Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-08-21
WARSHIPS AT REST
Nearly Every Glass the Brooklyn
Navy Yard.
EARLY DEPARTURE OF THE new YORK
Trial Trip Of the Cruiser Cincin-
natl.
PROGRESS OF THE MAINE

Special Correspondence Of The Evening STAR
NAVY YARD, Brooklyn. August 20, 1894.
At no time for many months has this
navy yard presented such an interesting
field of study to those interested in the
naval progress of the country as at present.
Nearly every class Of vessel in our small,
but hard-worked and efficient, navy is rep
resented here now.
Ships of the navy are arranged In classes
according to size and tonnage for conven-
fence in designating them. OF the first-rate
there are so far only two ships in the navy
in commission, the New York and Column
bia, though several of the battle ships and
big cruisers now building will come under
that class.
The New York, flying the flag of Admiral
Meade, commanding the North Atlantic
station. is lying at the coal dock. She is.
generally speaking. in almost perfect con-
dition, and after a few minor repairs and
a visit to the dry dock to have her hull
cleaned and painted, she will leave the
yard.
1t takes careful work to dock the big
cruiser in the largest dock at this yard, as
the gateway is only few inches wider
than the ship and there is but little water
to spare over the sill of the gate even at
high tide.
Need for Larger Dry Docks.
This need of larger dry docks becomes
more and more urgent the big battle
ships of the Indiana class near completion.
for there is not single government dry
deck where they can be locked.
The one now being slowly built by Con-
tractor ellis at this yard will not be fin
ished at the present rate for two years.
and though the work is far behind 1t is not
being pushed by the contractor.
1t Will be- however, the largest dock in
the country. and will take in the largest
ship in the world and have room to spare.
Still ships increase in size time goes on,
and it may be too small in twenty years.
OF the second rate there are at the yard
new the San Francisco, the Cincinnati and
the Lancaster.
The San Francisco is an unusually finely
finished ship, and she was considered the
trimmest and cleanest ship In the Columbian
naval review last year, but hard service in
the West Indies and Central America has
left its marks on her, though she will
doubtless soon be In as fine form as ever,
after the two months repairs to her en-
gines, hull and battery are completed.
The Cincinnati, which was built and
equipped entirely at this yard. is at last
perfectly ready for her trial trips, as far
as the ship itself goes. but the crew are to
De broken in and the engines made to run
smoothly by a run up the sound and some
practice in Gardeners bay, which lately
seems to have become a regular drill ground
j smooth
clear stretch Of water. with the reefs and
shoals we'll defined that they may be
easily avoided.
The long and tirescme work OF fitting out
an me intricate details OF a man-of-war.
from the pans for the galley cock TO the
port curtains in the captains cabin, Is a
mass OF uresome detail, and 1t is harder
than furnishing house. as everything
must take up as little room as possible and
mt the place for 1t exactly.
Inc Lancaster, which recently went out
OF commission here, after a long China
cruise, Is In the simpson dry dock. being
generally repaired for active service again.
and will be ready for her crew in about
three months. She may lie used as a train
ing ship, but the number of shps in the
navy is small, and. as she Is still a staunch
old craft. she may te employed on service
In .he West Indies. where wooden ships are
cooler for the work and keep their hulls
cleaner under water than the new steel
ships.
Many naval officers .1eprecate the sending
OF old wooden ships to the China station
for IT Is by these representatives that the
chinese and japanese largely judge us, and
few modern cruisers-at least as good
ones as they have themselves would have
a wholesome effect in forming a respe.ttul
opinion of the United States among them
Another representative Of the second
class-the monitor Miantonomoh--is ex-
pected at the yard soon. Though the use
OF this clumsy and unseaworthy type of
vessel Is questioned by many. the two which
completed, and when the contractors de-
liver their side armor 1t will take but few
months to have them ready for service.
The Naval Cadets Cruise.
or the fourth class. the gunboat Ban
croft" row used as a practice ship for the
Naval Academy, is here with half of the
first and second class of line cadets and
sill the engineer cadets.
1t is a short instruction cruise during
which the cadets visit all the principal navy
yards and ship yards on the coast, and re-
ceive detailed instruction in the work 60
ing on there from the officers Of the Ban
croft, who are from the corps of Instructors
at the Naval Academy.
The young cadets are glad to get a chance
to visit New York, and the opportunities
for official sightseeing in the big navy yard,
and for sightseeing of another kind over in
the big city, are excellent, and every hour
of the short time allowed of duty Is spent
ashore.
The quarters for the cadets on the little
gunboat are comfortable indeed. They have
excellent bath rooms and wash rooms
quite contrast to the old "Monongahela"
damned together on poOrly-ventilated
deck IS closely as hammocks could be
swurg, and allowed SO little water for
ashiDg purposes that only the seniors got
fresh water to wash in at all, and where a
bath tub was unknown, and a dip over
beard had to be substituted.
The "Machias' and the "Castine'' are
also Of the gunbCat type or third class. and
after the costly experiment Of cutting them
in two and adding fourteen feet to their
length, because their original plans were de-
fective, they are almost ready for service,
and will soon be put In commission, and
probably sent to the China station, where
their small draft will enable their efficient
use in the shallow rivers and harbors of
China
Cutting Gunboats I'm Two.
The neat work Of cutting these two ships
into two parts. drawing the two parts four
teen feet apart and building in amidships a
new section Of the ship to fill the fourteen
feet was quickly and efficiently done here.
1t was to overcome lack Of stability that
the alterations were made. ~
The Vesuvius, which bears the distinction
of being the only ship Of her kind in the
world-a dynamite cruiser"-is here, and
she Is always an object Of interest to naval
officers who see the possibility In the use
Of her pneumatic guns with their great
shells Of high explosives. yet their general
use does not seem probable at any time
soon. for, though the officers who have
served on the Vesuvius are warm in their
of hor bou