National Republican., 1885-12-19
Onr shipbnlidInr Interests.

A fun summary Of Naval Constructor
Philip Ilichborn's report TO the Secretary of
the Navy ON his return from an official tour
Of observation among the shipbullding es-
Adjustments Of Europe was published in
the NATIONAL REPUBLICAN OF Oct. "a, but
the concluding portions deserve more ex-
tended notice. He puts an emphatic veto
upon all schemes for the purchase OF naval
or other vessels abroad by showing conclu-
sively that we can build them as well or
even better at home The advocates OF for
eign shipbuilders who are pressing their
claims upon Congress never tire OF giving
accounts Of the wonderful power for ofTensc
and defense OF the Chilian ironclad Esmcr-
aida and the English-bullt gunboats OF the
Chinese navy that were expected 20 play
havoc with tho French fleet In the Tonquin
war, but which wholly failed when the time
for action came.
Constructor Hchborn shows, on the other
hand, that their much advertised English
built war steamers are not, by any means,
up to the requirements of modern naval
warfare. In his description of ships built
and building, he has the following:
For oncnse the Esmernlda is powerfully
equipped, but she Is vulnerable throughout.
and there canb be no doubt that even lightly
armed antagonist could play havoc In the ma.
chincry spaces, and destroy or dlslocatc the
delicate hydraulic mechanism by which the
heavy guns are worked. On account
OF her small coal supply, vulnerablllty, un.
shcathcd bottom, and insignificant spread of
sail, am unable to sec the propriety of build.
ing similar vessels for the American navy.
Ambitious Chilian naval officers arc said
to have expressed desire for war with
the United States, so that they might have
an opportunity to bring the Esmeralda
into active service, and to "loot San Fran
CISCO" They evidently have not taken the
venerability Of their navy into considera-
tion.
1t Is TO be hoped that these propositions
to purchase government vessels abroad will
receive no further consideration In Con-
gress or elsewhere. To those who hold
that shipbuilding among us is a 'rlost art,u
the following from the Washington CORE
spondcnce Of the Ne7 York Herald is
commended:
There arc at the present time not less than
twenty thousand American.built steamers mud
sailvessels engaged in the coastwisc, lake. river
and foreign trade Of the United States. Thes5
American-built vessels cost from Si,25o,O0O
each downward, according to the service re.
quired, the highest priced being engaged In
the Long island sound and Hudson river ser.
vice. Some Of the coastwise steamers arc
innch seagolng vessels of 1000 tons and up
ward, equal to any of their size In the world
Iherc are large number Of American.bullt
ocean steamers, from 1000 to 5000 tons bur.
den, in service between the ports Of the United
States and England, China, Japan, Australia.
and Central and South America. To keen up
this fleet of 10000 Amcrlcan- built vessels and
TO provide for the increase made necessary by
the rapid growth Of the country requires about
1,OUO new American.built vessels every year
Amcflcan'built seagoing steamers have dis
placed English steamers between New York
and Cuba and Mexico and Southern Brazil.
American shipbuiders arc competing sue. |
ccssiully with English builders even In foreign |
countries. South America comes to the United |
states for nearly all its river steamboats, The |
governments Of England, France, and Russia |
have recently purchased torpedo boats, steam |
launches, and vidette boats In the United |
States.
In 1861 our navy consisted OF 81 old wooden |
war steamers, iS old wooden sailing war yes- |
sells, or 50 old wooden vessels altogether. In
q little over three years time II was increased |
10 sSb vessels, of which SO were iron.clads and |
lo2 unarmored cruisers. The owners of our
private iron steamship yards contributed
fleet of lG5 monitors, iron.clads, and unarmored
iron cruisers. This was the first irOn-clad fleet
IN the world, and was copied by all maritime
nations. lfnecd be our builders can again put
iieet of vessels ailoat that other nations will
be glad to copy.
This extract from the Herald's correspond
ence is fair showing of our shipbuilding
interest, so far as 1t goes. 1t omits, how
ever, all mention of the acknowledged su-
periority OF the American clipper ships and
yachts. The thirty years. contest between
American and English yachts, commencing
with the America and ending with the
Puritan, is worth mentioning in this con-
nection. And yet we learn from New
York paper that Mr.. /. Beavor Webb took
home with him three or four orders from
members of an American yacht club for
English designs for yachts! &
Though the superiority of the American
yacht was proven beyond all question by
series of contests of thirty years. duration,
his thrifty Enplishman was ohla fo nbt,t,, |