Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1891-12-10
The New Cruiser Floated on
the Delaware.
MOST FORMIDABLE SHIP AFLOAT
When Her Armor and Bat
teries Are Completed.
Will Cost S3,0OO.OOO, But She Will Be
One of Mars Most Furious Devotees--
Her Marvellous Coal-carrying Capacity.

from the yard of the Cramp Shipbuilding
Company in the presence of 5000 people,
included among whom were the Secre-
taries of Navy, Treasury and interior de-
President, Mrs. Morton, wife of the Vice
president, United States senators, con-
gressmcn, high naval officials, and repre-
sentative business and professional men
from all parts of the country. Miss Helen
Page, daughter of ]. Seaver Page, secretary
of the Union League Club of New York,
broke the traditional bottle of wine upon
the great steel ram of the cruiser as she
slid from her wooden cradle into the Della
ware river and christened her New York.
President Harrison and the members of
his cabinet were invited to be present. In
vitations were also sent to all the members
of the United States Senate the House of
Representatives. Governor Hill and his
staff and Governor-elect Flower of New
York, Governor Pattison of Pennsylvania,
Mayor Grant and the members of the city
government of New York, Mayor Stuart
and the members of the city govern
ment of Philadelphia. the naval at
taches of foreign governments, navy Off
GERS and prominent citizens ali over the
country. In all about 5000 invitations
were sent out.
After Secretary Tracy, Miss Page and
the balance of the party had taken their
places, Constructor Lewis Nixon began to
snoring that held the cruiser in place was
knocked away, MIR. Nixon gave a warning
call to Miss Page, the great steel hull
trem bled from stem TO stern and then be-
gan to move down the tallowy wavs.
Just as the cruiser started Miss Page
struck the gayly beribboned bottle she
held i'll her hands against the keel that
was slipping by her close above her head,
and as the wine flowed from the broken
bottle she cried out, II christen thee New
York. A shout went up from the crowd
when it saw the cruiser begin to move,
steam whistles shrieked shrilly and hand
kerchiefs, flags and hats were waived.
Faster and faster the vessel rushed down
the smoking ways until with plunge
that sent wave surging over the neigh
boring wharves, the future pride Of the
navy slid into the river. The impetus
shot the cruiser half way across the river,
when two anchors from her bow were let
go and she swung slowly around with the
tide.
After the launch collation. was served
in the mold-reom of the yard
The New York is by far the most i'm
portant vessel yet launched for the new
navy. Every war-ship is compromise
between the conflicting elements of bat
terry, armor, coal endurance and speed
upon given size or displacement. If one
of these elements is increased, either the
size of the ship must be increased or some
one or more of the other elements must bc
sacrificed The New York Is an unusual
ombination of great offensive and defen-
siye power, with great coal endurance and
high speed. Her principal dimensions are
as follows. Length on water line, $50 feet
81 inches; breadth, nodded, GA feet mean
draught, % feet 81 inches; displacement,
$3.50 tons. She is to have maximum
speed of 20 knots per hour and sustained
sea-speed of 1875 knots per hour. Her
bunker capacity will be 500 tons of coal,
and she is to have coal endurance at 10
knots per hour OF 13,000 miles. She will
be manned by 475 officers and men.
Her speed will enable her to escape from
any more powerful armored ship or to
overtake over 95 per cent of all the ships
of the world, either naval or mercantile.
Only the crack Transatlantic liners could
hope to escape from her, and even vessels
Of that class would be in great danger OF
her long-range guns unless they had a
good start at the beginning of the race.
Her coal endurance, more than twice that
of the Baltimore, would enable her to
steam from New York TO the English
channel, fight battle there and return to
New York without recoaling. This is ani
important consideration for navy With
out foreign coaling station anywhere In !
the world The great speed and coal en-
durance of the New York is attained by
rather unusual arrangement of her machi-
merry, adopted by Engineerin-chief Nell
vile, TO give her a combination of highsl
speed and economy of coal consumption at
low speeds. She will be propelled by twin
screws driven by four vertical, inverted, I
direct-acting triple-expansion, three-cylin-S
der engines, arranged in four water-tight
compartments.
Combined with this high speed and coal
endurance are offensive and defensives
qualities not approached in any other
cruiser atioat Her battery will be excep-
IL, ft,1 ,ptst, 81,
ber s-inch guns, IL 4-inch rapid.fire guns,
eight 6-pounder and four 3-pounder rapid
fire guns and four gatlinSs. Two of the
S-inch guns will be mounted in barbette
turret forward, two in a similar turret aft
and one each amidships, giving her the fire
of four 3-inch guns either fore or aft and
five on either broadside. The 4-inch rapid
fire guns will be mounted in sponsors on
the gun-deck-six on either side-the spon-
sons projecting enough to give four of thel
gus Il train direct ahead and four direct
astern. The S-inch guns are % feet and the
4-inch guns l61 feet above the water line. j
lii the Baltimore the only protection
from an enemy's fire is protective deck
inches thick on the slopes and ?! inches
thick on top. In the New York the pro-,
tectiye deck is brought to its highest de- /;
velopment. 1t is feet inches below the,
water line at the sides and rises to foots
above the water line on the centre linel
amidships. There are two complete
courses of plating. having combined
thickness of inches over the machinery,
spaces and q inches fore and aft. The
Slopes amidships will be covered with ami
additional thickness of 3 inches, giving al
total of inches An additional water-line,
protection will be given to tho
machinery spaces by belt of 81
inch armor. On top the protec-,
tive deck will be complete belt,
Of water-excluding material three and
half feet thick. A large part of the.
coal supply will also be carried on this
deck, giving still more protection. Thei
fore and aft barbettes will be 10 inches
thick, and the revolving conical shields
above the guns inches thick. Beneath
the barbettes will be 5 inches of slopingi
armor to the gundeck, and the ammunition
tubes below are also 5 inches thick, The
o-inch guns amidships will be mounted in
Finch barbettes. The sponsons for the
4-inch guns will be of 4-inch armor, and
the 6-pounders will be protected by 2-inch
shields.
The New York will be more than q
match for any vessel Of the cruiser type
| afioat and could contend on equal terms
with many second-rate battle-ships or
coast defence vessels. Three or four such
vessels could harass European navy in
its own waters and compel much of its
| armored strength to remain at home,
leaving the battle-ships and coast defence
vesseis;o defend the scaports of the United
| States. There Is not vessel yet authorized
| that could be repeated with better results