The San Francisco call., 1898-08-15
NEWS OF FOREIGN NAMES.

The armament of the 6OOO-ton cruisers
 building for Russia will consist of twelve l 6-inch quick f1rers of 45 caliber length; | seventeen 3-inch quick frers of 50 caliber l length, throwing shells of 13 pounds, and six 3-pounder Hotchkiss. The six-inch
 guns will each have 180 rounds of ammu- milton, the 3-inch will have 300 rounds to each gun and S10 rounds are to be the supply for each Hotchkiss gun. The total weight of guns and ammunition Is near ly 3S0 tons.
 The Pactolus, a British cruiser of 2135 tons, 1000 horse power and 20 knot speed, has recently gone through her 90 hours coal consumption trial with unsatisfac- tory results. The ship, in conformity to the peculiar practice in England, was fly ing very light, drawing only IA feet, whereas her load draught Is to be 17 feet With 251 pounds of steam and 16S revolu- tions the engines developed only 3265 horse power against the calculated S0OO. Worst of all the coal consumption aver aged 2.74 pounds per horse power per hour. The ship is fitted with water-tuoe boilers of the Blachynden type, which in this instance were a decided disappoint- ment as to efficiency and moderate eco- nomical coal consumption.
 The AIbatross, torpedo-boat destroyer, was launched at Thorneycroft's yaro July 19 all complete, ready for steaming. The vessel is of 360 tons displacement, 2H feet in length, q feet 3 inches beam ana feet 5 inches mean draught with 80 tons of coal on board. She has three water tube boilers to carry 250 pounds of steam and with 400 revolutions Is calculated 10 develop 5000 horse power and speed or g knots Another boat, named Express was launched at Laird's yard in June ;oN f1 1o1n tod with 77O0 horse power. She is Of the saIne length as the Albatross, but has nine inches more beam and has much nner lines displacing only 300 tons
 The dockyards in Great Britain arc unusually busy and shipbuilding Is being pushed with great activity. The keel or the battleship Formidable was laid ae Portsmouth March 21, and up to July z5 there had already been worked zz00 tons material into the hull, being at the rate of 55O tons per month. At the same yard 2o00 men are working on the battleshlp Canopus.
 The Russian naval programme is. ac- cording to a published statement by Loro Charles Beresford, as follows: One nun dred and seventeen millions dollars IS to be expended during the period of 1SsS- 1904 upon the construction of eight first class battleships, six first-class cruisers, ten second-class cruisers, one submarine transport, one torpedo transport, twenty torpedo-boat destroyers and thirty tor pedo boats. The battleships will all Do of 12 300 tons 36S feet in length. 72 feet inches beam and 26 feet draught ana 10 have a speed of IS knots under natural draught One is being built by the Cramps at a contract cost of $4, ,35S. .000 to be deliV- cred in thirty months; four are being built at the Government yards in Russia, one in France and two are still unass1gn- ed Of the first-class cruisers of 600O tons and 2S knots speed, Cramps are building one, two have been placed in France, two are being built by a Belgian firm at Nicolaieff and builders in Germany have been invited to bid on the remaining large cruiser and one of the 300O-ton cruis- CTS, of which latter nine are still to be as- signed. Six torpedo-boat destroyers of 312 tons are building at the Neroskey works, St. Petersburg, and six of the same size in France: they are all to have speed of 29 knots under natural draught Ger man shipyards have been offered chance to bid on eight boats of $50 tons. Finland Is building four 150-ton torpedo
 boats to steam 29 knots under forced draught and the remainder will be built in Russian yards. The total of this naval programme Is 76 vessels of 199.74 tons. There is quite a number of battleships and cruisers not yet placed and the builders of the Oregon should have an opportunity to compete with Eastern and foreign shipbuilders and furnish vessels to serve as samples of what constitutes efficiency in working and in construction.