Chapter 21: A Two-Masted Sailing Ship Blending Chinese, Western, Ancient, and Modern (Part 2)

In terms of armament, an open barbette was installed at the bow and stern, each mounting a 70mm rifled cannon. A retractable canvas cover was installed above the barbette to protect the cannon when not in use. The structure was identical to the one Lin Shenhe’s artillery development team had installed on the fishing trawlers. The only improvement was that the recoil system for the naval gun mount was changed from the original block and tackle system to a track-based mount. The gun carriage was mounted on a track with wheels. When fired, the recoil force was absorbed by sliding along the track. At the end of the track was a hardwood block. The rebound force from the collision between the wheels and the block would push the gun back into position. Hardwood was used instead of steel to prevent sparks from the impact. If the transmigrators’ mechanical skills were more advanced, Lin Shenhe could have introduced a more complex system of gears, rollers, and hydraulics for better cushioning—after all, the weight and volume constraints for solving the recoil problem on a warship were much looser.

This system had already undergone preliminary testing at the Cape Lingao battery and was deemed to meet the basic requirements. Its installation on Hull 0 was also intended as a sea trial.

The gun mounts were on a turntable, rotated by manpower from below deck. A speaking tube was installed at the gun position to help the gunner direct the rotation. The 90-degree arc facing the deck was blocked to prevent the enemy from using the cannons against the deck if they managed to board and seize control, and also to prevent operator error.

Although the open barbette offered little protection, no cannon in this era could outrange the 70mm rifled gun. The gun shield was made of riveted rolled iron plates, providing considerable defense by the standards of the time. According to the ideas of Wen Desi and the navy personnel, they had wanted to lay a layer of rolled wrought iron armor plates on the deck of “Hull 0” to create the first protected cruiser. However, after calculating the amount of wrought iron plate required, Wen Desi abandoned the idea. In the end, they only installed an armored belt around the ammunition room as a safety measure.

For auxiliary weapons, Li Yunxing’s idea was to manufacture multi-barreled guns, but these were rather cumbersome and slow to reload. In the end, they followed Lin Shenhe’s advice and used a mature technology: installing six 2-pounder light mortars (swivel guns). One was placed on each side of the ship, one at the bow, and one at the stern. The other two were planned for the platforms at the mast tops. These cannons were very small and mounted on a universal joint that could rotate 360 degrees, with an elevation of up to 80 degrees and a depression of 40 degrees. They fired a projectile weighing no more than 1 kg, consisting of iron sand, scrap iron, and grapeshot. Their range was very short, and their role was similar to a modern warship’s 12.7mm machine gun, specifically for killing enemies at close range. In naval battles, they were often used to target the enemy’s sails, rigging, and sailors on deck. If necessary, they were also used to sweep the decks of boarding parties. Of course, the guiding principle of the transmigrator navy was to engage at long range as much as possible, rather than engaging in exhausting and casualty-heavy close-quarters broadsides.

Since Hull 0 was not intended to have broadside cannons, it had much more usable space below deck, greatly increasing the ship’s self-sufficiency and cargo capacity. The living conditions for the crew were naturally much better than on a typical sailing warship. There were more crew quarters and sanitation facilities, better lighting and ventilation. Even for the most common sailor, Wen Desi had provided a retractable hammock. In the eyes of the transmigrators, these were just the bare minimum. Wen Desi was well aware of his people’s weaknesses: they had courage and ambition, but lacked the will to endure hardship. To send these people on long voyages of adventure without ensuring they ate, drank, and slept well was just a pipe dream.

For the rigging, the shipbuilding team decided to temporarily use Chinese-style hard sails (junk rig). The hard sail was quite suitable for the transmigrators’ capabilities. After all, they did not possess the technology to manufacture soft sails. Sewing sails was a specialized skill that required special tools and a huge workspace. At that time, not only was there no one in all of China with this skill, but even Macau might not have a sailmaker. The Planning Committee’s warehouse had no stock of sailcloth, so they would have to rely on imports, and it was uncertain if Macau had enough sailcloth available for import.

In contrast, the manufacturing and material requirements for Chinese-style hard sails were much lower. A hard sail is a flat panel, whereas a soft triangular sail is a complex curved surface that requires professional craftsmen to sew. The material for soft sails had to be specially made canvas, while hard sails, having supporting battens, had lower material requirements. Ordinary cloth, or even grass mats and reed curtains, could be used as substitutes. Even if slightly damaged, they could still be used, and temporary repairs were easy.

First, the hard sail has high wind efficiency. Like an airplane wing, it can utilize wind from all eight directions. When the wind blows at a very small angle of attack, it generates lift on the sail surface, perpendicular to the wind’s direction. When the ship is hit by a side wind, the lift is roughly in the same direction as the ship’s travel, making it highly efficient. Even with a headwind, the ship can travel in a zigzag pattern. This is what is meant by “utilizing wind from all eight directions.” Ropes are attached to one side of the sail, allowing the sailors to adjust the sail’s angle according to the wind’s changes. The ability to quickly raise and lower the sail and to sail in a zigzag pattern against the wind was very convenient, but the trade-off was a slower speed compared to soft sails.

