The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1893-02-23
ANOTHER BRITISH WAR SHIP.
The Royal Arthur Ordered to the
Pacific.

"SAhSs
The British Admiralty has order
ed the Royal Arthur, one of the
swiftest and finest fighting ships in
the British navy, to proceed at once
from England to the Pacific and re-
enforce the British squadron in
those waters. The Admiralty, says
the New York Times, has further or
dered the big ironclad Temeraire to
be despatched with all haste to the
Esquimalt naval station in the Pa
cific. The Royal Arthur on her ar
rival in Pacific waters will take up
the duties of flagship of the station,
relieving the Warspite.
How much bearing the above or
ders have on the Hawaiian revolu-
tion has not been learned. For the
first time, however, in her history,
England, in ordering the Royal Ar
thur and Temeraire to the Pacific,
has raised the squadron in those wa
ters to the proportions of an iron
clad fleet. The Royal Arthur is one
of the ablest fighting vessels of the
large cruiser class possessed by the
British navy. She was launched as
late as 1891, and though originally
called the Centaur, was at the last
moment and by orders of the Queen,
christened the Royal Arthur.
For the past two years it has been
obvious to American naval officers
that Great Britain was gradually
and steadily offsetting by addition
to her squadrons on the east and
west coasts of the United States, all
new vessels of this country, and this
she has been doing by placing in
American waters warships little
stronger, and, if not faster, at least
equal in speed to the new American
vessels. But in sending out from
England the Royal Arthur and
Temeraire the Admiralty has made
an advance which in naval circles at
this port is deemed ominous. The
necessity for such fine fighting ships
in the distant waters of the Pacific
is deemed to be an open admission
of the watchfulness on the part OF
the British Government of the grow
ing strength of the United States.
Ten years ago the British navy was
deemed we'll represented in Amer
lean waters by wooden gunboats.
The Royal Arthur is little small
er than the armored-cruiser Blake
the flagship of the British squadron
on the East coast of the United
States. In displacement she measures
nearly 5000 tons. Her principal di.
mension are: Length, 800 feet; beam,
. 60 feet, and draught % feet inches
The engines of the Royal Arthur are
capable of developing $4,000 horse:
, power, giving to the ship a recorded
/ speed of 1875 knots per hour.
} The battery of the Royal Arthur
consists of one 9.2-inch twenty-five
ton breech-loading-rife mounted
y forward and twelve six-inch rapid
fire guns placed in broadside. In
, addition, there is secondary bat.
terry made up of twelve six-poundel
and five three-pounder rapid-fre
guns and seven machine guns. The
crew numbers 500 men.
At a speed of ten knots per houl
, the Royal Arthur can steam without
recoaling 10000 miles. Her coal
bunkers will hold $50 tons of coal
The commander of the ship will be
Captain w. Forsyth. The Roya
} Arthur will fly the pennant of Real
; Admiral Henry Frederick Stephen
, son, G. B., the new commander-in
! chief of the Pacific squadron.
r The Royal Arthur is at present a
3 Portsmouth, England. She can sal
in the course of fortnight and he
, steaming qualities will readily admi
: of her reaching Honolulu inside O
: forty Days. F. Chronicle.