The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1898-09-09
CONTRACTS FOR VESSELS
The Awards Are Recommend
ed by the Naval Board.
A UNANIMOUS DECISION
Bidders Agree TO Abide by Any
Reasonable Changes I'm the Mat
ter of Increased Speed Require
ment-Who the Successful Conn
Petftors Are-Torpedo Boat Bids.

The naval board on construction at a
meeting yesterday agreed unanimously to
recommend TO the Secretary of the Navy
that contracts for the construction of
the three battleships authorized at the
last session of Congress be awarded to
the Cramps, of Philadelphia; the Union
Iron Works. of San Francisco. and the
Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock
Company, of Virginia, each concern to
get one ship.
The board also agreed to recommend
changes in the plans of the vessels so
that the speed requirement will be more
than eighteen knots. Assurances have
already been received from the three ship
building firms that they will abide by any
reasonable changes in the plans submit
ted by them in order to secure the con-
tracts.
This action of the board disposes of the
embarrassment experienced by the Navy
Department in deciding to change the
plans for the battleships after bHs had
been submitted, so as 10 provide for in
creased speed. According TO the plans
agreed upon by the construction board,
the ships must show speed development
of not less than a fraction over eighteen
knots.
The actual requirements will probably
be about 1873 knots. Each ship must
have an indicated horsepower of 16,oOO,
coal capacity of 2,000 tons and a steaming
radius of ten thousand knots at ten
knots an hour.
The plans agreed on by the board are
practically those submitted by the
Cramps. which provided for tonnage of
1850 and an increase in length over the
plans for the sixteen and seventeen-knot
ships originally contemplated, of about
sixteen feet.
The plans presented by the Newport
News Company for an eighteen-knot
vessel provided for a displacement of
u, loo tons and a lengthening by twelve
feet while the Union Iron Works PRO-
posed 10 build a ship of l2.261 .0Is ais
placement with twenty feet added 10 The
Tenth. After considering all of these plans
the board of construction decided on plans
of its own. but similar 10 those of the
Cramps.
The type of vessel contemplated is con-
sidered by naval experts to be the ideal
ship of its size, and the board will rec
ommend that battleships authorized in
the future be constructed on the same
general plans. Some changes were made
in the armament originally designed
which will result in greatly increasing
the efficiency of the vessels for fighting
purposes.
1t was said yesterday that the reports
of controversy among the members Of
the board were much exaggerated, and
that the unanimous agreement indicated
how thoroughly in accord the board was
as to the kind of ship that should he con-
structed.
The board also agreed on the recon-
mendations to be made concerning the
award of contracts for building the tor
redo boats and torpedo boat destroyers,
authorized at the last session of Con-
gress
The bidders favored by the board and
who will undoubtedly be awarded con-
tracts are the Maryland Steel Company,
the Bath Iron Works, John r. Trigg. of
Richmond, Va; Harlan & Hollingsworth,
of Wilmington. Del; Nefe * Levy Com
pany. of Philadelphia; the Union Iron
Works. of San Francisco: the Fall River
Engine Company. Charles Lawley &
Sons, Boston. and the Herreshoffs. of
Bristol. r. /. It will be recommended
that some of these concerns be awarded
the work of constructing both destroyers
and torpedo boats.
The exact division of the awards recon-
mended cannot be ascertained- In decid-
ing to recommend an award TO the HERES
hoffs the board was influenced by affida-
Wits furnished by that firm that the bids
had been sealed and started for Wash
ington in plenty of time, but that the
messenger was delayed by a wreck.
In class B, or bids submitted on plans
prepared by the bidders, the board on
construction found that several of those
who entered into the competition had
merely submitted the Government plans,
with some features of construction, not
absolutely necessary. eliminated.
Nearly all of these were rejected. Some
of the bidders had made only slight
changes in the Government plans, and in
cases where the terms We're reasonable
these were included in the recommends
ton concerning awards on the condition
however, that suggestions made by the
board should be conformed to.