Second, raising and lowering a hard sail is easy. Due to the lack of a complex system of rigging, an ordinary person could perform the task with almost no special training. The sail could be lowered extremely quickly; in a crisis, one could simply cut the main halyard, and it would come down in a few seconds. Raising the sail was slower and more laborious due to the weight of the battens, but it required no special skill. Hard sails did not need frequent adjustments while sailing, which saved manpower.

Although in the long run, soft sail rigging was the trend for the development of sailing ships, and large, fast sailing ships all used this system, Hull 0’s mission was at most to sail south to the Philippines or north to the Japanese archipelago, basically staying in coastal areas. The Chinese-style hard sail was well-suited for the complex sea conditions and variable wind directions of the mainland’s coastal regions.

“We’ll use hard sails for now and replace them when we have the ability to manufacture our own sails,” Wen Desi said. He wasn’t particularly fond of hard sails either, but circumstances reminded him to be realistic. Besides the industrial problems, soft sail rigging required much higher skill from the sailors and was not as simple and convenient as on a hard-sailed ship. After all, Hull 0 was a vessel that needed to be put into service immediately.

“In the future, we’ll use steam engines. What do we need sailing ships for?” Li Di asked.

Wen Desi shook his head. “For at least the next 20 years, large sailing ships will still be our direction for long-distance transport—they don’t need fuel. Steamships don’t have an advantage in bulk cargo transport; they’re inefficient and consume a lot of coal. For long-range voyages, we’d have to solve the problem of overseas coaling stations. As for when we can produce steam turbines, that depends on how fast we can climb the tech tree.”

In fact, sailing ships were not completely phased out of the world shipping market until the 1950s. Before that, they remained the best means of transport for long-distance bulk cargo.

“I can’t wait to command our ironclad one day,” said Le Lin. Although this navy enthusiast didn’t understand shipbuilding, he spent all his free time at the shipyard.

“It’s actually not that difficult. An iron-hulled ship is easier to build than a wooden one,” Wen Desi said. “As long as we have enough materials and the skilled workers are trained up, building a thousand-ton iron-hulled ship is a small matter.”

“Director Wen, what do you think about building another 70-ton soft-sailed ship as a training vessel?”

The speaker was Ming Qiu from the Department of Maritime Forces. As a naval advisor, he often came to the shipyard to check on the construction progress of the transmigrator navy’s first self-built warship. To be honest, after being accustomed to modern warships, it was quite strange to see the navy’s warship being a sailing vessel. Especially the strange gun mounts—Ming Qiu vaguely remembered seeing something similar when visiting a late-Qing dynasty fort. Although reality was somewhat detached from his experience, the basic idea of building a navy was the same: whether in the age of sail or the age of electronics, people were always the most fundamental and critical component. Training enough sailors was the top priority. Ming Qiu had seen the sail training ship of the South Sea Fleet on a visit before, and he felt that this method was very good for training people and suited the future needs of the transmigrator navy.

“You have a point. I’ll discuss it with the Executive Committee and try to allocate materials to start construction on a training ship as soon as possible. But this will require the support of the foreign trade department.” In fact, a few days ago, Ma Qianzhu had already sent people from the foreign trade company to Macau to see if they could find the relevant materials and craftsmen.

As they were talking, a European single-masted fast ship with a long, swordfish-like bowsprit and a long line of sails was sailing erratically in the waters outside the shipyard. The sails were in disarray, and a few people could be seen climbing on them. Faint shouts could be heard on the sea breeze.

“Whose ship is that?” Wen Desi was surprised.

“Li Huamei’s ship, the Hangzhou,” Chen Haiyang reported. “I reported it to the Executive Committee last time. She’s teaching everyone sailing and rigging techniques now.”

“It’s her. She seems very active,” Wen Desi said thoughtfully. “Didn’t Meng De report that she was unwilling to be an instructor?”

“She refused. It’s not formal teaching now; it seems to be for her own amusement.”

“Amusing herself this way is quite unique,” Wen Desi said, his voice full of distrust.

After Li Huamei arrived in Lingao, the Executive Committee had been suspicious of her intentions, so they hadn’t decided on a policy for how to treat her. They only sent people from the foreign affairs department to entertain her with good food and drink. Bored in the harbor, Li Huamei naturally struck up a relationship with the navy personnel in Bopu. With her name, beautiful appearance, forthright personality, and her fast ship, most of the navy personnel, except for a few retired PLA navy officers who maintained a high degree of revolutionary vigilance, quickly lost their due caution. They often took her ship out for spins in the waters outside the harbor, calling it “learning sailing techniques.” Li Huamei was generous, not only teaching various sailing experiences but also demonstrating various sailing techniques from time to time. Her reputation soared, and she won a large number of fans. As a result, at every expanded meeting of the Executive Committee, there were people speaking well of her, making the committee deeply feel the power of a woman’s charm.