, 1880-04-26
How to Build Our Navy.

How to Build Our Navy.
By surprising speed our ships could
break and force blocksdes, rapidly
cross the sea, overtake or capture the
ships of the adversary, and choose their
own position in battle. The strength
and buoyancy of steel, and its present
cheapness, adapt it to our purposes;
it must be the material for our new
navy. Steel is superseding ircn. In
the 1ivalry between guns and plates OF
iron, the gun has been the victor. and
guns weighing thirty light tons, throw
ing shells weighing nearly half ton,
have already been set afoat, and some
of them in gun-boats.
Instead Of embarking $4,000, 900 in
one venture in a gigantic iron-clad,
England is now constructing vessels OF
one fifth that cost, and arming them
with heavy cannon.
The steel-clad Iris IS such a vessel.
She combines fine model with steel
walls, and the compound engine which
saves forty per cent in the coal con.
sumed; she thus with great economy
combines speed with a heavy anna
ment, and sufficient space for men,
stores, and fuel. Let us. after choos
ing such model as the Iris, build our
first steel-clad upon the lines and in
the molds of the IRIS, and if possible,
make our contracts with those who
built her. We should thus obtain a
ship 300 feet in length between per-
pcndieulars, 46 feet wide, combining a
speed seventeen miles an hour with q
draught of but twenty feet. Let this
be the basis for our steel-clads. But
how is such ship to be armOred with
out impairing her speed and how can
she be qualified to meet the iron-clads
of Europe? The Iris carries 700 tons
of coal, but che is rugged as bark, is
fast under canvas. and economies fuel
by the use of a compound engine; and
to give her armor, we may dispense
with 200 tons of fuel, as she will rely
principally on her sails, except when
pursuing or eluding her enemy, or
when going into action. Thus saving
200 tons of lightweight, we may apply
to her bow and her stern 200 tons Of
steel armor of four inches in thickness.
extending back from her bow and for
and covering the curved portion of her
stem and stern. Thus may we protect
her both forward and aft by belt of
steel armor four feet above and four
feet below her loadlins. The Lris is
armed with ten cannon of six tons each,
and the weight of these for each broad
side is thirty tons. Let us dispense
with six of them, and substitute one
gun of thirty eight tons on platform
near the armored bow, and another OF
eighteen tons near the armored stern.
As these guns are to revolve, we thus
double the weight Of broadside, and
greatly increase its effect, and when
she attacks or retires she will present
a sharp bow, or run to the foe covered
with steel, which by its strength and
curvature will defect the shells of its
largest adversary at the distance it may
choose for its encounter. Let us add
to this ship besk of steel which,
when driven at speed of seventeen
miles per hour, will sink any adversary.
To this armament we may add two
light Gatling guns to keep off boats or
boarders. We may thus increase the
armament of the frigate without adding
more than twenty tons to the dead
weight, and this may be saved either in
whole or in part in the weight of crew,
stores and water by reducing the nun
ber of her guns, as her large guns may
be worked by hydraulic power. But
it may we'll be asked how are her sides
to be armored. England, by adopting
the turret system, or by building a
fortress in the center of her iron clads,
hiss secured the machinery, but has
left both bow and stern exposed to the
enemy; and in the naval engagement
at Lissa one vessel thus undefended at
the bow was sent to the bottom by the
shell of her adversary. Can we add
armor to the ship without affecting her
speed? Let us profit by an expert
ment recently made in England, by
which it has been determined that a
coal bunker filed with coal few fest
in width is impervious to the largest
shell in use. Let such bunker be con-
structed on each side of the ship. eight
feet wide, and four feet above and four
feet below the load line of the ship,
extending from the armor of the bow
to the armor of the stern; let it cross
the ship at the point where it reaches
the armor; let it be made of halfinch
plates of steel, and divided into two
compartments; and let one of these
compartments be kept fall as a safe
guard and reserve for any encounter.
We have thus armored the ship,
doubled her armament, and preserved
her speed. The Irss has cost $3.50 900,
and it is safe to estimate the changes
we propose would not increase her cost
to more than 100000. With SIS, ,000,-
600 year for four years to come. we
might build twenty such el-clad
frigates, twenty more Of two-thirds
their size, or 2, 900 tons each and twenty
gun-boats like those sent from Eng
land fo China of IFS add tn them