The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-03-13
The Extraordinary Celebrity shown I'm
the Construction of she Kear-
sarge and the Kentucky.
WILL BE LAUNCHED MARCH "a
EACH VESSEL HAS A NORMAL DIS
PLACEMENT OF 1885 TONS,
And Each VIII Carry Batteries of TINS
usual Power, Including Four IS
Inch and Four S-Inch Rifles.
special to the Indianapolis Journal.

| Special to the Indianapolis Journal.
| NEWPORT NEWS, va, March by
dint of industry unparalleled in this coun-
try the Newport News ShipbuiIding and
Dry Dock Company will launch the finest
of our new battle ships on the 24tr of the
| present month, not quite twenty months
| from the day the keels were laid. The ships
! could have been launched two months ago,
| but, to facilitate their final completion,
they have been kept purposely on the
| stocks till a magnificent new crane of great
| capacity could be erected to handle the ar
NOR and other heavy weights yet to so into
the vessels. In the matters of equipment.
| the works of this yard are second to none
| in the country, while the possession OF q
| fine dry dock and the wide application of
| electricity put them considerably In the
| lead.
The dual event of two ships of such mag
nitude being launched on the same day will
/ mark an era in the history OF our new navy
| while each ship in itself will be the heaviest
| mass of the kind ever moved from keel
blocks to water in this country. Five thou
sand tons of steel-the equivalent of a
| couple of blocks of good-sized kouses--is
| tremendous mass to transfer under any cir
| cumstances, but to do so without the slight
| est strain to the structure is something
| calling for skill and careful forethought and
| yet, that is the sum Of only one of these
| unfinished ships.
| The ships were provided for by act of
| Congress, approved March 2, 1895, and on
! the I'd of the following January their con-
| struction was awarded to the Newport
| News Company for the remarkably reason
able individual cootract price of only $2 ESQ.,
| CO, and that, too, without the usual induce
| ment of a bonus for excess Of speed. That
| the vessels will be equal to all the requires
| ments goes without question, while at the
| same time their moderate cost has opened
| the country's eyes to the charges put upon
| their predecessors.
DIMENSIONS AND ARMAMENT.
| The Kearsarge and the Kentucky are
navigable fortresses Of a formidable type,
and in action would render a good account
of themselves in behalf of Old Glory. The
dimensions Of one apply equally to the
| other. and their general data are:
| Length on load water line, 1858 feet; BEAM
extreme, Y feet inches; draft, on normal
displacement, % feet inches; normal dis
placement, 11,525 tons; maximum displace-
ment, all ammunition and stores on board,
IL, 1926 tons; maximum indicated horsepower
(estimated), 10000; maximum speed required
by contract, 16 knots; normal coal supply.
41O tons; maximum coal supply, bunkers
full. 1910 tons; complement, officers, sea-
men and marines, 511.
The strictly novel characteristic of these
ships is their exceedingly moderate draft
of water, but twenty-five feet when full
laden, by which they may enter practically
any harbor Of Importance along our coast
line. something denied to most of the arm
ored cruisers of all other nations. The of
fensive advantage possessed in this single
feature cannot be overvalued.
The power to meet an enemy will be CEN
tered effectively in the twenty-five guns
forming the main and auxiliary batteries,
and these will consist of: Main battery,
four 13-inch breech-loading rifles, four E.
inch breech-loading rifles. The auxiliary
battery win consist of fourteen 5-inch rapid
fire rifles. For the purposes of resisting
torpedo-boat attack and enfilading the opesi
decks or unprotected gun stations Of an
enemy, twenty 6-pounders, six 1-pounders
and four Gatlings will keep UP destructive
mitara1lleuse, and woe to the venturesoTne
small craft that exposes itself to the fury
of that steel-clad blast. -Four torpedo
tubes, two on each side an1idships will
complete the offensive phase of the ships.
The thirteen-inch and the eight-inch guns
are housed in two two-storied turrets. The
eight-inch guns are in the upper half. which
is fixed rigidIy to the lower half. The
whole structure has total swing of 40
degrees, and all four guns are pointed in
the same general direction and swing from
| side to side by the one great turning gear
| engaging the lower half. The design has
been seriously questioned here and abroad.
and there is a prevailing opinion that the
experiment will never be repeated.
The eight-inch guns are sheltered hnhfmd
walls generally nine inches thick, but aug
mented to eleven inches at the front. The
thirteen-inch guns are covered by fifteen
inches Of hardened steel also, except at The
front, where there is an added thickness
of two inches To pierce the walls OF the
lower turret a shot would have to strike
them from distance Of over $500 yards
with all the pent-up er ergy equal to bear
ing that.shot quite thirteen miles,
The auxiliary battery OF fourteen fve-
inch rapid-fire guns, IS mounted In the SUI
perstructure on the main deck This su
perstructure, where it faces an enemy, il
composed OF hardened steel six inches thick.
and no explosive six-inch shell could ever
get through that bulwark. Each gun sta
ton is separated from the adjoining gun bv
a two-inch wall of steel, that the effect
Of penetrating shot and bursting shell may
be localized. Each Of these guns has 4
service rate of speed of quite six aimed
shots a minute. and each shot weighs
fifty pounds, little arithmetic tells the
story.
The six-pounders are mounted In part on
the berth deck forward and aft. The rest OF
them are placed in the superstructure above
the five-iDeh guns. where they have a very
desirable range OF fire. The one-pounaers
and the Gatlings are placed on the br.cges
and up in the military tops.
To feed all these guns each ship win carry
500 tons Of ammnnition-enough to welcorno
an enemy with exceeding warmth.
PROTECTION AND POWER
The water-line region Of the sides VIII be
protected from attack by a broad band 81
ls1z-inch armor, running along The sides.
anidships for distance OF I74 feet. ana
tapers thence to inches at he stem. Thla
belt is 7ih feet wide. and under normal cen
ditions only 3la feet win be above tie water
line At the extgernitles If the thickest
part athwartship bulkheads turn labsard
and end against the narbettes. or heavy