The Weiser signal. [volume] (Weiser, Idaho) 1890-1904, 1896-04-02

VISION lot one SSd-SOlnS paltleSnlp Oh
about 5000 tons displacement, to cost,
exclusive OF armament and speed pre-
miums, not more than si,000.000. The
details of the construction have been
in the hands OF Chief Constructor Will
son and Engineering Chief Melville. the
famous arctic explorer.
Excepting her armor, the Iowa is a
cunning structural evolution of steel
plates and angles, in all the delusive
lightness of white paint. She Is 800 feet
long and ~ feet wide. drawing "a feet
of water. Her weight is l1.410 tons. 3l10
of which is wisely distributed in the
shape of armor protection varying In
thickness from IA inches along the wa
ter line and sides, 51s and Is around
the guns. 2A and 3 over the vitals-as
the engines, boilers and magazines are
called-to 10 about the lighting position
or coming tower, just above and abaft
the forward large turret.
ARMAMENT.
The Iowa carries but Is guns, but
such guns. Four of them in the two
large turrets peering out through 15-
inch walls of hardened steel, proof
against the sharpest drills, are l2-inch
breech-loading rifles, firing combined
mass of 3400 pounds of tempered steel
From the four smaller turrets. each of
which houses two eight-inch rifles, can
he discharged shells of $50 pounds each,
capable of penetrating eight inches of
steel two miles away. with a possible
range of one mile for every inch OF cal
iber. From any one of the Iowa's five
tubes torpedo can be discharged. bear.
ing l20 pounds of gun cotton. and speed
ing on its errand of demolition at the
rate of 80 miles an hour. No ship. past
or present, could withstand that blow
if fairly struck
Away beneath the water, the protec-
tive deck of steel end many feet of
coal, SO roaring furnaces will develop in
those five ponderous boilers a constant
pressure of l60 pounds to the square
inch. Two separate triple-expansion
engines, one on each shift. will consti-
| tute the motive mechanisms of the ship
while auxiliary engines, for a hundred
purposes. will reduce the tax upon the
| crew and add to the efficiency of the
craft by lifting and lowering the boats
and stores. raising the anchors, load
| ing the coal, discharging the ashes,
| pumping and draining the various COM
| partments, bringing the shot. shell and
| powder from the storerooms and maga-
| zines to the gun stations, and turning
the turrets, and, but for the guiding
| hand, manual labor Is practically need
| less.
The captain no longer stands the
| inspiring center of his officers and an
| animating example of his crew; but is
| housed within the shelter of his con-
ming tower of 10-inch steel. Steel within
| this citadel, and there, upon its curved
walls, are speaking tubes, mechanical
| telegraphs, electric buttons. and a steer
| ing gear, all leading below through
an armored tube on their several mis-
slons of communication and control. a
| pressure of one Of those tiny buttons
will start a mass of steel and powder
from those mighty guns, or, perhaps
let lose a destructive torpedo on silent
| errand of death; or, again, at signal
| the massive machinery will begin tC
| turn, and presently when the great
engines have reached maximum OF
112 revolutions a minute and churn with
the two 16-foot screws, the water aft
with an energy of 1000 horsepower
the great ship. a mass of 11,410 tons
will force herself and an equal bulk OF
| water at the rate of 16 knots an hour
To stand in her way and stop her, then
means to take blow of 100000 foot-ton;
from her murderous ram, before which
the toughest armor must bend lk,
meadow grass in a summer storm.
With her bunkers filled with 1900 ton.
Of coal, she could steam, at a 10-kno
rate. for 81 days and cover distance o
1000 miles, and al full speed, would have
q radius of action of 5000 knots in si'
| davs' time