National Republican., 1883-11-21
ADMIRAL PORTER'S REPORT.
An Exhaustive Document Reviewing the
Condition Of the Navy.
Extended Critical Remarks About the
New SteeI-Armored Cruisers.
He Thinks Cruising Ships Of War Should Have
Full Sailing Power.
Changes Which He Thinks Desirable
from His Long Experience.

admiral Of the navy, to Secretary Chandler Is
an exhaustive document of 110 pages of legal
cap. He says that during the past summer
he visited tho torpedo station at Newport, r.
L., and was very we'll pleased with the action
of the new contact torpedo which he con-
siders tho best of its kind The steam launches
supplied to vessels of war are not suited for
torpedo boats, in his opinion, as they have
not the speed or capacity for carrying with
effect properly constructed torpedo. He
suggests that tho board of inspection be di-
rected to institutea competitive trial between
the New Hampshire's Heneshaff boat and the
steam launch at the torpedo station, and
any regular navy steam launch that may
be selected by the department, tho trial
to be made in Newport harbor, and one
of its conditions to bo the testing of the sea-
going qualities of the boats. Admiral Porter,
in speaking of the Coasters Harbor Island
station for training naval apprentices, says it
will never realize the reasonable expectations
of the service while its most prominent
feature is the pauper establishment. which
prevents the government from using the
buildings which could be made serviceable to
the navy in many ways. He recommends
that the buildings referred to be used for the
purpose of establishing post graduate class
of officers, who should be afforded every OPP
portunity to perfect themselves in the higher
branches of education, and acquire more
practical knowledge of what they have been
theoretically taught at the naval academy.
He says that if this post graduate system
had been adopted ten years ago our officers
would not now be involved in preplexities in
regard to building ships and making guns, as
the experience of the naval powers of Europe
would be known to them and there would be
no difficulty in obtaining sufficient number
of officers for any duty where scientific at
tainments and practical knowledge are neces-
sary. Admiral Porter devotes chapter of
his report to the new steel armored vessels
designed for the navy by the advisory board.
He says he is anxious that the board should
succeed in this the first attempt to rebuild
"our decaying navy" and that he does not
write in fault-finding spirit, but takes u
practical view of the case, in which he is justi-
fed by his long experience. He then con-
tinues:
Tho proposed vessels are intended as
cruisers in time of war and in time of peace.
few years ago tho powers of Europe, includ-
ing oven the Ottoman government, consulted
together with view of abolishing privateer-
ing, and of establishing what should be
considered contraband of war. Among other
things, it was decided that all kinds of coal
should be so considered. In case of our
having a war with any foreign power. all
the coaling stations of the world would be
closed against us, hence the necessity that
we should build vessels having full sail and
steam power, SO that they could make good
speed cruising under sail, with fires banked,
ready at o moments notice to get up
steam. Take the Chicago. for example.
1t is said she will have only 14,OOO
principal sails. Any seaman knows
that so small an amount of canvas can only
be considered auxiliary" aud would only
propel the vessel through the water in very
fresh breeze.
With the very peculiar rig of the Chicago,
without bowsprit and iiha nroipctinp bavOnd
the bow, no vessel would work under sail in
smooth water, much less in heavy sea.
1t may be argued that the proposed
ships will not be required to maneuver, and
and that they will always work in important
cases under steam, but in war it is necessary
to guard against every contingency, and even
in the time of peace every effort should be
made to economize coal, the careless expendi-
ture of which eats up tho public
treasure. What steamship consumes
in coal would in few years buy a
new vessel. There is no reason why a
cruising ship Of war should not be of full
power in sails and masts. In the days ante
rior to steam ships had to depend entirely ON
their sails, the masts and rigging had to be
made very heavy to enable q vessel to carry
sail in gales of winds, claw of a Ice shore,
chase an enemy in all weather, or escape from
one l am not an advocate for eX-
tremes, but am certain that no ship will be a
first class cruiser unless she has sail enough
off the wind, and ten knots by the wind.
That is about the speed of our old first class
frigates and ships of the line with their full
bows. The finer lines of to-day ought to do
better. If ~ A ship of war for cruising
should not only be fitted with a full area
of square sails, but she should have
all the usual jibs and trysails, and
have light stays between all the masts where
the latter could be set. 1t can easily be seen
what an advantage avesse rugged in that way
would have over one with Auxiliary sail
power" She could keep the sea as long as
her provisions lasted 1t may be said that the
comparatively narrow beam of modern ships
is opposed to their carrying sail according to
the ordinary rule, but the great length ol
these vessels, with the enormous weights OF
boilers and machinery carried low down
gives them q stability not possessed by the
old fashioned sailing ships of war, and they
could carry top-gallant sails when the latter
would have to take a reef in the topsails
think no practical man will doubt the
propriety of having our vessels ol
comparatively light masts and yards
and with the greatest possible number Of
light fore and aft sails that can be put upon
them in ordinary weather to expedite a pas
sage. If steel masts are objected to on ac
count of the extra expense, fine spars could
be used, although / consider steel preferable,
rs it reduces their size. Without full sail
power ship of war could make but slow
progress if she should run out of coal in O
foreign country where the ports were closed
against her.
The Trenton is a good specimen of full
power sail and steamship, though rather over.
spared, and is superior in peace and war tc
any half spared cruising ship we can build
She could cruise, if necessary, for six months
without using coal and would prove most
formidable commerce destroyer TO any nation
with whom we might bo at war; barring heI
want Of great speed. But after all the Tren-
ton is not good fighting ship for vessel OF
her size, and would be in war but commerce
destroyer.
The Maiiciene is an old fashioned French
steam frigate, which was present at the York
town celebration. She carried twenty-fOur
heavy six-inch rifed guns on her gun deck,
and four on her spar deck, the latter to be
used either as chase or broadside guns This
vessel ought to destroy the Trenton in about
fifteen minutes the latter being armed with
eight-inch converted" guns, of which no one
gives satisfactory account. A vessel OF
even $500 tons displacement, and with greater
speed than the Trenton would not equal the
latter as commerce destroyer-that is if she
was hybrid sail and steam vessel A large
portion of tho ocean commerce is now carried
on by swift steamships, many of which
average their fifteen knots across the At