in the 'forties, whereby the firm were able to arrive at the most satisfactory form of hull to give the minimum of resistance, and at the same time a large capacity for cargo per registered ton. In this latter respect they were more successful than the designers of the East Indiamen, notwithstanding the bluff form of the latter.

As rapidity in answering the helm was a most important element in tacking, and therefore in speed, the firm about this time prepared full-rigged models, about 5 ft. long, for experimental trials as to the ship's form and rudder, on Loch Thom, on the hill above Greenock, in an exposed place where the conditions of wind were analogous to those at sea. The results proved satisfactory. In fact, in these years, when the _Minerva_, _Acbar_, and other noted clippers were built, the care used in design and construction was almost as great as that now devoted in the case of racing yachts.

The Scotts, in the first half of the nineteenth century, continued to produce a long series of successful sailing ships, while at the same time taking a creditable part in the evolution of the steamship. Steam, however, was not possible in long-distance voyages until pressures had been increased, and coal consumption reduced to moderate limits; and thus it came that, although the steam engine was used in the early years of the nineteenth century in river, and later in coasting, craft, the sailing ship continued supreme almost until the middle of the century. We do not propose, however, to refer to all of the later sailing ships built by the Scotts, but it may be interesting to give some details of the construction.

American rock elm was largely used. The frames were in three sections with scarfed joints, bolted together, the scantlings being reduced towards the top, so as to lower the centre of gravity. Inside the frames there were at various heights longitudinal timbers, to add to the fore-and-aft strength. The top sides were of greenheart, the beams of oak or greenheart, with wrought-iron knees; the height between the beams was made to admit of two hogsheads of sugar being placed in the hold. There were side-stringers, sometimes 10 in. thick, between the floor and the beams, which were half-checked into the stringers. On the top of the beams there were deck-stringers. There was a most effective transverse and longitudinal binding, brass bolts being extended right through the knee, stringer, frame, and skin of the ship. The decks were of yellow or Dantzig white pine. An 800 or 1000-ton West Indiaman occupied about nine months in construction. The last wooden ship built in Greenock was the _Canadian_, completed by the Scotts in 1859.[14]

The highest conception of the iron sailing ship, as built by the firm, was probably embodied in the _Lord of the Isles_, completed in 1856. She had a length between perpendiculars of 185 ft., a breadth of 29 ft.--the proportion being thus 6.4 of length to 1 of beam--with a depth of hold of 18 ft. Her registered tonnage was 691 tons, and her builders' measurement 770 tons. Although a fine-ended ship she carried a large cargo on board, and made her first trip to Sydney in seventy days, which had not then been surpassed.[15] She made the passage from Shanghai to London in eighty-seven days, with 1030 tons of tea on board. In one trip she averaged 320 nautical miles for five consecutive days. When engaged in the celebrated race for the delivery of the season's teas from Foo-chow-foo to London, in 1856, the _Lord of the Isles_ beat two of the fastest American clippers, of almost twice her tonnage. She "delivered her cargo without one spot of damage, and thus British ships regained their ascendency in the trade which their American rivals had far too long monopolised."[16] From that time the British sailing ships gradually gained a complete superiority over the American vessels, and carried all before them, until they in turn were supplanted by the British steamship. From time to time an occasional sailing ship was constructed of steel; the latest, the _Archibald Russell_, is illustrated. Built for Messrs. John Hardie and Company, this vessel has a length, between perpendiculars, of 278 ft., a beam of 43 ft., and a depth, moulded, of 26 ft., and carries 3930 tons of deadweight cargo on a draught of 21 ft. 7-1/2 in. But less than 1 per cent. of ships now constructed depend upon the unbought but uncertain winds, and then only for special trades. On regular routes the steamer is now almost paramount, and it was, therefore, appropriate in the highest degree that the first vessels to steam regularly to China, _viâ_ the Cape, should, like the _Lord of the Isles_, be built by the Scotts; but that belongs to another story.

FOOTNOTES:

[2] Campbell's "Historical Sketches of the Town and Harbour of Greenock," vol. i., page 18.

