Daily tobacco leaf-chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1890-1895, 1891-04-13
FLEET FIGHTERS.
Our New Cruisers Among the
Mightiest in the World,
And Worthy of the Stars and
Stripes They Garry.

New YORK, April 13.-Tha disposi
ton Of foreign powe.s to occas onal,y
snub the United States because of the
weakness of her navy and the humilia-
ton of not being able to assert herself
when she would most like to, are suih-
ciently aggravating to tempt America )
to wish for boats big enough to blow Up
the too boastful bullies abroad Teen
too, the per odic fri hts that set the fea r
ful trembling when America dares 10
differ with nations of great navies, ,T
when she is involved in disputations
which might terminate in bomba H.
ments of her ports, are apt to stip up il
people busy with the art of peace al
ambition to arm and annihiate all an
tagonists,
Benefited by Mistakes OF Others,
1t is to the credit of Uncle Sam thai
he is able to restrain himself when his
angry passions ise. He is as cute as he
is sef-contained, for while other NJ
tions are busy building naval blundvr5
Uncle Sam ] turning cut from time to
time ships that are splendid, being
made with the knowledge acquired
from the mistakes Of others Secretary
Tracy is gaining for himself in naval
circles a name that VIII last and not
outlive its l0ster. The new navy til
is growing Tandly during his admin
stration is l. t only admired at homo,
but Is looed upon with in Ieasing g.
spect abr,a Cur latest boats are o..
most Ierfect They are well worthy
the proud stars AID stripes they easy,
A review OF our navy wou Il he super
tluous for The boats have leen of,en
and we'll described.
a t,ok Into the Future.
A look into the future ought to G in
teresting. The late plans are for
commenced, slroyers vessel more
dreaded thal any of the lumi ieriny, uu-
manageable foreign monsters which are
more feHCl by their sailors than y
their enemie it is well known that u
great n ajOrity of urOI can boats are IN
seawOrthy, and that an unusual Ieriod Of
calm would he necessary for their sa e
arrival at our shores Even then the
could he telten off by the latest appl-
anCe5 in the modern forts Let us fortity
our ports, and with a few commerce de
stroyers We viii be IA nation to lie nv, id
ed. "Clui er5 No. IL" and NO. ~
will be an ong the mightiest of these
splendid feet fighters.
The contract for the latter calls for
her comp petion in two years, Cruiser
No, II is now being built in Phiadel
phia.
The adoption Of the plans of Cruiser
No. 13' is in the line of the policy Of
Secretary Tracy, who regards this type
as "absolntely without parallel among
the war ships of the world.
1t will be recalled that only few
years ago the people of this country
were made to believe that they must be
satisfied with vessels built III on the
absolute plans of those of the Briti,h
navy and purchased from English de-
signers hut Secretary Tracy adopted Il
different course and has shown to the
world thai The officers of the engineer.
the construction and the line corps of
the navy are as able and progressive in
the matter of designing and superin-
tending war vessels as are any naval eN-
perts in the world; that the American
iron and steel works are capable of
turning out material superior to any
that has ever been imported, and that
the American mechanics stand second
to none i'll their several trades.
Entirely Home Built.
The new cruiser will be, in every re-
81 eCt. hOme-built essel. The de-
signs of her hull stand to the edit of
the bureau of construction, under the
direction and supervisio i of Commodore
Theodore -. Wilson; the designs OF her
boilers AMI engines amp all other ma
chinery are the de elopments of the
bureau of steam engineering, under the
direction and supervision of Commo-
dore George W. Melville. the signs of
her armament ami the manufacture OF
it are to be credited to the bureau Of
ordnance, under the charge of Com
modOre William NJ. Folger: ard the
equipment, fittings, etc, will le done
by the navy department,
Dimensions.
The principal dimensions of the vessel
will lie us foil )ws: Length on mean
load line, 400 feet; extreme breadth, IS
feet q inches; depth III hold from top OF
main deck beams to inner bottom, %
ieet I inches; displacement 1880 tons
The contract viii specify such vessel
to be constructed Of steel, Cf domestic
and t be provided with
and fitted with machinery, engines and
boilers also of domestic manufacture.
WoIr in Sleeps Gothins.
In appearance the vessel viii resemble
as closely as possible an. ordinary mer-
Chantman, be ause her function will be
to destroy the commerce of an enemy.
and to do this successfully she will need
to be enabled to get within ange before
her character discovered. Her sides
Will almost be clear Of the pro ection
which ordinarily appear in warships.
; he will have two short ma,ts for sig
mailing purpOsey, but they will not lie
provided with military tops for mount
ing ma hine guns in them, as this in
itself would d sclosa her character
Armor.
The vital portions of the yessel will
he protected by an arnortd deck four
inches thick on the slopes and two and
a half inches on the fat. The space be-
tween this deck and the gun-deck will
be minutely subdivided into stprerooms
and bunkers Tor coal. In addition to
these "A coger-dam five feet in width
will be worked next to the ships side
for the whole leng, il of the vessel IN
the bunkers this will be filled with
patent fibrous fuel, forming wall FIVE
feet thick against machinegun fire.
which may be utili ,el a. fuel in an
emergency. Forward and abaft the
coal bunkers the Coiier-dam will b.
filed with me sort of water excluding
substance similar to "woodite. IN the
walxa Of the mountings of the four-inch
and the machine guns the ships sides
will be arnUred with fou. and two-inch
steel plates. The two six-inch guns
will lie IN united in the open, pr tected