The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1894-06-08
PEERLESS MINNEAPOLIS
The Cramps Have Constructed An
other Record Breaker.
A AREMARKABLY SUCCESSFUL TRIP.

All on Board Satisfied That on Her on
oiai Trial Trip the New Cruiser VIII
Exceed the Record by Her Sister Ship,
the Columbia.
PHILADELPHIA, June s.-The new United
States cruiser Minneapolis, which is fast
nearing completion ut the shipyard of
William Cramps Sons, returned at o
o'clock last night from her preliminary or
builders trial trip. The big cruiser ac-
quilted herself most creditably, proving
herself the equal in every way. il not the
superior, of her sister ship, the Columbia.
While IL is true that the Minneapolis did
not equal the record of 20 81 knots an hour
made by the Columbia on her official trip,
she did better than did her sister ship on
the preliminary trip of the latter, the
speed of the Minneapolis being 81. rs knots,
while that of the Columbia was but 209S.
This was accomplished in spite of the fact
that the new ship had to hurn anthracite
roal, which Is regarded as Il handicap. AS
n result of this trial it is freely predicted
that the Minneapolis will make at least %
knots on her official trial trip.
AT $50 o'clock on Wednesday morning
the anchor was weighed and Uncle Sans
newest commerce destroyer was ready to
the face of stiff northwest breeze she
steamed slowly and gracefully out to the
Southwest lightship, twcnty-one miles
from the Breakwater. As She passed
line parallel with the lightship Captain
Sargent gave the signal to Chief Engineer
Patterson, to let her go ahead at full
speed. The steam gauge at that time reg
istered 100 pounds TO the inch, and under
r..tulal draugbt. Mr., Patterson gave her
the required power and she headed for
the Northwest lightship, 965 knots away.
With her mammoth engines pounding
away and her triple screws churning the
water in her wake into boiling mass six
or eight feet high, the latest wonder in
naval architecture jumped away to show
what she could do when called upon. So
steady was the ship, even under this great
pressure, that it was difficult for those on
beard to realize that she was being given
her head for the first time. But little
smoke came from her two huge tunnels,
and it was only by looking over the rail
into the rushing waters beneath that an
adequate idea of what she was doing could
be had The wind came over the decks
like a hurricane, and landlubhers and
sailors alike found it task to keep on
their feet i'll the face of it, In almost the
time it takes to tell it the distance be-
tween the lightships was traversed, and
as she passed the ship the register showed
that she was going at the rate of 1878
knots an hour.
Describing long and graceful curve,
the steel racer rounded the Northeast
lig htship and headed for the original
starting point. For more than four hours
the cruiser flew back and forth between
the terminal points of the course until, on
the fourth and last circuit she had
acquired the remarkable speed of 2l70
knots an hour, and it was known that a
new world beater had been built. Then
the vessel was run up the bay to Browns
Shoals, where she came to anchor for the
night.
Yesterday morning the Minneapolis
stenued straight out to sea, distance of
about fifty miles. Then she turned, and
at 10 o clock started back for the Break
water again. Now she was under forced
draught, and the cinders were flying from
her tunnels like hail. The vessel flew
along in the face of spanking breeze
that flung the spray in shower clear over
the bridge. Not man in the party but
was satisfied that she had exceeded 225O
knots an hour, but when she pulled up
again Mt Cape Henlopen Captain Sargent
said sho had only made 2l.75 knots an
hour She had done this, he added, in
water the mean depth of which is sixteen
fathoms, and can do better in deeper
Yuter. He added that the turn had been
made in sixteen minutes, with the helm
at two degrees. The record made by the
Columbia on her preliminary trial was
20. 9S knots, so that the Minneapolis has
beaten it by about three quarters of n
knot In horse power, too, she excels the
Columbia, having developed 20,sO0, while
that of the Columbia Is about $4,000
After passing Cape Henlopen the cruiser
steamed up the Delaware, reaching her
berth at the shipyard at Q o'clock On the
homeward trip she was greeted by a
chorus of footing whistles, and when she
passed the Columbia, lying at League
Island, the crew of the latter, lined up at
the rail, and gave the Minneapolis round
after round of rousing cheers.
The crew which manned the Minneapo-
lis ON her trial trip numbered 4O7 men.
The maximum revolutions of the shafts
were IS to the minute. She burned al
most 400 tons of broken coal, and the
highest steam pressure was 100 pounds to
the inch. The new cruiser will have her
official trial sometime between the lst
and the 10Th of July. probably off the
New England coast.
Edwin II. Cramp, who accompanied the
vessel Oh the trip, Captain Sargent her
commander, Lieutenant Lewis 7 Nixon,
her designer, and Supervising Engineer
Towne. who planned her engines, were
deli GIFTED with the vessels performance.
They unhesitatingly pronounced the Min
neapolis the best ship of her class and the
fastest of her size in the world.