The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1894-03-09
PRIDE OF THE NAVY
Details of the Builders Trial of
the Battle Ship Indiana.
An Expert Aboard Says "She Maneuv-
cred Like q Yacht and Was as
Steady as Church"

PHILADELPHIA, March S.-The battle
ship Indiana returned to her dock at
Cramps shipyard this afternoon after the
quickest and most successful trial trip of
any vessel ever built by the Cramps. She
left the yard at 9:2O o'clock Tuesday morn
ing, and at 2:20 this afternoon, fifty-four
hours after her departure, the gang plank
was in position and the twenty-five people
on board began to leave her. During the
battle ships absence from the yard the fact
was established by practical test that she
is capable of all her designer Louis Nixon,
claimed for her, and that she is the queen
of the worlds battle ships. Much depended
upon this trial. The Indiana is the first of
Uncle Sans new battle ships to be COM
pleted. She is of a type entirely different
from anything now owned by the United
States government, and is practically an
experiment. The success Of the trial, there
FORE removes load of anxiety from the
minds Of her builders.
The Indiana put to yesterday morn
ing and made three round trips over the
course of fve-fathom banks, twenty miles
off shore from the New Jersey coast These
trips were for the purpose OF seeing how
near the ship could come to her guaranteed
speed of fifteen knots an hour. AS stated
yesterday the first trip was made under
natural draught and was accomplished at
the rate of al knots an hour. The sec
ond, under half-forced draught, she showed
speed OF Is knots, and the third, under
forced draught, was at the rate OF l5.6
knots. The highest horse power developed
was three thousand, which is two thousand
less than her design calls for. Only or
binary cCal was used, and the course over
which the ship was Speeded was cOmpar-
atively shallow; therefore, it is fair to
presume that with prepared coal and over
the deep-water official course off the Mas
sachusettS coast the Indiana will accomplish
1872 knots an hour and win a speed prerIi-
um Of $4,000 for her builders. She was
also found to be superior III her turning
ability. 1t took her five minutes TO turn
through $50 degrees, or, in other words, to
reverse her course, with ten degrees Of
helm angle. Her rudder can be put over TO
50 degrees, and this would enable her to
turn almost within her length. To use the
words Of expert on board: "She man
euvered like yacht, and was as steady as
a church"
A feature of the Indiana much commented
upon by the experts aboard, was the utter
the water with very little apparent effort
and the swell cast by her was scarcely
noticeable as compared by the big cruisers
of the navy. The Indiana has a coal ca
pacfty of 1,SO0 tons. With this she could
steam one-third of the distance around the
world at an average speed of ten knots an
hour. This puts her almost in the same
class with the new cruisers as regards her
travelling ability.
The government was represented during
the Indiana's trial by the Lieutenant George
w Denfeld of the Bureau of Equipment;
Naval Constructor j. H Linnard, of the
Bureau of Construction and Repair. and
Passed Assistant Engineer Warburton, OF
the Bureau of Steam Engineering. All OF
these officials said they thought the ship
acted satisfactorily.