Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-10-09
A TRAINING VESSEL
10 Be Built for the Use of the Naval
Cadets.
WITH SAILS INSTEAD OF STEAM
Laying Stress Upon the Value of
Seamanship Instruction.
HER BIG SPREAD OF CANVAS
Written for The Evening Star.

Written for The Evening Star
For some years the Naval Academy has
suffered for the want of a properly equip
ped and modern training vessel the little
bancroft being too crowded with features
conn odation of the cadets, and. as a re-
suit, satisfactory work in practical sea-
manship has been severely handicapped
Provision was made by the last regular
session OF Congress for training vessel
to be propelled by steam and sail and to
cost not more than s25O,OoO: but, at the in
stance of the Secretary of the Navy, the
act was modified to read for a sailing YES
sci only, and final provision of sI25ooo
was made for her construction That sum
VIII not build the craft, and the bids which
Will soon be asked for will no doubt be
made upon a basis of only part compile
ton.
The new vessel has number of novel
features, suggested by Chief Constructor
Hichborn, and she is expected to meet the
pressing needs of the academy most ad-
mirably, the superintendent of that insti-
tution being unqualified in his commenda-
ton of the design.
She will be built of steel and sheathed
with wood and coppered that she may have
that independence of dry docks SO char
acteristic of wooden ships.
Her principal dimensions are:
Length on water line. .......... 175 #.
Maximum beam at water line. 81 fl.
Draft, forwari............. Is IT. g in.
Draft, aft. ..:............-....... IL Fl. g la.
Draft, mean.... 16 fit. q In.
Displacement at meant draft. 1 100 tons
There will be a false keel OF wood. which
will take the wear and tear in cases of
grounding or passing over floating matter.
As can be seen. the ship carries no bow
spirit in the usual sense of the word, the
LOT. hai,
where the bowsprit cap would be, the bu-
wark plating rounding over and forming
a sleeve for the jib-b boom BY this arrange
n.ent very clean and pretty stem is Sc
cured, while doing away with the bob
stays and other hamper tending to foul or
break inopportunely.
1t is also purposed to make the lower
masts and lower yards of steel for the sake
The rest of the spars however will be
either of yellow pine or spruce.
Features Of Construction.
The ship will have flush main or spar
deck. which, aside from the advantages Of
structural strength and 'tween-deck space
Will afford most desirable room for hand
ling sail or for open-deck instruction
There Will be accommodations for a cap
tain, ten wardroom officers. two warrant
officers, $50 cadets and a working crew OF
80 bluejackets
liz Sdpldih CdDlIl, Win a spare state
room, will be aft on the gun deck, while
forward, on the same deck, the major part
OF the cadets will swing in hammocks. The
Ward room officers will be aft on the berth
deck, the cadet officers just forward of the
ward room, and the crew of seamen lust
forward of the cadet officers.
The Officers quarters will be handsomely
hnished In mahogany. and the sick bay
sanitary fitness. Everything that can con-
tribute to the reasonable comfort and con-
venience OF officers, cadets and seamen will
be installed wan
such steam as may be needful to run the
Windiass, pumps, ventilating fans, electric
lighting plant and the distilling and the
refrtgerating apparatus besides heating
the ship by steam IL necessary
The wile-opening ports and the blowers
promise supply of fresh air and sunlight
not akin to the old practice ship ConsteIla-
ton and her kind while the system of
electric lights will make study an easy
thing at night or on the darkest days.
Aside from constant tank supply of IS 600
gallons, the distilling plant is equal to the
daily provision Of . 600 gallons of fine pota-
bic water, and the refrigerating arrange
ments will keep fresh for many days the
provender stored away in the cooling
chambers. By the presence Of these few
mechanical facilities the scope Of the craft
is materially widened. and the chance of
visiting European ports on the practice
cruise becomes an assured and much-dasir-
ed accomplishment.
For the purpose of gunnery drill the
ship will carry a main battery of six 4-incn
rapid-fre guns on her gun deck-three in
each broadside, and a secondary force of
four 6-pounders and two 1-pounders on her
spar deck. The lightness of the guns in
both batteries makes them susceptible of
easy harding by the cadets, while afford
ing them all of the practical instruction for
heavier ordnance
The vessel will carry a spread Of quite
1900 square feet Of canvas, which. under
favorable conditions, should guarantee q
speed of fully twelve knots an hour. AS
may be seen. she carries double topsails.
By dividing the weight of canvas in that
way, the strain upon the boys is greatly
reduced. while the method of handling
gives them all Of the practical instruction
EYTENUTa