Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1862-01-31

OuT CapabEiti for Building Fleet

We copy the following very interestin!
extract from letter by Donald Mckay
in the Boston Commercial Bulletin, shoN
ing our capabilities for the immediate
building of feet which would place u:
in position to successfully cope with al
the war vessels that England may sent
against us!
1T would be easy for US to build in one
year, a fleet of 500 to 600 shi :,
from a gun-boat up to the largest class OF
| iron-cased frigates 1t is a we'll known
fact that we built in one year the aston
ishing number of 5.034 and steamers, of
all classes, measuring together 5S3,4JO
tons. A large number of these vessels
were as large as the biggest class Of fris-
atcs hitherto constructed. What we have
done once we may do ever again, and work
ing at the same rate we would be able
alone, in our merchant Yards to turn cut
in one year 583 ships of 600 tons each
In our six navy yards, where the choicest
materials are stocked for building feet of
100 ips, sixty more men.of-war ships
might be built in one year, making a total
of 6i3 men-of-war of all classes, varying
in their armament from 3 to 60 guns =
More than hundred Of our greatest en-
gineeri1g firms would complete all The
machinery necessary to be pus in these
ships in less than a year Our capabli-
ties and facilities of building Slips have
not in the least suffered by the loss Of the
seeded States They never were ship
building States, and as late as 1860 they
only built (combned.) one full rugged
ship, while the Northern States built l10
ships of the same description. That is to
say, iu plain words, all the seeding States
combined did not build even one per cent
of the seagoing ships built in the United
States
at is true on very urgent occasion, in
a great emergency, our couAtry could
largely increase her navy, in very few
months, with very powerful descriptions Of
vessels, if they would proceed as follows;
Cut down all our line of battle ships
one OF two decks. case them with ) inch
iron plates, put a battery of thirty to for
ty guns Of the heaviest calibre on board of
them, and moor them across the entrance
of our harbors. Plate our heaviest frig-
ates with shell-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
seagoing merchant steamers into so many
frigates, sleeps, dispatch and gunboats of
a speed superior to any meu-of-war ships
yet produced.
Among our large clipper ships and
traders more than 500 may be found that
are capable to be transformed into 50
many efficient sailing sloops and frigatcs -
Their length varies frcm 220 to 800 feet :;
their breadth from 80 to 53 feet and
whenever they are cut down one deck. or
their decks are lowered, will be fouad ca
pable Of carrying an armament varying
from 20 to 80 heavy guns, according to
their respective capacity. Twenty or
thirty of our best and larges: clipper ships
might very well be transformed into pow
erful screw frigates, as, for instance, the
Great Repu bic, which exceeds IN her d.
mensions the largest English 80 gun frig-
ates. while her shape for speed is incom-
parabiy greater.
The scantlIng Of all these ships is we'll
known to be larger than that of the best
and strongest men of-war ships Of cur ma
Wy. .. ...e -.
Among the banks and briggs there arc
certainly 400 to 500 capable of receiving
an armament Of S TO 20 guns, and mrre
than a Thousand of our large coasting
schooncrs that have breadth of from 26
to 80 feet and over, and 70 m never sur
passed for speed, can in a few weeks be
transformed into men-of-war schooners,
armed with one pivot gun of the heaviest
description, in the middle, ard two or four
32-pounGers at the ends. The vessels
have very large stability, and the scant-
ling of Their timbers, &C.. is by twenty
per cent. heavier than that of the common
men -of-war schooners
This feet OF about 2,00Q vessels Of
war can, working with all the natural en-
ergy of our ration, be turned out in less
time than four to six months. and it would
be sufficient to protect our coast and meet
/ the first storm.
/ "A correspondent of the Times, writ
/ ing from camp near Budd's Ferry, Md
says. the rebels on the opposite shore no
only frequently camc down to the beach
of morning and derisively cry out ou
couateYsien of the previous night but ac