The San Francisco call., 1897-02-22
NEWS OF FOREIGN NAvIRS.

The total number of workmen in the British
dockyards at home was %, ,213 on February l.
frstclass cruiser, somewhat similar TO the
Powerful, 45O feet in length and ID $50 tons,
| is TO be built at the Portsmouth dockyard
The French Government has communicate D
with certain English snipbuilders in reference
to the construction OF ships for the French
navy.
The royalty paid by the British Admiralty
Tor the Belleviile water-tube boilers placed in
the Powerful and Terrible amounts TO $26, $50
for each ship.
Sixteen torpedo-boat destroyers for the Span
ish navy have been ordered from J. IE g.
Thomson, Clydebank. They are to be similar
TO the Furor and Terror recently built by that
firm for the British navy.
The Russian Black Sea fleet lies at Sebasto-
pol, with steam up constantly, ready at any
moment for service. 1t consists of the battle
ships Sinope, Catherine II, Twelve Apostles
George Victorious Tschesure and Three Sain is.
besides a numb Der OF unarmored vessels and
torpedo-boats The battle-ships are the newest
in the navy and are said 10 be very efficient,
although none of them are of unusual size.
Contractors in the British navy have troubles
similar TO those of which the Cramps and
others in this country comDlain-that OF Navy
Department dilatorlness aud endless changes
The firms of Earl, Napier and Thames Iron
Works lost heavily on some ship contracts
seven years ago, tie lastnamed firm claiming
to be the loser of $500, 900 on the Blenheim,
Grafton and Theseus. The claim was made
five years ago for extra compensation because
OF neg ect OF the officials, but not until quite
recently has the Admiralty consented to listen
TO the contractors grievances and the chances
of the latter TO recover their claims are said to
be very good.
The naval programme OF Japan, according
TO the Mainichi Shimbun. provides for an ex-
penditure of 2l3, ,100,962 yen Zone yen equal
10 90 cents) be ween now and 1906. OF this
vast sum 126, ,047 ,975 yen is for ships &c 927 :
491 yen for armament and 90, 125 ,496 for i'm
provements in dockyards. The shipbuilding
programme embraces four battle-ships OF
1910 tons each, six irst-class cruisers of
5000 each, three second-class cruisers of 1850
IONS; two third-class cruisers of 5000 tons,
three torpedo gunboats of 1900, one torpedo
depot ship OF 6750 tons, eleven torpedo boat
destroyers and eighty-nine torpedo-boats. If
this plan is carried to completion Japan will
have a feet nine years hence consisting of
si1ty-seven ships, aggregaung 257, 100 tons
displacement, eleven torpedo-boat destroyers
and l15 torpedo-boats In the late war with
NhAho 1oPoA ShpIuEeQ ten SAlps Vi lO,OOO
tons displacement which now. with her fleet
already built, forms q good nucleus for ex-
pansion.
Some OF the French naval vessels are causing
much uneasiness among the navy officers.
The Jeaurreguiberry ana Carnot, recently COM
pleted, are samples of contract and dockyard
work. They are armored ships of about IL, 600
tons. the first being built by contract at La
Seyne. The Carnot was built at the Toulon
dockyard. On the trial trip the oontract-built
ship performed to satisfaction and the changes
and requisite repairs were Insignificant The
Carnot, on the other hand, drew much more
water than intended and it was discovered she
had only breathing space for one-quarter of
the crew she was to carry. The constructors
added superstructure to accommodate the
crew, which resulted in the ship becoming
dangerously top-heavy, so she was taken back
TO Ioulon with the Jeaurreguiberry to be
finally fitted for sea. 1t seems from subsequent
developments that the constructors delayed
work on the latter ship in order to push the
Carnot forward, and the Minister OF Marine
lost patience and relieved three constructors
from duty and turned the work over TO Othprg