The times., 1898-10-02
READY TO Be CHRISTENED
The Battleship Illinois Will
Be Launched Tuesday.
SISTER OF THE ALABAMA
Description of the New vessel
EiEhty-0dd Auxiliary Engines
Main and Secondary Batteries at
Great Height Above the Water
Minimum.

The battleship Illinois will be launched
next Tuesday at noon at the yard of the
Newport News Shipbuilding Company.
This vessel. designed in the bureau of
| construction and repairs, is a sister of the
Alabama, building at Cramps yard Phil
adelphia. and also of the Wisconsin, build
ing at San Francisco by the Union Iron
! Works.
The dimensions of the Illinois are as
| follows: Length on load water line. 1868
| feet; beams, extreme, 72 feet 1-2 inches;
draft on normal displacement of 1l02j
| tons % feet inches; maximum displace-
ment, all ammunition and stores on
board. l2S25 tons; maximum indicated
horsepower (estimated). 10000; probable
speed l6 Ia knots. Normal coal supply.
500 tons; coal supply, loose storage, loo
tons; full bunker capacity, 1,400 10 1,50O
tons. Complement of officers, 40; seamen,
marines, etc. 44s.
The main battery will consist of four
13-inch breech-loading rifles in Hichborn
balanced turrets oval in shape, and
placed in the center line of the vessel.
and fourteen 6-inch rapid-fire guns The
secondary battery will consist of sixteen
6-pounder rapid-fre guns. four 1-pounder
rapid-ire guns, two Colt guns, and two
field guns. She will carry four torpedo
tubes. The 1S-inch guns have an arc of
fire of 1S5 degrees on each side of the
center line. and the 6-inch guns an arc
OF ~ degrees on the broadside, with the
advantage of those on the upper deck of
direct fire ahead and astern. Anv in
jury to or near either of these 6-inch guns
will be confined to its own compartment.
as l-2-inch steel splinter bulkhead
separates each Of these guns from its
neghbor.
Inc armor belt, which extends from
the stem to abaft the after turret, is TO be
10 IL inches thick at the top, and 9l-2
inches thick at the bottom. except at the
forward end, where it will be tapered to
inches at the stem. This belt of armor
viii extend from feet below the normal
ioad line TO l-2 feet above it. and will
maintain the full thickness amidshins he
tween the turrets, and for the distance
occupied by the engines and boilers. Di-
agonal armor y inches thick. connecting
this belt armor and barbettes and ex
tending from the slopes of protective deck
~ toP VI the slde belt, on each side is
worked to give protection from rakinp
ilfe. Abaft the after turret the protec- |
ton will be completed by thickenfng the
protective deck to 4 inches on the stones
with z 81 inches on the fiat On the |
slopes OF this deck forward 1t is inches |
thick and 34 inches ON the fiat The
armor on the 13-inch gun turrets will he |
II inches on the front and Is inches on the
rear and sides; while on the barbettes for
these Uybi
Will be Is inches on the front and 10 |
inches on the rear and sides.
Inc sides of the vessel above the belt
arinor In wake of the 6-inch battery. and
forming the casemate. will be armored |
with IL inches of steel extending be- |
tween the turrets with diagonal armor
OF same thickness at the ends. connecting |
with the barbettes, and worked above the !
iZ-inch diagonal armor below She will |
De protected against the entrance of |
water, in case of injury to the side at the |
water line by cofferdams extending the |
entire length of the vessel on each side |
ana having general width of feet with |
total capacity of about 1880 cubic feet.
for stowage of freproofed corn-pith cell |
lulose.
Independent of the numerous small |
Water-tight pockets or cells forming the |
entire scheme of cofferdams the inner |
bottom and hold, the platforms, splinter |
and berth decks, are divided into between !
2o and 300 water-tight compartments
poth Tor the accommodation of the mo- |
tive power and the stowage of coal pro |
visions, ammunition and other stores.
and also for the preservation of the shin |
IN the event of rupture of the outer skin |
or injury in battle
All these many compartments arc ,ro !
Vlded with pipes connecting with mower
is IuI steam pumps for the purpose of re-
moving any water that may get in them
either from accident or design Arrange
ments are also made for flooding all am
munition rooms in the event of fire on
board the vessel. All these compart
ments, together with all living spaces.
state rooms etc, occupied by the officers
or crew, have special pipes or ducts ar
ranged with view of supplying fresh
air to the occupants, and to make the
temperature of all store rooms even in
the most remote parts of the vessel. com
Portable and healthy. These pipes all
connect with powerful blowers which
draw fresh air by means of ventilators
extending from ten to twenty feet above
the ships deck.
The forward coming tower armor will
be in thickness ten inches, oval in shape,
size in the clear seven by eleven feet,
with an armored tube seven inches thick |
extending down to the protective deck |
to house all wires or other means of in |
terror communication, so that the officer
coming the vessel in action can be in |
constant and safe communication with !
all parts of the vessel. An after con- |
ming or signal tower is also provided, |
having an inside diameter of five feet, |
and thickness of six inches.
The turrets will be operated by electric |
power, also the ammunition hoists, and |
the dynamo and auxiliary blowers for
ventilating purposes.
There will be some eighty odd auxiliary
engines in the vessel, thus adding to the |
efficiency of the ship, in the celebrity and
certainty with which the work can be |
done. The cranes for handling the boats
are operated by steam; also the deck
winches. pumps, windlass, and steering /
gear dhis latter is located beneath the
protective deck, and several feet below
the water line).
The introduction of these auxiliary en-
gines is brought about mainly by the
variety and nature of the work to be |