Evening star., 1895-10-18
Vessels to Be Launched Tomorrow
at Newport News.
CONSTRUCTED ON TEE SAME WAYS
Light Draft Boats for Coast and
River Service.
MODERN IMPROVEMENTS

takes place at Newport News, Va, tomor-
Tow morning. The event will be remarka-
BILE as the first instance on record of the
launch on the same day of two naval ves-
sells of this size from single set of ways.
The vessels arc placed tandem fashion" :"
one anead of the other. that the ground
ways ON which the ship which is nearest
the water (the Nashville) is launched are
prolonged under her consort, the Whining
ton. SO that the same set of ways serves
for both ships. Although the vessels are
to be launched en- the same day. there will
be an interval Of an hour or so between
the two launchings, however since it IS
necessary to recoat with tallow the launch
ing ways for the space occupied by the
launch of the Nashville before the Will
mington can be allowed to follow her; and
1t will also be necessary to allow time to
remove the shores and the keel blocks from
under the Wilmington after the Nashville
has been placed III the water.
The arrangement of the vessels in tan
dem" on the same building slip is due to
the fact that the works of the contractors
are installed for constructing ships of the
largest size. and the slip on which these
two vessels have been built is of sufficient
length to accommodate JO0-foot ship,
whereas the Nashville is only 2;3 feet 3 l-2
inches long over all, and the Wilmington
25l feet 10 inches long.
The two vessels to be launched are built
In accordance with an act of Congress ap-
proved March 3. 1893.
Going From Washington.
A large and distinguished party of Off
cials and social lights will leave here this
evening on the specially chartered steamer
Newport News to witness the launch. 1t
will include Secretary Herbert, the Attor-
ney General. Mrs. Harmon and the Misses
Harmon, Assistant Secretary and Mrs.
McAdoo. Mr.. and Mrs. Micou, Capt. and
Mrs. W. 7. Sampson, Paymaster General
and Mrs. Stewart, Engineer-in-chief Mel
Vile, Chief Constructor and Mrs. Hich-
born, Commodore and Mrs. McNair, Col.
and Mrs. Haywood. Capt. and Mrs Har-
rington. Capt. and Mrs. Lemly, Lieut..
Scheutze, Lieut.. Reamey, Representative s
Coombs and Williams. Maj. and Mrs: Mil
ner, Miss Milner, Mr.. and Mrs. James
Weatheriy. Assistant Secretary Curtis. Mr..
Alex. Porter Morse Maj. Biscoe, Mr.. VIM.
c. Brewster of New York, Mr.. and Mrs. j.
X. McCammon. Rev. and Mrs. Mackay
Smith, Mr.. and Mrs. E. ]. Renick. Mr.
Colin Studds, Assistant Attorney General
and Mrs Dickinson, Mr. and Mrs. A. A.
Wilson, Mr.. and Mrs w. L. Chambers,
Mrs Bessie Stewart, Miss Mason, Miss Ty
ler. Mr.. c. B. Orcutt. president Newport
News Shipbuilding Company; Gen. P. H.
Oliver. Mrs. A. NJ. Oliver, Mr.. and Mrs.
See, Mr.. VIM. H. Jaques. Mr.. Woodbury.,
president Norfolk and Washington Steam
ship Company; Col Britton. Capt. John
Callahan. Mr.. ]. E. White. Mr.. F. E.
Southerd. Mr.. E. c. Hamilton. Mr.. L. n.
Finney, Mr.. H. c. Snyder. Mr.. Howell
The party from Delaware to make the
trip from lere will include Mr. Gray (son of
the Senator), Miss Anne Gray, Miss Cooper,
Mrs. Thompson. Miss Black, Miss Wilson,
Miss Mcllvain. Miss Draper and Represent
ative ]. S. Willis.
The party from Tennessee was to have
been composed as follows: MIR. George B.
Guild, mayor of Nashville: Miss Maria
Guild. Miss Maria Reid, Miss George Orr,
Eok.- D~r i W~a-I u f.,tr ton.
A Change of Program.
A telegram was received at the Navy De-
partment this morning from Mr.. Orr at
Nashville stating that William Guild, son
of the mayor of Nashville. had been acci-
dentally shot and killed there last evening.
The sender of the telegram requested that
the sad news be broken to the mayor, who,
with his daughter, was en- route to Wash
ington to join the party going to Newport
News. where the young lady was to chris
ten the gunboat Nashville. The telegram
was forwarded at once to Harper's Ferry
to catch the incoming train. AS Mayor
Guild and Miss Maria Guild are requested
to return to Nashville at once, the plans
for the launch have been somewhat dlSar
ranged, and another young lady will be Sc
lected to christen the Nashville. possibly
Miss Georgia Orr of Nashville who will he
present.
The Nashville.
gunboat, designed for general cruising. In
coast work her moderate draft of water
will enable her TO enter many ports that
most men-of-war are excluded from on ac-
count of their greater draft. She is 22u
feet long on the water line, G33 feet IL
inches long over all, with maximum beam
of IS feet At her normal draft of II feet
her displacement is 1,31 tons. She IS
schooner rigged, with two pole masts, and
has two SmokepipeS; her total coal bunker
capacity is $50 tons.
In small vessels of this class previously
built for the navy the hulls have been built
with raised poop and forecastte, separated
by an open space or well" On the Nash
ville however, the upper deck extends flush
and unbroken from bow to stern, thus al
fording mcst ample berthing and living
quarters for the crew. and removing the
objection often urged against small cruis-
ers-that they are wet and unhabltable IN
bad weather.
Another important feature in the design
of this vessel IS the large amount of coal
she can carry in proportion to her size. and
the especial attention given to providing
her with machinery of the most economical
character. that she will be able to make
long sea passages of equal lengths to those
made by many large cruisers. To this end
she has been provided with two special
types of boilers. BY this means the vessel
will be able to cruise, without recoaling,
for long periods Of time at a moderate
cruising speed, using her economical boil
ers only, whilst still being able. if desired.
to rapidly increase her speed to its extreme
limit by starting fires under her remaining
boilers. No attempt has been made to give
her extreme speed but that provided, four
teen to fifteen knots an hour, Will be amply
sufficient for the duties required of such a
vessel
The main battery consists of eight four
inch, breech-loading, rapid-fire guns. Four
of these guns are on the upper deck, the
remainder on the gun deck. The axis of
the upper deck guns being nineteen feet
above the water line, a remarkable height
for a vessel of this size, it should be posSi-
BILE to use them in the roughest weather.
There are also four siN-pounder and two
one-pounder rapid-fire guns and two Calling
guns. All the arrnor is made of nickel steel.
There is one fixed torpedo tube mounted in
the bow and one search light, placed just
above the pilot house and forward Of the
forcmast.
The Wilmington.
The Wilmington has been built for an en-
tirely different character of service from
that for which the Nashville is intended.
Although in every respect perfectly safe
sea going vessel, the Wilmington and her
sister ship, the Helena, whose launch will
not take place for several weeks, are both
designed especially for river service. It is
frequently necessary to send gunboats on
foreign stations hong distances up rivers to
afford protection to American citizens. To
be able to do So these vessels must of ne
ha nf light 6ra