The daily Green Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1861-1865, 1861-12-24
How we can soon have Powerful Navy.

Donald Mckay, an eminent ship-buder, in
a communication to the Commercial Bulletin,
makes the following timeI suggestions in re-
spoct to the way in which our Navy can be very
soon put into "a respectable if not formidable
position. lie says
"It would be easy for us to build in one year
fleet of 500 to GOO men -of-war ships, from a
gunboat up to the largest class OF iron ceased
friga,cs 1t ia a well known fact that we built,
in one year, the astonishing number Of 2034
vessels and steamers, of all classes, measuring
together 5S3 $50 tons. A large number of these
vessels were as large as the biggest class of fri
gates hitherto constructed. What we have done
once we may do again, and working at the same
rate, we would be able alone in our merchant
yards to turn out, IN one year, 5S3 ships Of
1000 tons each In our six Navy Yards, where
the choicest materials are stocked for building
fleet Of 100 ships GO moro men-of war ships
might be built in one year, making total of
G43 men-of war ships OF all classes, varying in
their armament from to GO guns More than
hundred Of our greatest engineering firms
would complete all the machinery necessary to
be put in these ships in less than a year. Our
capabilities and facilities Of building ships have
NV All liic 'oIoI ouAoeu ny Uic losS VI lnV eeceu-
ed States They never were shilbuldng States
and as late as 1850 they only built (conbined)
one lull-rigged ship, while the Northern States
is to say, in plain words, all the seeded States
combined did not build even one per cent of
the sea going ships built in the United States
1t is true on very urgent OCCASION in great
emergency, our country could largely increase
bor,, in (ou he xu;t
erful descriptions OF vessels, if they would pro-
coed as follows
Cut down all our line-of-Iattle ships one Of
two decks, case them with five inch iron plates,
put battery of thirty or forty guns of the
heaviest calibye on board of them, and moor
them across the entrance of our harbcrs. Plate
our heavy frigates with shcll-proof iron plates,
and TO make up for the additional weight put
into them, do away with their armament on the
upper deck
Transform one hundred of our best sea- going
merchant steamers into so many irigates, soops,
dispatch and gunboats of a speed superior to
any men-of-war ships yet produced
Among our large clipper SHIPS and traders,
more than five bundled may be found that are
capable to be transformed into so many efficient
sailing sloops and Grigates. Their length varies
from 220 to 500 feet, their breadth from 40 to
50 feet, and whenever they are cut down one
deck, or their decks are lowered, will be found
capable OF carrying an armament varying from
twenty to fifty heavy guns according to their
respective capacities Twenty or thirty Of our
best and largest clipper ships might very well
be Transformed into powerful screw frisales--us
for instance the Great Republic, which exceeds
in her dimensions the largest English ffty-gun
trigates, while her shape for speed is ncom par
ably superior.
The scantIing of all these ships is well known
to be larger than that of the best and strongest
men-ot war ships IN our navy.
Among the barques and briggs there are 400 to
800 capable OF receiving an armament OF from 8
to ~ guns, and more than II thousand Of our
large schooncrs that have breadth of q to 80
feet and over, and form never surpassed for
speed, can in few weeks be transformed into
! men, oi-war schUoners armed with one pivot gun
of the Heaviest description in the middle. and
! two to four 30 FOUNDERS at the ends. These yes
seiu have very large stability, and the scant
ling OF their timSers, is by 20 per Ct, heavier
! than that OF the common men. of-war sch0oners
! This fleet Of about 1000 vessels OF war can be
! turned out in less time than tour or six months
and it would he sufficient to protect orr cons!
aud meet the first storm
, Time would be SO gained to build lleet fit t.
I represent our great nation, and to make our hae
/ once more respected in all seas of the globe
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