Kansas City journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1897-1928, 1898-03-15

board passed with the sale to the United
States. The ammunition is not all of the
kind in use by the United States navy, SO
that the supply of ammunition is a neces-
sary adjunct to the new ships.
The other ship has been launched, but it
will take some time to make her ready for
: sea. Mr. Laine believes. however, that
there will be no difficulty in bringing her
over Immediately If it is desired to make
. the move without delay, as the hull of the
ship is so well along that she could be
towed, and her own sail power utilized for
the trip across.
The two Brazilian vessels will be ex-
tremely useful additions to the United
States navy in either war or peace. in the
opinion of Secretary Long. They are steel
sheathed and coppered, with twin screws.
and will be the first of the cruisers in our
navy to embody that most useful feature
of naval construction, sheathing, for which
Chief Constructor Hichborn has worked
earnestly for many years past. He finally
succeeded in having some of the smaller
gunboats constructed on this principle. The
AmaZonas is rated at $500 tons displace-
ment, with an indicated horsepower under
natural draught of 1900, which is calcu-
lated to develop twenty knots speed. Thus.
while the ship is about the size of the
Charleston. she is much faster Her arm
ament is also much more formidable. not
so much in caliber. for the main battery
is made up of six six-inch guns, but these
guns, as well as the four seven-inch guns,
are Of what is known as fifty calibers
length, giving them an unusual range and
power. In addition to this, they have ten
six-pounder quick-fring guns, four one
Founders, four Maxim machine guns, and
fei ha frIh
are three in number. The coal capacity is
$50 tons. giving her an effective steaming
radius of 5000 knots. most valuable feat
ure, inasmuch as it would enable the ship
to cross and re-cross the Atlantic without
coaling. Such a vessel used as a commerce
destroyer would be vastly more effective
than what appeared to be more powerful
craft, because of their ability to get along
on long cruises without touching in at
neutral ports to coal. and thus exposing
themselves to capture -
The cruisers carry no armor. in the or
dinary sense, but their machinery Is pro-
tected from the fire of guns by an arched
steel deck Just below the water line vary
ing in thickness from 1.2 to 35 inches, The
battery has an unusual train. being ar
ranged to fire three ahead and three astern
of the principal guns 49,,
A dangerous deficiency in the engineer
branch of the navy has been brought
strikingly to light in the fact that it is
scarcely possible to secure a staff of en-
gineer officers to bring back to the United
= States any+of the ships purchased abroad.
A short time ago. when orders were given
to rush the work of putting the cruiser
Chicago in shape for active service, the
engineer in chief proposed that he would
have the ship ready in three months i'm
stead Of six. as estimated. To do this he
would work forces day and, night and to
Keep them at the work he would place
an engineer officer aboard the Ship to
stay there day and night. Passed Assist
ant Engineer Dixon was chosen for the
work, but he had not been employed more
than week before 1t was found necessary
to detach him in order to find an engineer
officer to act IS member of the board
appointed TO examine auxiliary cruisers
This state of affairs has been brought to
the attention of the house naval commit
tee, but so far. 1t is feared. without
meeting that degree Of success which
was hoped for in the shape of an amend
ment increasing the number of engineer
officers in the service.
Colonel Haywood, the commandant of
the marine corps, to-day made five de-
tails of marines for cruisers now being
. repaired or ready for commission There
are two drafts of forty-ffve each for the
Newark at Norfolk, and two of thirty
each for the Columbia and Minneapolis
at League island.
Senator Proctor visited the White House
and uptown departments to-day. and his
calls excited a good deal of interest. He
spent half an hour first with Secretary
Alger, explaining, 1t is believed, the mill
,tary situation in. Cuba, and afterwards
had conference with Judge Day, assist
ant secretary of state. Then he went to
the White House and was closeted with
the president for two hours and a quar-
ter. When he emerged from the room he
courteously declined to speak regarding
the nature of the information he had
communicated to the president
n. F. Palmer, representing the Quintard
Iron works, of New York. which built the
engines Of the Maine, was at the navy
department to-day in consultation with
the officials respecting the conversion of
vessels Of the merchant marine into war
crafts. While not a shipbuilding firm, the
Quintard works have done a great deal
OF work on engines and interior fittings
OF ships, which is just the class of work
that would be required in the case of the
auxiliary cruisers