Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1892-11-20
AT HAMPTON ROADS.
GIG CRUISERS FOR REVIEW AT THE
COMING NAVAL RENDEZVOUS.
Fleets of French and Other wsr-ships
20 Assemble In Aprii-Admirsi
lie Libran's Movements.

1
rendezvous in Hampton Roads, Va, OF
/ representative warships from nearly
every country in honor Of the Columbian
celebration. Among the French ships
mentioned as likely TO be sent out, says
/ the New York Times, are the Admiral Bad
! din. Breunus, Devastation, Formidable.
/ Hoche. Magenta, Aarceau, Neptune, La
I lanSe. and Tage.
, Tho Admiral Boudin has displacement
/ of II $3.50 tons and an armor thickness OF
/ 16Jx inches. III her main battery sno car
I ries three 75-ton guns. She has speed OF
Is knots.
! soon be ready for service. She has q dis
! placement OF 10 $40 tons and artnor thick
/ ness Of III inches. Her speed is expected
/ to be IS knots. In her main battery are
I three 34-centimeter and ten l6-centimeter
guns.
The Devastation has a displacement of
! 0.i00 tons and maximum armor thick
! ness Of 10 inches. In the main battery are
four Aston guns. four 2S-ton, guns. aud
! sixteen 3-ton guns. The speed OF the De-
! VISITATION Is 1917 knots.
| The Formidable has displacement OF
| II AL tons and a maximum armor thick
] ness of az inches. In the main battery
| are three 75-toD guns and twelve 5-ton
| guns The speed OF the Formidable IS 10
/ knots.
The Hoche has displacement of 1850
tons and maximum armor thickness OF
! IS IL ches. The main battery contains two
52-ton. two 2s-ton, and eighteen 3-ton guns.
| The speed of the Hoche Is fifteen knots.
The Magenta has displacement OF TO-
bsl tons and q maximum Armor thickness
| of IS inches In the main battery. are four
! 52-ton and seventeen 3-ton niles. Her
speed is fifteen knots per hour.
! The Marceau has q displacement or TO-.
/ 5s1 tons and a maximum armor thickness OF
| eighteen inches The main battery contains
four ftty-two-ton and fourteen three-ton
| breech-loauing rifles. The speed OF the
! Marceau is fifteen knots per hour.
| The Neptune has displacement OF H.
| ISL tons and maximum armor thickness or
! eighteen inches. Her main battery contains
| four tfty-two-ton and seventeen two-and-
o. balf-ton breech- loading rifles. The kep-
| tunes speed is fifteen knots per hour.
The Lalande is a protected cruiser OF
| .877 tons displacement and o speed OF 1915
| knots per hour. The main battery con-
| tains two fourteeu-centimeter breech-
! loading rifles.
! The Iage is a protected cruiser of 7,045
tons displacement. and has main bat
| tery containing six fye-ton and ten three
ton breech-loading rifles. The. Iage has
q speed Of nineteen knots per hour.
| TO RIVAL lhB bhiAAoh'
The above fleet, containing, as il does,
| eight enormous battle-ships, Will DO an
| object lesson such as has never been seen
| In American waters. Inc monster frehcn
! battle-ships are intended, IT is said IN
French circles in close touch with the
French Ministry of Marine, TO Offset In
! fighting efficiency anything that the Bill
! fish Admiralty may send across.
| II is stated that the British Admiralty
| has IN view the detailing Of fourteen or
| fifteen varships for the HamptoD-Roads
review. but those IN position 10 know ue,
| clare that England is not prepared TO send
away eight battle-ships that to do so
would require oil her herculean efforts,
| whereas the French, we'll prepared as they
| are and with their battle-ships now either
at Brest or at Toulon, are not only able to
send the above fleet, but can keep on mana
at home as many more battle-shps OF tue
same fghting strength. The British war
| ships are for the most part scattered. Inc
French warships are nearly all IN french
waters.
