Титанік
Chapter 4
Butifforanyreasontheelectricmachineryshouldfail,therewasaprovisionmadeforclosingthemautomaticallyincasetheshipshouldbefloodedwithwater.Downinthedoublebottomoftheshipwerearrangedaseriesoffloatsconnectedwitheachsetofbulkheaddoors.Intheeventofwaterreachingthecompartmentbelowthedoors,itwouldraisethefloats,which,intheirturn,wouldreleasetheclutchesanddropthedoors.Thesegreatbulkheadswerenonewexperiment;theyhadbeentriedandproved.WhentheWhiteStarlinerSuevicwaswreckedafewyearsagoofftheLizard,itwasdecidedtodividethepartofherwhichwasfloatingfromthepartwhichwasembeddedintherocks;andshewascutintwojustforwardofthemaincollisionbulkhead,andthelargerhalfofhertowedintoportwithnootherprotectionfromtheseathanthisvaststeelwallwhich,nevertheless,easilykeptherafloat.Andnumberlessothershipshaveowedtheirlivestotheresistingpowerofthesesteelbulkheadsandthequickoperationoftheslidingdoors.
AsfortheenormousweightthatmadefortheTitanic’sstability,itwas,asIhavesaid,containedchieflyintheboilers,machineryandcoal.Thecoalbunkerswerelikealiningrunningroundtheboilers,notonlyatthesidesoftheship,butalsoacrossherwholebreadth,thusincreasingthesolidityofthesteelbulkheads;andwhenitisrememberedthathersteamwassuppliedbytwenty-nineboilers,eachofthemthesizeofalargeroom,andfiredbyahundredandfifty-ninefurnaces,theenormousweightofthispartoftheshipmaybedimlyrealized.
