The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1893-06-14
SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHED.
The Big Battleship Massachusetts Ia
Launched Mt Philadelphia Leading Char
acteristies of the Great War Vessel.


The Big Battleship Massachusetts, Ia
Launched at Philadelphia Leading Char
acteristics of the Great War Vessel.
PHILADELPHIA, June 12.--The big
battleship Massachusetts, was success
fally launched from the ship yard at
the Cramps at $3.50 o'clock Saturday
morning, in the presence Of Secretary
of the Navy Herbert, number Of dis
tinguished naval and army officers and
q multitude Of $4,000 people. Miss
Leila Herbert, daughter Of the head Of
the naval department., christened the
vessel with the customary and prettily
decorated bottle of champagne.
The Massachusetts, is the second Of
the three 10, 200-ton battleships which
were authorized to be constructed dur
ing Secretary Tracy's term as head OF
the naval department.. She is the sis
ter ship to the Indiana, recently
launched by the Cramps, and to the
Oregon, now being built at San Fran
cisco, and her leading characteristics
are great battery power and her enor'
mously heavy armor, which is IS inches
thick at the water line.
The redoubts, which project 81 feet
above the main deck and protect the
turning gear Of the turrets. are II
inches thick, as also are the turrets
themselves. There is heavy sloping
steel protective deck, ~ feet below
the water line at the sides, while the
coal bunkers are worked over the belt
deck, and cofferdams Of water exclud-
ing material are placed on the armor
deck, forward and aft.
There Is a powerful ram below. The
armored coming tower is of ten-inch
plates. The military mast has two
tops for rapid fire machine guns, the
ammunition for which is sent to them
inside the masts. Many water tight
compartments aid the defensive
strength of the vessel Admirable as
is the protective strength of the Massa'
chusetts, even more striking If possible
Is her aggressive power. She can throw
at single discharge 1924 pounds OF
projectiles, or more than three tons
with total energy of 100000 foot TONS
The armament will consist of four 12-
inch, eight S-inch and four 6-inch
breech-loading rifles, twenty six
Founders and four one-pounder rapid
firing guns, four Calling guns and six
torpedo tubes. The 13-inch guns are
to be mounted in pairs in two turrets,
one forward and one aft The turrets
are at such height that the guns are
II feet inches above the load water
line, and six feet above the deck, over
which they fire. The guns can be
loaded in any position or horizontal
train, which advantage is possessed by
few il any foreign battle ships, the
largest guns of which can be loaded in
one position only.
As TO speed, the contract require
ment is a sustained average, through
the trial of IS knots. The engines Of
the Massachusetts,, which are to de-
velop 9,0Oo-horse power at the maxi
mum, are of the twin screw vertical,
triple expansion direct acting, inverted
cylinder type, in wster-tight compart-
ments, separated by bulkheads. The
Massachusetts has length of 34s feet,
breadth Of e9K and mean draught
Of "a, giving her displacement Of TO-
200 tons. Her draught Is suited for
some Of the shallower harbors and yet
she can take the sea in all weathers.
The Cramps secured the contract for
the warship October 10, 1890, on bid
Of 81, 8,o20, 900.