New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-04-02
THE COUNTRYS WAR VESSELS.
HOW THEY COMPARE WITH ITALY's FLEET
KING HuMBERr WOULD FIND SOME GOOD FIGHT

ING SHIPS HERE-WHERE HIS MIGHT FAIL
Some Of the statements published yesterday In con-
necon with the possibility of serious trouble between
Italy and the United States gave erroneous loea
of the strength of both the United States ana inc
Italian Navies. Some of these statements wonid give
an impression that few Of the Italian ironciads
could come across the ocean and put the ehuie
American coast under contribution, and that they
could enter Boston and New-York harbors, pass up
the Delaware River and destroy Philadelphia enter
Hampton Roads and lay Norfolk under ransom, ano
run up the Mississippi River and capture new
Orleans and do all of this without any attempt 10
stop them by the United States vessels. or the laying
of submarine mines and torpedoes to check inc PVseo
Of the Italians.
called the middle point OF It's development Dut IL ho'
without effective war-ships. In 1882 TINS Navy unuoi
Secretary Chandler, made new departure anu Oesai
the construction Of four steel ships-tne Cmcaso' DUO
ton Atlanta and Dolphin and these four Vessei'' NOV
in active service, compare favorably WIN uiose Va
similar size attained by foreign naves Inc heAe sep
was the construction Of the Newark, Baltimore ik
town Charleston. Philadelphia Concord, Petrol ana
Remington. All Of these, excepting the BennlngtoI
are now in commission. The Baltimore, philadelphia
Newark San Francisco and, in fact all tine cruisers
hitherto constructed follow closely the mooels useu
abroad They have speed and heavy oateres ior
their class but they limited coal endurance Hill
tied at the most to 5000 miles
In addition to these vessels the reconstructed double
turreted monitors Miantonomoh, Puritan, MonaahooA
Terror and Amphitrite are vessels that could compee
with any iron-cad vessels afoat. The Miantonomon
is at the New-York Navy Yard, and is praeucaiiS
ready TO be put into commission. only ohe vi i'or
turrets however, is equipped with the teninch riheS
hut by pressing forward work the vessel cod DC pun
in complete fighting trim In month Inc ioui oU.o
are I'm various stages toward completion, but IL "ouiu
ct In
NJ their design would make them extremely use1W ior
defensive operations in the event OF war. Inc I'M
teen single turreted monitors, most OF winch arc
the James River near Richmond, might DC 'Ooo ou'
with guns in the of two months t'io' W. '
wouId not be available except for haroor ueienoo
Tho other new vessels built and IN commission
are the dynamite cruiser Vesuvius and the 'orPooo
boats Cushing and Stetto. The torpedo boat AIarii
originally built in 1874, has recently been ren'pou anu
could do effective service In her way.
OF the old navy there are six iron steam vessels
OF various displacements and sixteen wooden veseeh'
While the italian Navy does not contain SO man!
sbins az the Navy Of England that Oh France IL
baC nrobablv some of the most generally efficient
vessels afoat But the serious question In tne
case ~ war with the United States would BE- "hcro
would they get new supplies OF coal inter steaiihs
three or four thousand miles across the Atlanuc !
The National policy of Italy for twenty years mas
hen 10 Obtain great warships, them with monster
So well has she succeeded that she has war vessels
which, in size and tonnage, have few equals. queS-
ton was raised a year ago whether she mad no'
oyerdone the matter in her attempts to surpass o'her
Powers in the size of her vessels but the only real
test of this would be from actual war she mas
either finished or near completion twenty-five
armored ships ten of them being OF modern type
and with a displacement Of 1000 tons or more
each. They have a speed Of about fifteen ana one
half knots and carry the heaviest guns ahoat' her
unarmored navy aAoat Is Of twelve modern cruisers
and ten gunboats with cruisers ana seven gun
boats being built. Two OF her largest and most
nowerful battleshps are the Dandoo and Duilo poth
Of which were built seventeen years ago. and having
a displacement Of about IL 900 tons each Their coal
endurance at a ten1not speed, Is about 3'7oo Knon'
one Of It's most effective vessels, taking into con-
sideratIon the fact that the menacng point Oh an
enemy would be its commerce, Is the Peinone nhe
is a commerce destroyer, vessel built 10 run ana
destroy Int not TO fight. Her battery Is composed OF
torpedoes and rapdhrng guns, the largest peinB Oh
sixinch calbre. she is of $500 tons dsplacemehO'
and has cruising range of $4,000 knots at ten Knot'
an hour. .., uo-
The following tables will give fairly compre-
hsnsive idea OF the fighting force OF each Of the
Naves: s