Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1892-05-28

merchant Ludflug ana Ine most formidable
navy for defense. Through the Eighteenth
century the English and French were the
principal fleets; but Louis XVI gave de.
cided superiority TO the navy of France:
and at the period of the Revolutionary
war the naval supremacy OF England was
seriously threatened, Spain, Holland and
Russia, in course Of time, became naval
powers among modern nations. The
United States had in the meantime aug
mented its fleet, and In the war Of 1872. Ia
maintained a glorious struggle; but its
navy was distinguished rather for the
swiftness Of individual ships than for the
number Of vessels
The requirements Of modern naval de-
Tense ana attack are that each nation must
put aHoat a force fitted to its environment
though, w,thai coast defense is the first
essential; and this, beyond the fogs, be-
yond the windy phrases of specially in.
terested corps, is primarily and almost
entirely maratime. For this duty there
must be ready on the outer line. battiaship
and scouting cruisers; then rams, torpedo
vessels and gunbOats; next heavily arm
ored, heavily armamcnted harbor defense
craft, and minor torpedo and submarine
boats; and finally land Notifications, sub.
merged mines and floating distinctions.
But besides this main duty, which nearly
all the great countries entrust entirely to
their navles, other demands are made upon
the service, and there must be other arm
ored cruisers to fight battles on the high
seas, and protected cruisers to destroy an
enemy's commerce and capture his COM
MERGE destroyers, to protect the trade high
ways, and to guard ooaling and reftting
stations. For all these auxiliary duties
except the first, where great gun power.
hardness and Availability are specially
requisite speed is the most important
Characteristic, and as these ships cannot
afford to sacrifice their gun weights nor
run the chance of disablement bv INSULT
cient machinery weights, the two must be
reconclled by putting then ahoat in rela-
lively large dispacements
The two great features of Itay's huge
warships are speed and battery power.
Tie DuiiO and Dandolo have more than
ll,0OO tons displacement, witt eleven
knots speed, carrying % inches Of armor
on their sides, and have each battery OF
four lOl ton Armstrong gung. Even
larger are the Italia and Lepanto, Of
1890 and 1850 tons respectively. with
$4,000 indicated horse power, each fur
nishinR speed of Is knots. They
carry IS inches of armor on their mas
sive towers, within which are mounted
four lO3.ton Armstrong guns, the heavi-
est ordinance afoat in any navy.
Altogether, ltalys navy is remarkably
strong. The Russian Navy consists of two
main fleets, the Black sea and the Baltic.
besides three tiotilas the Siberian. Caspian
and Arai. In the Black Sea feet there
are three l6.knot ships the Catherine II,
Cbetma and Siuope, belred thr ughout
with lSiuch armor, and with I4.inch
armOr on their towers, and armed each
with six 40 ton guns The Baltic fleet
contains tne Peter.the Great, of 9 $40 tons.
with IA knots speed, and four Acton guns.
Ten other effective vessels range t. ween
$500 and 8 400 tons, ana with fl. 7 to
10 inches of aymOr, and Is 10 Is knots
speed Russia mas also number of Tor
pedo boats. Germany navy presents four
vessels having Is inch armor-the Baden.
Baleru Sachseu and Wurtemburg
These are Z, $50 tons Displacement The
largest iron clad in the German Navy is
the hoenig Wilhelm, of s, $50 tons, l42i
knots, - inches OF armor aud Is Alton
guns, Austria has two powerful iron
cads the Castozl and the fegetthoff and
several others. Turkey has the powerful
9OO0-tOn armored Mescedyeh and other
lrOn-clads ana torpedo boats Spain has
the Victoria, an iron clad of ID knots, and
a great steel turret ship, the Relayo, of
8 $50 tons with l8-inch armor on lis
citadel and 1873 on its turrets. twill
steam l6 knots and carries two 50 ton and
two aston guns, and several others.
For the 20 years succeeding the war the
United States built nothing but wooden
ships, except two small vessels of the
Alert class, and the two gunboats Intrepid
and Alarm. Millions were wasted at tin
kerlug the makeshift guns. In March
1855, asserts Jhe then secretary of the
navy, the United States had no vessel of
war which would have kept the sea for one
week against any first rate naval power
aud was dependant uDcn English manu-
factories for the forging of guns, for ar
NOR, ami for secondary batteries. " But
trom 1888 80 Congressional legislation pro-
vided by the construction of a number of
lighting ships, which would at least form
tie nucleus Of new navy. In the ar
incurred class are included one steel battle
snip, the Texas, and two others, the Maine
and one other; five iron monitors, the
PUrltian, Terror, Miantonoman. Amphri
lite and Mona luock. and one steel coast
defender Of : he latest type. In the an
armored class, all steel, are II protected
cruisers the Boston Atlanta, Chicago,
Charleston, Baltimore, Newark. Pbila
aepbia, San Francisco and three others
Five cruisers; the Concord, Bennington and
three others; two gunJoars, are the York
towa and Petrol; one practice cruiser. one
dispatch vessel, the Dolphin; one dynamite
cruiser, the Eesuvius, and one first class
torpedo boat
The Texas is a battle ship of G, 800 tons.
draught Of q feet, inches A belt of
l2-lugh steel armor extends along the
water line in the wake Of the engines.
boiler, and magazines, and is Joined at
each end by transverse shaped ouikhead
s inches thick The redoUbt, turrets and
coming tower are protected by steel armor
l2inches thick. Throughout the ship ok.
tends thick protective deck Of steel. The
main battery consists OF two 12-inch breech-
loading rifles, one In each turret. and of
six inch breech loading rifles. There is a |