[3] Sir Nathaniel Barnaby's "Naval Development in the Century," page 23.

[4] Brown's "Early Annals of Greenock," page 136

[5] Williamson's "Memorials of James Watt," 1856.

[6] "The Gazetteer of Scotland," 1842, vol. i., page 709.

[7] "Journals of the House of Commons," 1792, page 357.

[8] Holmes' "Ancient and Modern Ships," page 152.

[9] Williamson's "Old Greenock," page 148.

[10] Campbell's "Historical Sketches of the Town and Harbour of Greenock," page 68.

[11] The following figures are taken for 1701 from "Chambers' Estimates," pages 68, 69, and 90; for 1793 from Lindsay's "History of Merchant Shipping"; for 1803 from "Porter's Progress of the Nation," page 626; and for 1901 from the "Statistical Abstract for the United Kingdom."

1701. 1793. 1803. 1901.
Number of ships 3,281 16,079 20,893 20,258
Tonnage 261,222 1,540,145 2,167,863 15,357,052
Seamen 27,196 118,286 -- 247,973

The Scottish fleet, which is not included for 1701 and 1793, was much smaller, alike in the size of units and aggregate tonnage.

[12] Holmes's "Ancient and Modern Ships," page 130.

[13] Weir's "History of Greenock."

[14] Brown's "Early Annals of Greenock," page 138.

[15] Murray's "Shipbuilding in Iron and Wood," page 60.

[16] Lindsay's "Merchant Shipping," vol. iii, page 294.

The Development of the Steamship.

A close association existed between the Scotts and the family of James Watt, the inventor of the steam engine: the founder of the Scotts' shipbuilding firm and the father of Watt were identified with several schemes for the improvement of Greenock; and the signature of John Scott, of the third generation, whose portrait is the second reproduced on Plate II., is taken from a document in connection with some intromissions of town's funds, to which also is adhibited the signature of Watt's father.

It is not surprising, therefore, that the Scotts were early close students of Watt's inventive work, and among the first to enter upon the building of steamships; while at the same time, as we have shown in the preceding pages, building many of the fine sailing ships which established British shipping supremacy in the early half of the nineteenth century, and raised Greenock by 1829 to a port having trade with every part of the world.

Miller and Taylor commenced their experiments at Dalswinton in 1788, with a steam engine driving paddle-wheels in boats[17]. Symington's steam tug, _Charlotte Dundas_, by its success in 1802 on the Forth and Clyde Canal[18], removed any remaining doubt; but it was not until 1812 that Henry Bell, with his _Comet_, proved the commercial utility of the steam system, although without profit to the promoter.[19] The building of steamships, evolved by experiments by various workers in Britain--and in America also--was readily adopted on the Clyde. Within four years of the completion of the _Comet_, it was not unusual for five hundred or six hundred passengers to enjoy in the course of one day water excursions on the river.[20] The fares were practically five times those prevailing to-day. Among the earliest of the Clyde steamers were the _Active_, of 59 tons, and _Despatch_, of 58 tons, built by the Scotts. In calculating the tonnage in those early days, an average allowance of one-third was deducted for the machinery. In 1816 the firm built the _Shannon_, of a length between perpendiculars of 77 ft. 7 in., of a beam of 15 ft. 3 in., and of a depth moulded of 9 ft. 1 in. She had fore-and-aft cabins. Her engines were of 14 horse-power nominal. She plied on the Shannon between Limerick and Kilrush. By 1818--six years after the completion of the _Comet_--thirty-two steamers were running on the Clyde, and some of these were sent ultimately for traffic on the coast and on other rivers.[21] The largest of these was of 112 tons, with engines of 40 nominal horse-power.

The Scotts had built many sailing craft for the Clyde and Belfast trade, for the Glasgow and Liverpool service, and for the Liverpool and Drogheda, and other coasting routes; and it was natural when steam was introduced that the same firm should supply the side-paddle boats.

