The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-03-29

The bottle was encased in a gold netting
and from the neck depended a long stream
er of ribbon, on which was painted in
gold: Cramps Shipyard, March rs, 1896"
on the other side of the ribbon, in similar
letters was painted: Launch of United
States Battleship Iowa" on one side OF
the bottle was a silk label on which there
was beautifully painted picture of the
Iowa as she will appear when completed.
1t was with this bottle of champagne
that Miss Drake christened the vessel
and she subsequently bore away with her
its shattered fragments as a souvenir;
A few minutes before / O'Clock, the hur-
ly-burly of sounds that had been arising
from beneath the keel of the vessel ceas-
ed. Then period of comparative silence
and anticipation followed. Henry Cramp,
as he has done on many another similar
occasion, recited his last admondtions to
Miss Drake as to the best means of shat
tering the bottle upon the ship. Then the
peculiar, kissing sound made by a saw cut
ting through wood came up from near the
ground, and, in a brief space, the, Shoe,
piece was cut through and the big hull
started down toward the river
AS it began to move at liza o'clock, Miss
Drake swung the bottle by its streamers,
and, as the glass crashed against the keel
moving above her head, and the cham
payne despatched the side, she exclaimed,
II christen thee, Iowa."
The hull slipped smoothly and gently into
the river, and, as it fioated out on an even
keel the big siren whistle of the Massa-
chusetts was turned loose and made din
that was exceedingly effective, but still
more trying on the ear drums OF every
one in the vicinity. Tugs screeched and
whistled, people cheered, and those on the
christening stand congratulated each other
on the success of the launch.
The men aboard the Iowa let go two
bow anchors when the momentum she
had received in the passage down the ways
. had died away, and brought her up head
down the stream.
After the launch luncheon was served
in the mould loft. At this luncheon a
poem by Maj. S. H. M. Byers of Iowa
was presented to the Messrs. Cramps. It
was entitled, THE Launching of the
Iowa"
There was no speech making, as the
crowd in the room where the lunch was
served was so great that the formalities
had been abandoned. After the luncheon
the Washington party returned to the
capital in their special train.
While the Iowa is larger than the Indi-
ana, her armor and armament will botn
be lighter than those of the latter vessel.
Despite this, when completed, the Iowa
will be the most formidable fighting ma
chine af1oat from her all-around capacity
as an effective ship of war.
After the authorization of the building
of the ship the bureau of construction of
the navy department prepared the plans
and specifications of the vessel, and the
contract for her construction was award
ed to the Cramp company on Feb. IL,
1898, and until she was launched to-day
she was known officially as "sea-goins
battleship No. IL The dimensions of the
ship are as follows: Length on load
water line, $50 feet; extreme breadth, Y
feet 215 inches; moulded depth, 80 feet asa
inches; mean draft, "a feet; displacement
on normal draft, i, 300 tons, and with full
coal supply about Il, 900 tons.
The motive machinery of the Iowa
consists of two vertical-inverted three
cylinder triple expansion engines, actual
ing twin screws, and is to develop II, 900
collective indicated horsepower at 112
revolutions of the screws. The guaran-
teed speed is is knots under the usual
four hour trial conditions, with a pre-
MUM of $4,000 for each one-quarter knot
excess of speed above the contract guar
anty.
The armor protection of the ship con-
sists of water line belt of Harveyized
/ nickel steel IA inches thick on u inches
of wood backing, extending over a length
of 1856 feet amidships, and feet inches
wide tapering below the water line to
inches thick at the lower edge. The ends
of this belt are Joined by athwartship belts
/ of Pinch HarveyiZed nickel steel worked
diagonally from each side to a segment
of a circle in the center corresponding
with the radius of the superlmposed
redoubts or barbette.
At each end of the armored citadel
rises a circular barbette of fifteen-incn
/ Harveyized armor, the after barbette be-
ing eight feet nine inches high and the
! forward one sixteen feet high. These bar
bettes support the main revolving tur-
rets and protect the turning and loading
gear. The main turretS are armOred with
fourteen-nch plates and have an inside
hight of ten feet six inches from the tops