Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-10-29
OUR NEW WAR SHIP
Which Might Be Used to Induce
Chile to Make ReparatiOn.
THE FORMIDABLE MIANTONOMOH.
She Could Make the Voyage Safely and
With Her 10-Inch Guns
PRACTICALLY ,DEMOLIsH VALPARAISO

|
naval and Administration circles as over tn
assault on our sailors at Valparaiso. Tha
| the Administration is in earnest is evinceC
by the peremptory instructions cabled t,
Minister Egan on Friday evening last.
Naval officers express the opinion that
strong feet of war vessels at Valparais
would materially expedite a settlement o
the affair. The spirit which the Chilean
usually display toward the United State
and the representatives of the United
States Is one that can be subdued only b,
fear. Fortunately, Congress will assemble
six weeks from tomorrow. By that dat,
we shall have four cruisers at Valparaiso
and, if necessary, the number can be ma
terially increased.
This being done, Chile must either come
to terms or our fleet will be ordered to shell
the city of Valparaiso. 1t is quite proba
BILE, if so extreme a course as this were nee
essary, that the monitor Miantonomoh
would be quickly dispatched to and kept al
the scene of trouble until the battle ships
were completed. The MiSntonomoh will
stand alone as the most formidable fighting
ship we have in our navy.
THE FORMIDABLE MIANToNoMoH.
Although built for home protection, naval
officers generally consider her available fol
offensive purposes, and in view of the ser.
ious turn the Chilean affair has taken look
upon her completion as quite timely With
this formidable fighting ship in the harbor
of Valparaiso the United States would be
in better position to press its demand for
justice than with all the cruisers we pos
ha
could not destroy her, while she could lie
off at distance of five miles or more and
practically destroy the town with her 10
inch guns The emergency would be a
great one that would induce Secretary
Tracy to send this vessel out of home waters,
for he looks upon the monitor as purely a
coast defense vessel and unsuitable for fight
ing at sea.
This is acknowledged by most experts to
be true, for her low free board brings her
guns so close to the water that it would be
impossible to fire them with any degree of
accuracy during heavy sea, but this argu-
ment would not hold good so far as her SER
vice in Valparaiso harbor is concerned.
There she could lie at anchor and fire her
guns to the same advantage as in New York
harbor.
The chief objection would be in sending
her on so long voyage, but the Secretary
is convinced that this is entirely feasible.
There are many officers, advocates of the
monitor type, who would be perfectly will
ing to guarantee her safe arrival at VAL
paraiso, and in the absence of other power
full ships would urge such course if the
occasion should arise.
HER VOYAGE WOULD BE A SLOW ONE.
Her voyage there would be necessarily
eli Tnf0 al
faster than 1015 knots an hour and her coal
capacity is limited to a six days voyage,
though this could be increased by storing
coal in bags and placing them on deck. Ar
rangements could also be made to coal her
from colliers at different points en- route.
Even with the ordinary cruiser this would
be necessary, for in time of hostilities the
laws would prevent our putting
into any foreign harbors fer coal, and, as
everybody knows, we have no coaling sta
tions of our own in foreign parts a convoy
would doubtless be necessary for a part of
the voyage, but the sense of security that
would follow her presence at Valparaiso
would justify sending her there in the event
of trouble
Unless Chile can find some country to
assist her in Immediately increasing her
naval establishment the United States
would have no occasion to hesitate in max
ing naval demonstration, even with our
present fleet of cruising vessels. In her
present crippled condition, as a result of
the recent revolution, Chile is in no condition
to cope with the naval forces we could send.
there within the next 80 days. With proper
enterprise on the part of the administration
there would be nothing to prevent con-
of fleet of at least dozen mod
ern cruisers and gunboats in the South
Pacific, not to mention transports and other
vessels that Yankee ingenuity
could promptly muster into service.
The Philadelphia, Kearsarge and Con-
cord, comprising Rear Admiral Gherardi's
squadron; the Chicago, Atlanta and Ben
nington, of Admiral Walkers squadron;
the Newark, fitted out at Boston for the
South Atlantic, and the Petrol, at New
York, could al, if the emergency demanded,
be sent from the home station to Valparaiso
within so days. These with the Baltimore.
already at Valparaiso, the San Francisco, at
Callao, the Boston and Yorktown, en- route
to Valparaiso, the Yantic, en- route to Mon
tevideo, and the Thetis, Ranger and Mo-
hican, at San Francisco, would give fleet
are modern except the last four, and the
majority of them are superior to the best
ships in the Chilean navy, with the excep-
Jon of the Esmeralda, which compares fay-
orably with the Baltimore.
STRONG WHERE WE ARE WEAK.
In one respect, however, the Chilean navy
s strong where We are weak, and that is in
,orpedoes and torpedo boats Besides the
Almirante Condell and Almirante Lynch.
he two steel torpedo gunboats of 756 tons
each, Chile has eleven first class torpedo
boats similar to our little Gushing. It is
hero N unr11d hora +ha
,ause to fear, for, being without torpedo |
lets, they have no protection against these
ieadly weapons except rapid fire guns that
must do their work well to prevent serious
lamage from this source.
In addition to the torpedo vessels the |
chilean navy comprises three armored and |
even unarmored vessels. Of the former |
lass the Almirante Cochrane is an iron yes- |
el of 8, 800 tons built in 1875. She has an |
Irmor betting of 9 inches and battery pro. |
ection of inches. She carries four 2-inch |
md two 7-inch Armstrong breech loading |
1ties and IL rapid fire guns. The most |
ormidabie armored vessel on the Chilean
hip list is the Captain Prat, a steel sheatbed |
nd copper vessel of $500 tons, now in pro- |
ess of construction in France. This craft |
S of similar type to the cruiser Maine
uilding at New York, and when completed
vill be the most powerful vessel thew have
'he is heavily armored and carries her four
0-inch guns in barbettes. She is designed
or speed 'of 19 knots. The Huascar, an
800 ton armored cruiser, carries two 10
nch muzzle loading guns and some obsolete
feapons of smaller caliber.
THE UNARMoRED CLASS.
The unarmored class consists of the Ab-
40, 1850 ton corvette vessel, carving
ne 20 and four 40-pounder Armstrong
uns; the Chacabuco, modern vessel Of
100 tons carrying three S-inch, two 90