In three successive years--from 1819 to 1821--the largest steamer in the kingdom came from Scotts' Works. The record was marked in 1819 by the _Waterloo_, of over 200 tons, with engines of 60 nominal horse-power; in 1820, by the _Superb_ of 240 tons register, with engines of 72 nominal horse-power, which cost about £37 per ton, and steamed 9 miles per hour, using 1670 lb. of Scotch coal per hour; and in 1821, by the _Majestic_, of 345 tons register, with engines of 100 horse-power, which cost over £40 per ton, and steamed 10 miles per hour for a consumption of 2240 lb. of Scotch coal. Although the modern steamer is fifty times the size of these pioneers, with a cost per ton of less than one-fourth, and a fuel consumption per unit of work done of not more than a seventh, the records of these and other early ships are worthy of full reference.

The advantage of steam navigation for channel service was at once recognised. A Parliamentary return issued in 1815 showed that for the space of nine days in the previous year only one mail packet could sail between Holyhead and Dublin owing to adverse winds, and even then the average passage was twenty-four hours. Lord Kelvin, in his memorable Address as Chancellor of the University of Glasgow, in 1905, recalled the fact that early in the century his father often took three or four days to cross from Belfast to Greenock in a smack, as she was frequently becalmed. With favourable winds, rapid passages were made, a revenue cutter occasionally doing the Belfast and Greenock run in ten hours.

The Greenock and Belfast route was among the first around the coast to come under the influence of the mechanical system of propulsion. The _Rob Roy_, which was the outcome, so far as form of hull was concerned, of probably the first model experiments ever made--undertaken by David Napier in the Canal at Camlachie[22]--was in 1818 the pioneer in the Glasgow and Belfast steam service, and later in the Dover and Calais steam service.

There followed in 1819 three notable vessels from Scotts' Works: the _Waterloo_,[23] the _Robert Bruce_, and the _Sir William Wallace_. The particulars and performances of these vessels, taken from contemporary records, principally the "Greenock Advertiser," which faithfully reported each incident in the development of the steamship, are especially interesting as illustrative of early work.

The _Waterloo_, which, as we have already said, was the largest steamer of her year (1819), had a beam equal to one-fifth of her length, the measurement between perpendiculars being 98 ft. 8 in. In addition to a large number of passengers, she carried under ordinary conditions a cargo of 100 tons, on a draught of 8 ft. 6 in. against 7 ft. 3 in. without cargo. Three months were required, between the launch of the ship and her trials, for the fitting on board of engines each of 30 nominal horse-power, which gave her a speed of between 8 and 9 miles per hour. Sails, however, were still carried to assist in driving the ship, and this vessel was of schooner rig. She inaugurated the steam service between Belfast and Liverpool.

The _Robert Bruce_ was the first steamer to trade between the Clyde and Liverpool.[24] She was followed by the _Sir William Wallace_. Both were built by the Scotts, and had engines of 60 nominal horse-power. They began service in the summer of 1819; and the record of the maiden voyage of the former, in August, 1819, showed that two and a-half hours were occupied in the run from Glasgow to Greenock, about 22 miles; and within 26 hours thereafter the vessel took on her pilot at the north-west lightship outside the Mersey Bar. The return voyage was equally satisfactory. To quote again from contemporary records, "the passengers, both out and home, were so highly gratified with the performance of this vessel and their treatment on board that they unanimously expressed their entire satisfaction with Captain Paterson's exertions to render them comfortable and happy, their conviction of the seaworthiness of the vessel, and their admiration of the powers of the engines, capable of propelling so large a body at the rate of 7 knots per hour, in the face of a strong north-northwest wind and high sea for at least two-thirds of the way from Liverpool, her rate thither being nearly 9 knots."[25]

In 1820, the _Superb_, of 240 tons and 72 horse-power, followed the _Sir William Wallace_, and marked a still further improvement. She had a copper boiler, and in the three cabins sleeping accommodation was provided for sixty-two passengers. She was "the finest, largest, and most powerful steam vessel in Great Britain.[26] The average duration of the passage from the Clyde to Liverpool did not exceed 30 hours."

