The San Francisco call., 1897-07-26

1415-iuch gun viii be removed and redoubt,
lightly armored and 10 mold four 674-inch
quick-frers, will be substituted.
The Spanish srmored cruiser Cardinal
Jlmenez de Cisneros, lately lau nched at Fer
rol. is :he fifth vessel OF that type completed
since 1890. She is eight feet longer than the
lnfanta Maria Teresa, being BAT feet on the
water-line and 1000 tons displacement The
horsepower is 900 and the speed 20 knots
Her armor consists of belt IL inches thick.
tspering to inches at the ends. and the main
armament is composed of two 11-tRch and The
o1s-inch quiek-hrers of the Houtario pattern.
Of the twenty-one British battle-ships in the
recent review al Spithesd fourteen were built
since the Jubilee review in 1887 The seven
bstte-ships built more than ten years ago
were the Alexand-a, Devastation, Thunderer,
lniexible. Dreadnaught, Colossus and Co..
hngwood. So rapid and great have been the
changes in ships, machinery, armor and guns
IN this period that doubts are expressed by
experts il such ships as the Inhexible and the
Alexandra can now be included N the list OF
efficient battle-ships.
The French Minister of Marine is said to be
about 10 form an establishment OF a military
corps OF workmeu in The srseaais- In time of
war the mobilization OF these men would take
away all those employed in the actual build
ing OF waEships. and, in addition, al those
working in the inland naval establishments
whose age renders them fit 20 be included in
the mobilization As this would practically
result In the sIoppage OF Work in the DOCK
yards and other naval establishment IS il is
difficult to discern just where the advantage
comes in 10 the Government
The excessive vibrations OF torpedo-boats,
large and small, when going ct high rate OF
speed, have hitherto been very serious in
convenience 10 the people on board aad also
Injurious 10 the hull and machinery Laird
Brothers of Blrkenhead who have built quite
q number OF desiroyeIs, believe they have
overcome ;he difficulty and are making the
boats nabitsble and lenger-lived. IN expert
ments carried on with the Quail torpede-boat 1
destroyer two balanced weights, aggregatlng
$40 pounds, were fitted TO the high-pressure
Crankweb, and two weights OF 64o pound col
lectively were attached 10 the Iow-pressure
crankweos. The engines were run at various
speeds, and al $50 revolutions the vibrations
were only one-half OF what they were before
the weights were attached.
The longest perlod during which any man
ot-war has been retained in service was that
of the Royal William, built at Chatham In
1870. and not broken up until 1880. She was
origiuslly l00-gun snip, but was cut down
to eighty-iour guns. During her $50 years
e1islenc, she was repaired inn umerab e times
and little. If any. OF the original material
was in her when finally broken up. During
the time of wooden vessels the life OF a ship
of-war was counted as thirty years, while now.
with apparently indestructible material of
construction, the life OF usefulness has been
apparently reduced 10 about fifteen years
As a matter of fact, rapid have been the
Improvements il ships-of-war since 1850 that
vessels launched five years ago are now so
nearly obsolete as no longer TO figure as first
class in the essentials. The rodIction OF
wsieT-iube boilers, electricity and the chances
OF succe .siuIly applying the turbine motive
power 10 warships promises, together with
nickel-steel and aluminium, 70 effect slili
greater changes in navies and make The ships
OF today obsolete IN probably less than hslf
q dozen years.