The National tribune., 1898-04-14
TORPEDO BOLTS IND DESTROYERS.
Small Vessels Whose Value Has Not Been
Fully Demonstrated.

Doubtless many people have asked them
| selves continually of late what a torpedo
boat destroyer is. According to the general
| description given by Lieut. j. j. Blandn,
| time OF the explosion, "a tOrpedo-boat de
Stroyer is larger, more strongly built and
| faster than a torpedo boat. She is also
provided with rapid fire guns. She would
attack q torpedo boat with her guns, by
| torpedoeS or by ramming. A torpedo boat
would attack a vessel under cover OF dark
ness, preferably, by steaming past her
within torpedo range eco YARDS and firing
| a torpedo"
1t was intended originally that a torpedo
boat should not go very far from it's base
OF operations to deliver an attack. Either
| it would confine its service to harbor de
Tense, or else keep in the neighborhood OF
the fleet TO which it was attached. Ii might
always remain aflCat or it could lie carried
on the deck OF battleship cruiser, be
ing lowered for service when the latter
came to anchor in distant waters.
For this reason and others the torpedo
boat proper was, and still is, a small and
rather fragile craft And, inasmuch as it
was intended to carry on its work steal
| th.ly, and not enter general engagement,
its launching tubes ard torpedoes were its
only armament at one time.
But after d little while two other styles of
vessels, making use Of the same style of
pr0iectIle, came into existence. One is the
torpedo gunboat and the other the torpedo
| boat destroyer or catcher The gunboat Is
primarily small man of-war, being nearly
or quite as large as a third class cruiser
Torpedo tubes are added to her other
armament, as a secondary or incidental
feature The torpedo gunboat is type of
vessel very rarely heard of, even on the
other side of the Atlantic, and her speed
seldom exceeds 20 knots.
The destroyer or catcher, however is not
only bigger and more seaworthy than the
torpedo boat but she is much swifter. She
carries expulsion tubes and torpedOes and
has also in addition a strong battery of
small -caliber rapid firing guns and ire
mendously powerful engines. The speed
of this class of boat Is rom 80 to 50 knots.
The destroyer usually has well -armOred
coming tower, surmOunted by a search
light. These two features OF this type of
vessel are of the utmost Importance, mas
much as destroyers and catchers are de-
signed TO catch and destroy much smaller
craft. They usually operate under cover
of darkness and also employ the conceal
ment of paint of such a hue as to render
them almost invisible.
This type OF boat is sometimes called a
"sea going torpedo boat" and is really
what her name implies. Her tonnage is
seldom, If ever, less than ECO tons.
Torpedo boats proper show a speed vary
ing from IS to % knots, and are divided
into three classes. A first class boat has a
of about so or 100 tons; second
class, so or 60 tons, while third class tor
pedo boat is scarcely more than launch,
and is usually carried on the deck of a big
ship. The modern cruiser, though, usually
has three or four torpedo tubes of her Own
opening above the water-line, and, there
fore, does not need to carry special boats
to assist in launching her Whiteheads or
HowellS.