The _Majestic_, also for the Clyde and Liverpool service, was built in 1821, and was 134 ft. 11 in. long between perpendiculars, 22 ft. 8 in. beam, and 14 ft. 5 in. depth, moulded. Her draught, 10 ft. 6 in. forward and 12 ft. aft, was too great for the upper reaches of the Clyde, and passengers were brought from Glasgow to Greenock in a tender. In her four cabins there was greatly-increased accommodation for the passengers. She was probably the first steamer with a sleeping apartment exclusively for ladies. The copper boiler worked at a pressure of 4 lb. per square inch, and the engines ran at 56 revolutions. The fares[27] to Liverpool in those days were £2 15s., as compared with 11s. to-day; of course, very much better accommodation is now provided.

The _City of Glasgow_ was built in 1822 for the Liverpool service. This vessel, which cost £15,000, had a speed of over 10 knots, and was reputed the fastest afloat. Her length was 110 ft. 4 in., beam 22 ft. 4 in., and depth, moulded, 13 ft. She was arranged like the _Majestic_, and the two were long the most important vessels in the Clyde and Liverpool trade. She was subsequently bought by McIver, and inaugurated the competition with the Burns line, commenced in 1829.[28] The McIver and Burns lines were subsequently combined.

The Scotts rendered similar service in the development of the mail route between Holyhead and Dublin. The first vessel built by them for this service was the _Ivanhoe_, constructed in 1820. The steam service had been opened between these two ports in 1819 by the _Talbot_, the first steamer fitted with feathering floats.[29] The _Ivanhoe_,[30] a larger steamer than the _Talbot_, was of 170 tons burden, her length between perpendiculars being 97 ft. 4 in., beam 19 ft., and depth, moulded, 14 ft. 6 in. She had various improvements in her machinery, which was of 60 nominal horse-power. She left Scotts' yard in May, 1820, and made the voyage to Howth (200 miles), in 26-1/2 hours.

Thus the Scotts continued to improve on each successive ship, and to widen the area of their influence. The Clyde continued to largely monopolise the industry of steam shipbuilding, and it was not until the summer of 1822 that a steamer--not built in Scotland--appeared on the Clyde. This was the _Saint George_, from Liverpool, and the _City of Glasgow_, already referred to, her competitor in the Liverpool trade, raced her and greatly excelled.

One of the first steamers to trade in the Mediterranean was the _Superb_, sent thither in 1824, and the _Trinacria_, also built by the Scotts, followed in 1825. These ran between Naples and Palermo. The last-named vessel was 135 ft. long over-all, and 113 ft. 6 in. between perpendiculars, 39 ft. 6 in. broad over the paddle-box, and 21 ft. 10 in. net beam, 14 ft. deep (moulded), and of 300 tons burden. The vessel was especially well-equipped, and cost £15,000. The engines, the first manufactured by the Scotts at their Greenock foundry, were of 80 nominal horse-power, and the boilers, which were of copper, weighed 40 tons. The speed was 10 miles per hour. Later this steamer became the _Hylton Joliffe_, and was employed by the General Steam Navigation Company on their London and Hamburg service.

As to the yard in which these several vessels were built, suggestion is afforded of the state of efficiency by the following quotation from a history published in 1829.[31] "The building yard of Messrs. Scott and Sons is allowed to be the most complete in Britain, excepting those which belong to the Crown. It has a fine extent of front from the West Quay to the termination of the West Burn, and has a large dry dock, which was altered lately to the plan of the new dock. All the stores and lofts are entirely walled in, and, independently of the building premises, they have an extensive manufactory of chain cables."

