Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-10-29
A CRUISER LAUNCHED.
baltimore Goes Wild Over the Chris
tening of the Detroit by
THE CONTRACTORS LITTLE GIRL.
A Steel Vessel Which Is Among the Very
Largest of Her Class.
HER ARMAMENT AND HER STEAM POWER

BALTIMORE, Oct 2S.-The United State
steel cruiser No. 10 was launched from tn,
ways of the Columbian Iron Works anc
Dry Dock Company this afternoon. Ii
pursuance of the order of Hon. Benjamin
Tracy, Secretary of the Navy, the boat wa.
christened Detroit by her sponsor, Mis-
Florence n. Malster, the 4h-year-olC
daughter of the President of the company
which is building the cruiser.
The ceremony of putting the boat over
board was attended with success, the De.
troit's birth being witnessed by 5000 per.
sons, including spectators on land and
water. The shapeley steel hull of the
cruiser occupied the undivided attention OF
thousands of eyes, which were riveted
upon her deck from the dock and surround
lug housetops.
Fluttering aloft from temporary masts was
a rainbow of colored bunting decorating the
cruiser from stem to stern post. The ships
in view afforded favorable points for getting
a sight of the cruiser, and their decks were
crowded with friends of the officers, while
aloft the crews were perchance strong out
along the harbor looking down from the
crosstrees.
THE SHIP BEGINS TO MOVE.
At $40 there was a tremendous roar of
voices as the graceful hull began to move,
slowly at first, and then more rapidly, until
she tlOated in the waters of the Patapsco as
gracefully as a swan. At the instant of her
moving the might shout, "There she goes, !"
was echoed from all parts of the water front.
The spar deck of the cruiser was alive with
men and a few women.
The christening was done from gaily
decorated stand under the bow, and little
Florence Malster with her bottle of cham
payne, stood surrounded by her proud father
and Mrs Henrietta Hill, Mrs Margaret
Her and Mrs. Margaret Jones, of Philadel-
phia, Naval Constructor Varney, United
States Navy, who has superintended the
construction of the boat from the time her
keel was laid, and Commander Yates, United
States Navy.
The uproar welcoming the new conner in
the water was deafening. 1t seemed. that
every steam whistle in the vicinity was
cooked and primed for the event, and when
the signal was given by the expectant tugs
they sounded forth in every conceivable
note. Two tugs picked up the Detroit as
she was still and hauled her alongside the
titting-out dock, and the ceremony of launch
ing was over. The Detroit's sister, No 9,
viii follow her in about a month, when it
Is expected she will be named the Mobile.
A DESCRIPTION OF THE CRAFT.
Cruiser No. 10, as the Detroit has gener
ally been designated, is one of triplets, two
Of which are being built at Baltimore and
the third at Boston. They are known as the
2,nOO-ton cruisers, size larger than the
yorktown class They are also to be of
much higher speed, as their machinery is to
develop 5,400 horse power, 900 more than
Was calculated for theConcord and BenninC-
ton, and which should drive them at the
rate Of Is knots per hour. Their length is
% feet; beam, 81 feet; draught, 14I$ feet;
rig, twO-masted scoooner, spreading 6,2S9
square feet of canvas
The normal coal supply for ordinary
service is 200 tons. but the bunker arrange
ment is such that 435 tons can be carried,
which will not only add greatly to her abiI-
lty to keep out an enemy's proiectiles, but
VIII admit of her steaming almost 10, 600
miles at speed of IS knots per hour The
armament Is eight 4-inch and two 6-ineh
rapid IRE breech loading rifles, the first
Of the type that have been de-
signed. The larger caliber guns are
mounted on central pivot carriages,
one forward and the other aft; the
smaller guns are in sponsors, four on each
side. The secondary battery is composed of
ten rapid-fre six-pounbers and three-pound-
ers and revolving cannon. Six torpedo ports
are fitted, but the type of torpedo to be used
has not vet been decided. The motive
power is furnished by two triple expansion
engines of the vertical inverted cylinder di-
rect acting type, built to make 1S5 reyolu-
tlons per minute.