Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1895-02-25
NAVAL MEN ACTIVE.
New Battieships and Torpedo Boats MEAN
Great Deal More Work.

WASHINGTON, Feb. s4-The action Oh
the house in accepting the recommends
lions of Secretary Herbert looking TO the
addition to our navy of four battleships
and II torpedo boats has stirred the de-
portment officials to an unusual degree OF
activity. for 1t means much work for them
during the coming summer. Already they
have begun to outline roughly the main
features of the vessels, and while there can
be no official plans until the board OF
bureau chiefs have been instructed Dy
Secretary Herbert to consider the sup]ec'
It ia already apparent from the expressions
Of the the officers who will have to design
the battleships that they will In generai
be patterned after the Iowa, the largest
and most powerful of our new ships'
which is now rapidly approaching compile
ton at Cramps.
The department has always striven IN
each design to profit by the experience OF
other vessels of like type and to AVOID
lavish copying of models. and while TINS
will be the course pursued in the case OF
the new battleships, it is believed that the
variations from the original model OF the
Iowa will be fewer than is usually the
case
The reason for this belief is that there
has been no very marked novelty OF design
here or abroad within the last two years
In the case of battleships, and any changes
in the Iowa plans are likely to be in mat
tiers of detail generally rather than in the
whole. Probably
The Finest Battleships In the World
are those of the royal sovereign class,
which Great Britain is just putting afloat,
and it is safe to say that if conditions all
mitted our new ships would be on their
lines. But this is scarcely possible for at
least two good reasons.
In the first place such ship would cost
more than the limit fixed by congress and
in the second it could not enter more than
two harbors on our Atlantic coast. The
Iowa draws "a feet of water, while the
Royal Sovereign type draws ~ feet. These
British ships arc of great size, having a
the great Atlantic liners, while the Iowa's
displacement is IL, 4l0 tons.
The naval designers believe from their
experience with the torpedo boats for the
building of which proposals have just
Deen reCeiNcu. tiitu WluI uiiC liOiity "h'Sh
is allotted for the new ships they will be
able to build them somewhat larger than
the Iowa, increasing the length OF beam
without adding to the draft. Material
and labor is cheaper than when the Iowa
was contracted for and there are signs
that the competition among shipbuilders
for these new ships will be much keener
than heretofore, so that more can be accom-
piished with the same allowance of money.
In case it Should thus be possible to in
crease the size of the ships, the ordinance
officers are contemplating addinga heavier
battery to them, using f3-inch guns in
stead Of 12-inch for the main battery, and
considerably increasing the number of
small rapid fire and machine guns which
are reported to have done such great ex-
ecution in the japanese naval fights. Ii
the new process of treating armor comes
up to expectations it is also probable that
thickness of armor on the sides of the
ships will be diminished and the armor
protection extended to cover the ends of
the vessels, the Importance of which was
shown by the experience of the japanese