The majority of the engines for these early steamers of the Scotts were constructed by Napier or Cook, and were of the side-lever or beam type. In 1825, however, John Scott, who had done so much for the progress of the firm, decided to commence building machinery, and acquired for £5000 the works which have since been developed into the well-known Greenock Foundry. This establishment was begun, although on a very small scale, about 1790,[32] and in its equipment, which was considered thoroughly efficient, there was included a large cupola. Some idea is given of the extent of the establishment by reference to Weir's "History of Greenock" (1829), page 94, where it is stated that in the few years that had elapsed since the taking over of the works by the Scotts "they have manufactured some splendid engines, and--what is more to be looked for than the appearance--they have wrought well. They have in hand the largest engine ever made, which is of a size of 200 horse-power, and is intended for a vessel building at Bristol. The number of men employed amount to about two hundred and twenty, while the weekly distribution of wages is £180." As a contrast, it may be said here that there are now four thousand men in the works, earning per week over £5500 in wages, and that the Scotts are engaged on the largest set of engines yet constructed by them--for H.M.S. _Defence_. They are of 27,000 indicated horse-power, to give the immense armoured cruiser named, of 14,600 tons displacement, a speed of 23 knots.

Since 1825, the Scotts have continued to do very satisfactory engine work, much of it of an original character, not only for vessels built for themselves, but for ships constructed on the Thames and other English rivers, and also for the series of warships built for the British Navy at their works, and for others constructed at the Royal Dockyards. This naval engine work began with H.M. ships _Hecla_ and _Hecate_, engined in 1838-9, and the first warships built in the dockyards to be sent to Scottish works to receive machinery.[33] And here it may be noted, too, that the first warship built by the Scotts was the _Prince of Wales_, in 1803, and also that the firm had the credit of building the first steam frigate constructed at Clyde works for the British Navy, H.M.S. _Greenock_, launched in 1839. They also built the first compound engines fitted to a French warship. With these naval ships and engines we deal in our next Chapter, and may therefore continue our narrative regarding merchant steamers.

We reproduce on the preceding page a drawing illustrating an early type of engine built by the firm. This is an engine constructed in 1831. The steam cylinder is 52-1/4 in. in diameter, and the crank-shaft is actuated, through connecting-rods, from the ends of the levers operated by the piston-rod, while the air-pump is placed at the opposite ends of the levers.

A different type of engine, constructed in the following year (1832), is illustrated on the facing page. In this case the cylinder operates the opposite end of the levers to that connected with the crank-shaft. In both engines the lever-gudgeon passes through the jet-condenser.

The records we have given are historically interesting, because they tell of the beginnings of a great epoch in British shipping. We do not propose to follow in such detail subsequent steamships, built for other services, between London and Aberdeen, the Clyde and Dublin, etc. The _City of Aberdeen_, built in 1835 for the first-named, marked noteworthy progress. She measured 187 ft. over the figure-head, and was of 1800 tons, including the space for the machinery. Her poop was 60 ft. long and 45 ft. broad. According to contemporary testimony, she was, in her day, the strongest steamer built, having solid frames from gunwale to gunwale. She had additional bracing with African oak stringers; oak and iron trussings alternately bolted to the stringers formed a complete system of diagonal fastenings and bindings from stem to stern. The whole of the cabins, saloons and state rooms, were on one deck, and there was the important innovation of hot and cold baths. The speed was 12 miles per hour.[34]

The _Jupiter_, of 439 tons and 210 horse-power, built in 1836 for the Clyde and Dublin trade, cost £20,000, and established a record in speed, making the voyage in sixteen hours six minutes, at the rate of 13 miles per hour; formerly the voyage took twenty-four hours.

In the late 'thirties and the early 'forties there was a great development in oversea trading steamers, the Clyde taking, then as now, the foremost place. Several epoch-marking voyages had been made with the steam engine used intermittently. The _Savannah_ had thus crossed the Atlantic from the United States in 1819, and the _Royal William_ from Quebec in 1833.

The barque _Falcon_,[35] 84 ft. in length, and of 175 tons, had, on the voyage to India in 1835 utilised engines which, however, were removed on her arrival in our Eastern dependency. Later in the same year the _Enterprise_, of 470 tons and 120 horse-power, also rounded the Cape of Good Hope to India. In all these cases, however, sails were utilised whenever possible, and there was still great hesitancy in accepting the steam engine even as an alternative on occasions to the use of the "unbought wind." The advantage, however, of a rate of speed which, while low, would be constant, soon asserted itself, and there followed within a few years regular mail steamship services on the North and South Atlantic Oceans, in the Mediterranean Sea, in the Indian Ocean, and the China Seas. In the beginning and development of these services the Scotts took a prominent part.

