New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-10-04
BETTER MONITORS WANTED.
MUCH LARGER VESSELS POSSIBLE
UNDER THE APPROPRIATION.
THE NAVY DEPARTMENT HAS CHANCE TO
REPEAT ITS EXPERIENCE WITH
THE BATTLE-sHIPs.
[Br TELEGRAPH TO THE TRrBUyE.l

fBY TELEGRAPH TO THE TRIBCNE.l
Washington, Oct. 3.-The experience OF the Navy
Department with the battle-ships Maine. Ohio and
Missouri for which the contracts are not yet
signed. although they will unquestionably be exc
cuted in few days. may be repeated in the case
Of the four sngle-turret monitors, the Arkansas.
the Connecticut, the Florida and the Wyoming. for
which bids opened on Saturday. The battle
ships. on mistaken ideas OF economy and In order
to time and labor. were originally mere duph-
Gates of earlier ships with speed OF sixteen knots,
representing type rendered obsolete by the war
with Spain. The excuse OF the Board on Construc-
ton at the time for attempting to perpetuate such
a design chiefly because no better vessel couid
be built out of the appropriation The absurdty OF
building such ships was concluslvey demonstrated
by The Tribune. and as result the Navy Deph't-
ment. before the bids were opened. determined 10
build no battle-ships at all unless the contractors
willing guarantee at least eighteen KNOTS
speed and $500 knots steaming radius WITHIN the
limit of expense authorized by the appropriation
act The three concerns In the United states
capable of building such battle-ships, finding That
II was a OF building good vessels or none, I'M
dertook the guarantee proposed by The Iripuhe ny
charging the ships thousand tons ana the
awards were finally made.
The case Of the four sngle-turret monitors turns
out to be in many respects Identical Congress nm
tied the price Of these vessels by stipuatng that
four should be built and armored for S5O00oO0 ana
the Board on Construction in designing them, win
the exercise OF remarkable caution, concluded tha'
they could carry only single turret WITHIN '"a'
amount of money, and in almost all other respects
great sacrifices to fighting efficiency were MADE 10
provide for vessels that would not cost over $1,000
600 each exclusive OF armor. The displacement
was fixed ut 200 tons. In spite of the knowledge
that another turret could be carried on a displaee-
ment of little more than three hundred tons. The
coal-bunker capacity was shaved down 10 two
hundred tons. and a minimum speed OF eleven
knots on trial trip, equallng about five knots uh-
der cruising conditions, was adopted. BESIDES the
cheapening in cost, an advantage gained from THESE
sacrifices rested in the fact that number OF small
firms not having sufficient capacity TO undertake
battlc-ships could compete for the singIe-turre'
monitors and the Government would thereby Sc
cure the benefit Of considerable competition ana DE
sure Of getting the ships within the appropriations
The Board on Construction canvassed the bids 10
day and made a purely perfunctory recominehda-
ton TO Secretary Long that the vessels be awarded
TO the four lowest bidders. as follows; Lewis
Nixon Elizabethpor y. J., $50 ooo; Newpor ,
News Company. Newport News. Va, $4,000; Bath
Iron Works. Bath Me. SsG2OOO: Union iron "orhs'
The total of these bids So $1,000. leaves sl,5,s,-
900 from the amount appropriated by 'oist ,i tba
The vessels which would apparently ehaoie ~, IN
Government to secure TWO more sucn Vesses VIII
I'm the Limitation Of expense The numDer ol Ia h
tors was however fixed at four IN me Ia" anu .,
question now arises whether II would NOT DE pe.tet
~ Tho NAVY Department pursue course SIM
tIar "a that which proved successful IN the C,N
nf tho latest batte-shps OF calling the successlui
conne,itors together and giving them an oPpo.
tunifv TO nut the 81 .Jfc.Om surplus INFO the iou'
,on,,t;ore vthere il will do the most good !.
The nroposal Of Lewis Nixon was az tie rave ~,
s2ai ton for a , 7o0ton singe-turret monitor ana
,%ot NJ the Union Iron Works at the rate OF 80
.nn The bids of the other TWO companies WtIe "e
,voar those extremes. 1t is known lnat eltlel VI
tho four companies would eagerly enplace .'.1 %
,nr,unitv IN add displacement TO these Nssseis ~.
. 800 Considerably less than $500 ton put ~"
,bie rate well within the nnl' 81 NJ
,,on &, would be possible to install anotner '"e"~
;rcb turref on each of these NesstIs ''"S.i
!I nv ,her Guns weigh $50 tons. The surplus OF
{, KS 900 at $500 would pay Ior tIe ~ ~
ornaee Of the displacement OF each OF the
~, Az tons which would make them iareei tna
r. Wonterey and the Monadnock, whlch were re-
onn+iv cent across the Pacific TO hold Mania am
ooneidorablv larger than the effective Amphi.,,ltr,
Viantoromoh and Terror It would give mem
.haa ,in1ns tho coal-carrying capacity or those
vessels and make them immeasuraply supei''i 40
forr,ida hilitv and value as Werships -.
I|ndar a strained Interpretation or the law mar
INC anpropriaon for the monitors IL Is possipe t., ~
hp1d tbat about 100000 for each vessel ABOVE H.
CONTRACT price must he set aside TOT the pun
~ stores and equipment, although TINS mas HeNI y
baen done in the case of all the other Vesses ou'Lt
Cor the NAVY Even under these circumstances
however II would be possible 10 add over SIX nun.
dred IONS TO each monitor without eHceeuiIe tiIe
appropriation. and in this SIX huhuIeu 'o"s "i'
oiber tv,elve-jnch turret could be secured.
Secretary Long has decided 10 take no actlon OH
the recommen dation Of the Board on Const uc.ion
mill Wednesday at the earliest. ana In tne meah
time he lis likely give some CONSIDERATION u '.ie
facts presented above.