The sun. [volume] (Morris, Stevens County, Minn.) 1882-1895, 1890-01-30

has cost on additional sum Of over G40,-
00U, or, on the average, more than 81 900
year, her total cost mp to date being
about SAT, 900, 1t In as IL an ordinary
citizen had bought a house for $4,000
forty years ago and had since spent G41s-
600, not IN adding 70 it, but simply keep
ing it in repair. The little Elfin at this
moment has cost the country over $500
for every ton of her displacement.
COMPARING ENGLISH VESSELS.
Next OF the four in point of age is the
Victoria and Albert, the largest of the
royal yachts. !. She is of 2,470 tons dis.
placement and was built at Pembroke in
1855. Her original cost, inclusive Of in
cidental dockyard charges, was G176, 800,
or over Ell ton. She, too, was expen-
sive at the outset. In The thirty-four
years which have since elapsed setting
aside as before the wages of her crew
and the price of her consumable stores
she has cost, including incidentals, an
additional SUM of more than G3S7 900,
or ON the average nearly E12, OO0rai'year'
her total cost up to date being, rough
" speaking, e565, 900. AS she lies in
Portsmouth haTbor today she has cost
the country about G235 for every ton Of
her displacement. Third in seniority is
the Alberta, which was built in 1868 at
Pembroke, and which is of $40 tons dis
placement. We regret that we have not
succeeded in finding ont the exact
cost of this vessel We are informed
that it is about eT0, 600.
We believe it to be more; buts accept
ing the estimate, we pass on to the
fourth and newest of the royal yachts,
the Osborne. She was built at Penn
broke in 1870 and is of 1850 tons dis
placement. Including incidental charges,
her original cost was close upon ei34,-
600, or about e73 S. a ton. In the nine
teen years that have since expired she
has cost. including incidentals, but ex-
Guiding wages and price of perishable
stores, over G150 900, or nearly IS, 600 a
year. There has, therefore, been sunk
in her sum of about 2l53 for every ton
of her displacement, OF some $685. 900 in
oil, and the expenditure that has been
incurred on the fabric and furniture of
the four royal yachts is not less than
G960,000. We have good grounds for
supposing that it is very considerably
over 81. 000,000 The average expendf
ture per ton Of displacement has besn
more than e200 on a total tonnage of
4,6S3, and the average age of the four
vessels is about 90 years.
That great part of this large sum of
e960. 900 has been wasted becomes tolera-
bly, apparent when we examine into the
relative cost of other ships. The Incon-
slant is large iron and wood steam
frigate launched in 1868, and is there,
fore 81 years old. Her displacement
exceeds that Of all the royal yachts
put together by more than thousand
tons. A man-of-war is not, of course,
decorated and furnished as royal yacht
is. On the other hand, she has much
more wear and tear and contains expens
i've guns and machinery such as find nc
place in yacht. The original cost OF
the =Inconstant, including incidentals
was just over e2S3,Oo0, or under ESQ a
ton. There has since been expended on
her little over e172,000, or say EASE, 00t
in ell. This represents less than cts a
ton, or very little more than one-third
of the cost per ton Of the four royal
yachts. =
The Oldest of our ironclads, the Black
Prince, to take another case, was launched
'"e' and is therefore of approximately
aol1f