One of the first notable steamship lines to be organised for oversea service was that which ultimately became the Peninsular and Oriental Company. It had its origin[36] in steamship service from Falmouth to Oporto, Lisbon, Cadiz, and Gibraltar. Four steamers were built in 1836-37: the _Tagus_, _Don Juan_, _Braganza_, and _Iberia_. The first-named was built by the Scotts, and the third was engined by them. These ultimately carried the mails as far as Alexandria, whence they were conveyed overland to Suez, and from thence by the East India Company's vessels to Bombay. This service developed into the Peninsular and Oriental service, when, in 1840, the Company took over the mail service on the Indian Ocean; in 1847 they extended their operations to China. The overland service continued until the Suez Canal was opened in 1869, and many of the vessels for the Mediterranean service, as well as for the eastern route, were built by the Scotts.

The _Tagus_,[37] which was thus amongst the first of the P. and O. steamers, was built in 1837. She had a length of 182.1 ft., a beam of 26 ft., and a depth of 17 ft. 4 in., the burden tonnage being 709 tons. When carrying 265 tons of coal in her bunkers and 300 tons of cargo, the draught was 14 ft. 6 in. The side-lever engines which were fitted to her had a cylinder 62 in. in diameter, with a 5-ft. 9-in. stroke, developed 286 horse-power, and operated paddle-wheels 23 ft. 6 in. in diameter. Two of the other early steamers, the _Jupiter_ and the _Montrose_, were also constructed by the Scotts.

The conveyance of cargo and passengers across the Isthmus of Suez not only involved inconvenience and expense, but was a cause of great delay. There was still, however, a strong prejudice against steamships being utilised for long sea voyages, partly because of vested interests in sailing ships. Sir John Ross, C.B., who, in 1818 and in 1829 to 1833, made Arctic explorations, was one of the strongest advocates for a service to India by way of the Cape of Good Hope; and, in order to establish the feasibility of the undertaking, made experiments with the _City of Glasgow_, built by the Scotts in 1821. This vessel, of 283 tons, had in the interval been fitted with new boilers, with special safety appliances, and they worked at 4-lb. pressure; they gave the high evaporation in those days of 9 lb. of water per pound of coal.[38]

This vessel made the trip from London Bridge to the lightship off Spithead (246 miles) in thirty-one hours five minutes, on a consumption of 6 lb. of fuel per indicated horse-power per hour. These facts were utilised by Sir John Ross in his advocacy of the route, and a new company was formed, under his chairmanship, in 1837.

The first vessel of the fleet, named the _India_, was built and engined by the Scotts, and was a few years later transferred to the Peninsular and Oriental Company. The _India_, launched in 1839, was the largest steamer built on the Clyde up to that date, being 206 ft. 6 in. long, 30 ft. 9 in. beam, or 48 ft. wide over the paddle-boxes. The gross tonnage was 1206 tons. Accommodation was provided for eighty cabin passengers, and provision made for 400 tons of cargo. A feature of her construction was the provision of two strong bulkheads of iron across the engine-room, in order to avoid accidental outbreak of fire, and also to prevent water from a leak in one part spreading to another.[39] This was probably the beginning--nearly seventy years ago--of the system of division by watertight bulkheads, now universal. Its compulsory adoption was advocated by the Institution of Naval Architects in 1866, and enforced by Lloyds in 1882, and by the Board of Trade in 1890. The machinery was of 320 horse-power, and had surface-condensers. The _India_ was launched on the anniversary of the birth of James Watt, and a salute of twenty-one guns was fired as the vessel left the ways.

Five other steamers were built for the service, and the voyage took from fifty-five to sixty days, as compared with the one hundred and thirteen days occupied by the _Enterprise_. A monthly service was thus rendered possible. At the same time the Scotts built steam vessels for the coasting trade of India and of South Africa.