It will be seen from the documents which have been printed in this chapter how ‘deeply and seriously’ Mr. Brunel had considered all the conditions which were, in his opinion, necessary for the economical construction, and the successful employment, of the great ship; but it is hardly possible, by means of extracts from his correspondence, to convey an adequate impression of the amount of labour he expended—from the year 1852 to the last days of his life—on the supervision of every detail of the work. ‘The fact is,’ he said, ‘I never embarked in any one thing to which I have so entirely devoted myself, and to which I have devoted so much time, thought, and labour, and on the success of which I have staked so much reputation.’
Heavy as Mr. Brunel’s duties were in October 1854, when he wrote these words, a far greater amount of labour was subsequently imposed upon him.
During the year 1855 financial difficulties arose which interfered with the progress of the ship; and at last, in February 1856, although Mr. Brunel had done everything in his power to prevent the necessity of such a step, the works were suspended; and they were not resumed till the end of May, after which date they were carried on by the Company under the supervision of the existing staff. It was greatly against Mr. Brunel’s wishes that this was attempted, except as a temporary measure, as he considered it impossible for a company to carry on such a work efficiently and economically.
Notwithstanding all these difficulties, that which seemed at first only a confused mass of iron assumed by slow degrees the graceful proportions of a ‘great ship’; and the hull of the vessel was completed by the end of the summer of 1857, so far as it was desirable to proceed before the commencement of the launching operations.
CHAPTER XII.
STEAM NAVIGATION—THE ‘GREAT EASTERN’ STEAM-SHIP. THE LAUNCH.
A.D. 1857—1858. ÆTATIS 52.
REASONS FOR DETERMINATION THAT THE SHIP SHOULD BE LAUNCHED BROADSIDE TO THE RIVER—AND THAT THE LAUNCH SHOULD BE SLOW—EXTRACTS FROM MR. BRUNEL’S REPORT OF FEBRUARY 1855—REASONS FOR THE ADOPTION OF IRON SLIDING-SURFACES—DESCRIPTION OF THE WAYS AND CRADLES—AND OF THE MOTIVE POWER PROVIDED FOR LAUNCHING THE SHIP—MEMORANDUM ON PROPOSED ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE LAUNCH (SEPTEMBER 26, 1857)—LETTER TO CAPTAIN HARRISON ON RIVER TACKLE (SEPTEMBER 30, 1857)—LETTER ON THE NATURE OF THE OPERATIONS (OCTOBER 23, 1857)—MEMORANDUM ON GENERAL ARRANGEMENTS AND INTENDED MODE OF PROCEEDING (OCTOBER 30, 1857)—HISTORY OF THE LAUNCH, NOVEMBER 3, 1857-JANUARY 31, 1858—LETTER TO THE DIRECTORS, NOVEMBER 26, 1857—REPORT AND MEMORANDUM ON THE LAUNCHING OPERATIONS (DECEMBER 17, 1857)—FLOATING THE SHIP—NOTE A: EXPERIMENTS AND OBSERVATIONS ON FRICTION.—NOTE B: LETTER TO W. FROUDE, ESQ. (FEBRUARY 2, 1858).
THE mode in which, the great ship was to be launched had necessarily to be determined before she was commenced. In May 1858, when the contract for her construction was entered into, the question was left open, and the contractor was either to launch her, or to build her in a dock ‘if it be found preferable.’ With Mr. Brunel’s full concurrence, Mr. Russell determined to build the ship on the river-bank, broadside to the river.
The reasons which led to this determination were fully described by Mr. Brunel in his report of February 5, 1855. This report has, with the exception of the parts relating to the launching operations, been printed above, p. [315]. The passages there omitted are as follows:—
One of the first points to be decided was the mode of launching the vessel, which of course would determine the position in which it was to be built; and I wish to take this opportunity of explaining my reason for adopting the plan I have decided upon, which, being unusual, might be supposed to be unnecessary.
Vessels are generally built above the level of high water, and then allowed to slide down an inclined plane into the water; occasionally, as in the case of the ‘Great Britain,’ they are built in a dry dock, into which the water is afterwards admitted, and they are floated out.