Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1895-10-31

WAsniSdIos, ID. q. Oct. 3O.-In his
annual report Capt. w. Il. samson,
submits estimates aggregating $751;
0si for the next fiscal year. Tue last
YEARS. estimates OF 100000 for the
auxiliary navy In renewed. The wis-
dom Of The departments decision 10
favor OF 13.inch guns for ths new
battleships IL said TO have been con-
clusivsiy demonstrated. No argument
IL needed, II IL stated, In support OF the
statement that n hrst-class baitleship
should carry guns, nj least under
favorable conditions, to pierce the
armor OF an opponent OF equal size.
II In proposed 20 convert oil OF the
six-inch guns In service into rapid.nrs
guns Ne soon as possible. Attention 10
called TO the necessity OF having n re-
serve supply OF guns OF all caliper. No
satisfactory powder has yet been ss-
cured for the thitisen-inch guns, so
their requirement. M TO velocity have
been reduced to 1000 feet per second
with fifteen tons pressure. This fact Ia
believed 10 demo nstraie the Importance
OF developing tho smokeless powder.
Ths experinents 10 far made nj the
torpedo station la this line have result
ed In developing an absolutely uniform
powder, but time must elapps before
It's keeping qualities can be known.
For the naval small a-ms extensive
tests have shown that the bureau'e
experiment In cotton pow dor WA not
succe,sfuI. aud orders will DO placed
with the powder compsn MES In the fu-
ture.
Hydraulic turrnt drugs have been
adopted for nearly ell our SHIPS, basod
on the highly gratifying performance
OF tnOsc on the Monterey. Money 10
asked from Congress to give tho Hart
ford a new battery OF thirleea i've.
Inch rspid.firlng gunr, four six-pound-
ers andtwo landing guns.
Succsss having attended the effort
TO procure eight-inch forged steel shells,
IL IL proposed to develop similar typo
| OF sBmi.sr naor piercing shells Tor each
oaliber, aud n one and three. pou ndtr
| steel shells eau DO produced, II 10 pro-
posed to entirely abandon the use OF
east.iron proIectilss.
During the year 5,l7l tons OF armor,
4,sGl tons being Harveyizsd, were de-
| liyered. That remaining, the most uil-
| foult and tedious to manufacture, will
assureiIy DO delivered by the Carne-
giles February let next, and by the
Bethlehem company the following
July, dependent only upon the speed
with which tho plans are supplied by
the builders.
With theincroa,ed plants under way
ana improved processes OF mapufae.
turing the 1900 tons OF srmor required
| for the new battle ships numbers q and
0 can DO supplied In less than one year
alter receipt OF plaor. provided orders
are received In sufficient amount TO
keep tho shops working full time. as
they were moi last year. Under this
head Captain Sampson points to the
fact that though the number OF ship-
building firms IN this country 10 not
large, the amor plate factories are
little larger, and TO provide again,t the
emergencies OF war, he strongly urge,
that tho authorization OF new sLips bt
regular and continuous.
A strong argument 10 also made
against the proposition to allow ship.
builders 10 contract for supplying ships
with their srmor, on the ground thai
II would tend to break down the armol
workers and place them at the mercy
OF the shipbuildes.
The charge Of unreasonable delay Ia
supplying afmof Is July met by Capt
sam pson, who feviews the magnitude
and difficulties OF the patt undertak
lngs anu ssferts that the enterprise AM
vlgor Of the manufacturers IL worthy
VI praise.
Captain sampson defends the aiop
ton OF the small caliher oil 20 fcs th'