The Portland daily press., 1890-12-26
WILL DEAL BLOWS BENEATH WATER.
The Formidable Monster DESIGNED
for Harbor Defence.
A Battle ship Which May Work Ruin
without Cunpowd
Description of the Ammen Ram TO
Be Bullt at Bath.
Especial to the Press ]

WASHINGTON, December 25.-The harbor
defense ram for the navy which has been
awarded for construction to the Bath Iron
Works at Bath. Me-, is to be one Of the most
novel crafts In the navy. The construction
as may be inferred from the fact that the
government is to pay the Bath company
nearly million dollars for the craft WHEN
it shall oe completed.
The ram is to be built according to the
plans of Rear Admiral Daniel Ammen. one
of the Oldest officers of the navy and now
on the retired list The object Of the mode
of construction Is to furnish a heavy, low
lying armored vessel, fitted with a heavy
steel ram, which is to be its only weapon of
offense and defense. 1t Is to have no guns
whatever, and is intended only for harbor
defense. The deck Is to be of heavy armor.
and above 1t will project only coming
tower, smoke pipe, ventilatOrs, hatch coam-
ings and skid beams upon which the boats
will be supported. In addition to this form
OF construction, which will give the craft a
dark and for .nidable appearance, the ram Is
also to have the power OF subnIerging itself
so that comparatively little of the upper
deck shall be above water. The vessel Is to
be submerged TO fighting trim by means of
fourteen S-inch Kingston valves. one in each
tranyerse water-tight compartment OF the
d0uble-bott0m. and sluice-valves will be
fitted in the vertical keel and the water-tight
l0ngitudinals In these compartments. A for
midaole and dark-iooking craft will be this
new defense vessel, with its wrought steel
ram head. which is to be securely held In
position on the steel stem.
The ram Is to be propelled by twin screws,
driven by triple expansion engines, each en-
gine to be In separate compartment. The
general dimension and requirements are TO
be as follows:
Length over ALL: feet. 243
Length ON load water line....... do 24234
Breadth, extreme. ................ do .. 43 6-l2
Breadlh at water-line. ........... do =. Al 1912
Draught amidships.. do 10
DlSpldceinenL.. tons. .ZObO
Indicated horse power. 800
speed KNOTS. II
The armnr is intended to be thick enough
to ward off whatever shots may be able to
hit the small mark presented when the ram
shall be submerged for action. The outside
strake OF the deck armOr Is to be 6 IL cheS 10
thickness, the next strake inDoard TO taper
In thickness in Its breadth from 81 inches to
q inches, the remainder of the deck plating
10 be q inches in thickness. including the
lower course OF plating. The side arm0r will
be two strakes in depth, the upper 6 inches
In thicb ness, and the lower three inches, to
be secured by bolts with cOunter-sunk heads,
driven from the outside through wood back.
Ing OF yellow pine, and two backing plates,
each 20 pounds per square foot, and set uD
with nuts on rubber washers. All hatches
through the armored deck will have battle
plates, the smOke-plpe and veDtIlatOrs will
have inclined armOr inches In thickness
The heconniDg tower will be IS inches In thick
ness.
The vessel is designed upon the longitude
nal and bracket system, with an inner o0t-
tom extending from the collision bulkhead
TO the stern. The lOngitudiDals and girders
supporting the deck are to ne continuous,
to the stem casting and to the
stern. ~ the frames and beams to be intercos,
tai. The depth of lOngitudinals and vertical
Keel throughout their length is to be "a
inches; and the girders supporting the arm
o ed deck are to be 10 inches. The vertical
keel, two loDgltudinals, and armOred shelf
on each side of the vertical keel are to be-
watertight, forming, transversely, six CON-
paItments, these being divided longitudinal
ly by water tight frames. BY this means the
space between the inner and outer skin Is
subdivided into 72 compartments. The trans
verse and longitudinal Dulkheads between
the Inner SKIN and deck armOr divide this
space into 30 compartments, making a total
of 102 compartments in the vessel.
Tht inner KEEL Is to be 173 pounds; the out
keel 20 pounds to the square foot; the YER
tical keel l73 pounds, with two 81 by inches
OF pounds per foot angles at the top, ana
two angles by inches of 0 pounds per foot
at the bottom, connecting 1t with the flat
keel plates. The fiat keelson plates will be-
l5 pounds per square foot. the outside plating
10 pounds, and the inner plating 10 pounds
per square foot, respectively. The plates of
the lOngitudinals are to be 10 pounds per
>quare foot for the water-tight spaces and
12a pounds per square foot for the remainder.
Angles at top and bottom of these longitu-
dinals are to be by inches of Z pounds per
fuot. The main frame angles are to be- 81 by
inches of pounds per foot, reverse angles
TO be by inches of pounds per foot. An
giles to water tight frames are to be by
inches OF pounds per foot Floor plates are
to be water tight frames to be 10 pounds per
square foot; all others to be- 125 pounds.
The bulkhead plates of 10 pounds per
square foot are to be stiffened by angles
three by two and half inches Of six pounds
per foot.
The figures at which the Bath Iron Works
have accepted the work of constructing this
vessel are S930,000. The firm is already
worRing upon two gunboats, which will
probably be completed sometime in 1892.
the Smell Library.
The law library of the late Judge William
r. Smell was sold at auction here Monday.
1t was fine library of about 5000 volumes,
some of which were very rare, Judge Smell
having been dillgent buyer Of law books.
Buyers were present from various parts of
the country, among them being Harvey ID.
Tot Nf ha rd 4