Rear-Admirai de Libran, at present the
| comuander-in-chiefo of the French forces
| in American waters, IS mentioned as the
most likely commander Of the French meet
next year. Rear-hdmiral de Libran Will
shortly be aYioe-Admiral, aud the ne9rness
| of his promotion entities him 10 the honor
| which will be conceded. Admiral de LIB
ran is at present aboard the French flag
! shin Arethuse, now living in Delaware Bav.
| The consort TO the Arethuse, the gunboat
| Hussard. is just now at Baltimore.
| The Arethuse and Hussard Will mobilize
during the next ten days and together
proceed to Martinique, west indies Inc
| Hussard will remain at Martinique
| throughout the winter. The present
orders of Rear-Admiral dc Libran
direct him to leave Martinique on or about
| the 1st of next January and proceed 10
the West African coast. The Arethuse IS TO
cruise along the African coast Tor at least
sixty days and then cross TO RIO dc ia
NERO. Brazil. From Rio de Janeiro she is
10 cruise leisurely to Montevideo, Bueno9
Ayres. Valparaiso, and, If the Admiral
deems fit, Will go as far north as Callao.
Peru.
The Arethuse must return to the west
| coast of Africa during the fall or 1873, ana
so time her cruising in African waters
az to arrive at brost, France, FEBRUARY 4
| 1894. At Brest the big ship will 60 out OF
commission. and Rear-Admlral de Lloran
will be made a vice-admiral. The present
captain of the Arethuse will, at the same
| time, be made O rear admiral.
ORDERS FOR TIE RoADs.
II is understood that Admiral de Libran
! has no idea that he will make the above
cruise. He expects, on the contrary. on
arriving at Martinique, 10 find orders
awaiting him which Will direct him to pro-
coed some time in March TO Hampton
Roads, Va, and there assemble the
French iron-clads as they arrive from
France. In this event the Aretbuse ana
! Hussard will undoubtedly make an adul-
tion-to the French feet.
Admiral de Ihbran is just now lying OIL
PHILADELPHIA in the Aretbuse. He - IN
terested in the progress of the wire-wound
gun making at Reading. Pa, and Will Visit
/ The guu-plant there before sailing. lie.
GENTLY a number OF french omcers VISITED
tins plant under the guidance OF Lieuten-
( ant de Cloth, Of the French marine ar
tlllerv. now temporarily in this country.
Germany. IL is learned will send out
/ neyt Aprl six warships. Russia will send
out slx or seven ships. Austria WILL SEM
1 AT least two Iialy contemplates send
Inc I'VE ships. Spain will send at least
four ships. Portugal will send over
tine Vasco da Cana. Greece, 10 - de-
clared- will endeavor to send one ship and
Holland two ships. Sweden and Norway
will each send ship. Denmark VIII not
bs represented. Turkey will not be repre-
SHrazil will send az least two ships and
Chile possibly three. From Chile the IS
meralda IS expected. The Esmeraida Is the
vessel for which the United States war
shin Charleston cleared her decks for ac-
ton when entering Acapulco harOOr; Mexl;
90 during the Itata chase. Japan will send
n couple of ships. 1t is doubtful II CHINA
will be represented.
The United States will be represented
nv every available cruiser afloat. II Is for
NEXT April's rendezvous that the Meet IN
der Admiral GherardI has been formed.
This aeet is now on its way from the "a
cifc aud is timed to arrive IN Hampton
Roads by April LIST. The tieet consists Oh
the new cruisers Baltimore. San FRANCISCO,
and Charleston. The Yorktown IS now en
,Otfe from San Francisco to join Admiral
Gherardi The lstter's feet was at san
Jose &c Guatemala last SATURDAY.. Ad-
miral Gherardi is the officer booked to
command next year the combined Amer;
can forces. He is now the senior admiral
OF the navy. NJ.
( The combined naval fleets. after rendez;
( youslng at Hampton Roads, Will procs;ed
3 in company 10 New York harbor. Inc
present indications are that next years
naval review will exceed anything OF us
KIND seen anywhere within the past twenty
! years.
Riding % Camel
[The SPECTATOR
There is something inexpressibly repel-
I ling in the supercitium hists OF Gamer as