The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1856-07-13
AFFAIRS in EUROPE.
The United States Navy Compared with that
OF Engiand-Our Former Victories On the

The United States Navy Compared with that
OF Engiand-Our Former Victories ON the
from the London Post June 2sl
We have made within the last few years very
grsas progress in the character and capsnitie OF
our ships Of war, and in the recent launcn az tne
Scyla we see earnest Of still greater; OUT the ques
ton still remains-Have we made enough to meet
the possible urgencies Of the momenu Inc vessel
we h I'VE alluded to is O corvette, mounting twenty
eixty-eight Founders, and we believe Is ~ present
heavily armed throughout; but nearly all the newer
vessels built by the government Of the United
States are not only armed throughout with as heavy
ordnance as the Scyila, but with still heavier. We
hear Of q corvette mosnting twenty gans, all eighty
four Founders, throwing therefore, abroadsde equiv
alent in weight to that Of fty gun frgate as arm
ed upon cur sysoem and Of q far greater range Nor
is that all These vessels built for speed as well,
and they can consequently preserve that distance
which gives the greater possible advantage to their
more powerful armament, or, IN plain English, such
corvette could dismante frgote atter irigate with
out the enemy having the power OF closing WITH her
ct she is called q corvette, and commanded by q
commander; and, in the event OF our being engag-
I'd in o war with America, il she captured forty.
tx gun igase Of ours, which she Is perfectly equal
to doing would infallibly be represented as having
tsken ship twice her own SINE. Bus our friends
across the Atlantic do not stop at coryettes tine
steam irigate is very fine ship, and they knew how
TO build one ard TO equip IT when built; aud they have
some IN weight of metal fully equal to our three
deckers, and superior in range. An American $50
called) fifty gun frgate would throw broadside Of
two Thousand pounds; but as she would probably
mount sixty guns, the weight of metal weud Mount
to two thousand four hundred and twenty pounds
at each discharge. The Duke of Wellington, we
believe, throws broadsde of about two thousand
five hundred pounds-perhaps since she was built
she may have received heavier arm ament; bat the
broadside of one of our ordinary two-deckers may
be taken as ranging from twelve hundred 10 sixteen
hundred pounds, of which from four to five hundred
may be of sufficient range to reply TO the whole
broadside Of her opponent at the distance the lat
ter would If possible, preserve, and we should have
the modification OF seeing our frigates taken or
sunk by American corvettes, and our line OF battle
ships BY American fngates-
This, but a much smaller scale, proportonate
10 the Increased size and power to which ships
now built is precisely what happened Ia the early
part Of the last war with the United States. Our
captains considered it dscreditable to decline en-
gaging any vessel OF their own rating however su-
peri0r in armament; and the consequence was that
0or frigates met nominal American fngates which
were really, in comparative weight Of broadsde,
hne-of-battle ships In disguise--ong ESQ caled)
forty-six gun fngates, mounting from hfty-six 10
sixty guns, and those Of much larger calibre than
those carried at that period by ships, or indeed
by those of any other naval Power. The following
comparison Of the relative forces of the combatants
In Of the earlier naval actions may be taken
illustration Of the past, and warning for the
future