Southwest-sentinel. [volume] (Silver City, N.M.) 1883-189?, 1895-12-31

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~solote. From tho drst rank The
United States fell 30 low IN re-
apect Of naval strength that Il
hardly had any rank az an. But
an awakening came, the result be-.
ing that in March, 1889. congress
passed en- cot authorizing the con.
s%truction Of Che Chicago Atlanta,
Boston and Dolphin. That wna
tho beginning Of the new navy.
Since then forty-fve modern
ships have been built, and when
all under construction or contract
cd for are completed the navy will
number nearly sixty vessels Of all
kinds, and some Of them win be-
distinctively the best in the world
Of their class. In the Columbia
and Minneapolis ne have tho fast
est two cruisers ahoat. Follow
ing these il order Of merit there
are cruisers and gunboats sufficient
to place the commerce Of England
or any other nation at our mercy.
These ships can scour the seas as
the Alabama did during the civil
war, and not q merchantmen ahoat
could escape unless guarded by
some strong warship.
The navy is deficient in battle
ships, but already we have some
ten or twelve boats Of all kinds
available for coast defense, which
would not leave as completely at
the mercy of an enemy attacking
our sesports. There is also one
battleship completed, the Indiana,
which is counted among the bert
ships of its type in existence in
any navy. 1t has two companion
ships the Massachusetts and the
Oregon, which are nearly finished.
But in the Iowa the navy viii
have a still better ship. It be-
longs to what is known as the sea-
going-battleship class. Two 9TH
or ships of this class have been
ordered by congress, but there
viii be some difference in the de-
tails Of their construction.
The Iowa will hvae 1850 tons
displacement engines with 10000
horse power, and a speed OF Is
knots. It viii be armed with four
13-inch. four 8-inch and fourteen.
5-lnch rifles in its main battery,
besides thirty smaller guns. It
win cost about 100000, and it
is recognized that it belongs to a
type of ships which marks the
greatest advance yet made in the
construction Of fighting machines.
There is nothing in any foreign
navy to equal the Iowa. IT, how
ever, would not be available for
use if war were to break out in
the next six months, and It is
doubtful if we would be ready IN
less than a years time.
In respect Of guns it is not ex-
aggeration to say that those with
wich the navy is supplied-and it
is especially true Of those recently
constructed-are equal to the best
Of their class in foreign navies,
and in some respects they are SUI
perior. American engineers have
demonstrated not only that they
can build ships of the very best
class, but also that they can make
armor and guns Of a like grade.
The fact hat Russia win have q
large amount Of armor made in
this country testiies to the esteem
in which that class of American
material is held by one of the
leading powers Of the world.
How are We 70 account for the
fact that such superior work has
been done in constructing the new
navy? Partly It is due to the in
ventive and mechanical genius Of
the people, bat chiefly 70 the ex-
ceptional good training which our
naval officers receive at Annapo-
lis. The London Times has made
the admission that the younger
officers Of the American navy are
better educated and instructed
technically than any other naval
officers IN the world Vice Ad-
miTal William Gore-Jones, Of the
English navy, is credited with the
following remark: "The Ameri-
can naval officer is a skilled me-
.chanic and has the peculiar genius
Of his nation for invention. / re-
gard the United States naval acad-
envy as far and away the best
training school for oncara who