Kansas City journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1897-1928, 1898-03-02
ORDERED INTO COMMISSION.
Monitor Mianton0mah and Ram ka-
fahdin to Be Ready for Sea
Service March 10.

Washington, March 1.-Orders went out
from the navy department late this after
noon to put the ironclads Miantonomah
and katahdin into commission on the 10th
inst. They are now at the League Island
navy yard, where they have been laid up
for a year or two past. 1t is said at the
department that the purpose of putting
them in commission is to make berths for
the survivors of the Maine now at Key
West waiting on the court of inquiry,
which. without doubt. will have finished
with them by the 10th inst. The Mian-
toromah is q formidable double-turreted
monitor carrying four ten-inch guns. She
Is of $3.50 tons displacement. and. steams
ten and half knots per hour. In addition
10 her main battery, she carries good Sec
ondary battery of rapid fire guns, and her
turrets are clad with eleven and half
inch armor.
The Katahdin, otherwise known as the
Ammen ram, is a freak in naval archi-
lecture, and, although opinions are divid-
ed as to her qualities, there Is little doubt
that her presence in any harbor would
make an enemy anxious. She lies mostly
under water, with turtle-back of steel
varying in thickness from two and a half
inches to six inches, and the theory of
her designer. Admiral Ammen, was that
rectly by a shot from another vessel, and
that any such shot would be harmlessly
DETECTED by the sloping steel deck. In ac-
tion, the coming tower and smokestack
are about all of the ship that would pre-
sent a mark. The former is made of steel
eighteen inches thick. The Katahdin is a
ram, pure and simple, having in the way
of weapons of offense nothing except her
sharp steel beak and a few small rapid
fire guns to keep off boarderS or torpedo
boats. When she was designed her speed
was placed at a very high mark, but she
did not realize expectations, owing to her
peculiar obstructive underwater model.
Her personnel will be as follows:
Captain, Commander Wilde. at present
naval secretary of the lighthouse board,
executive officer. Lieutenant Lowe: navi-
gator, Lieutenant Culver; Chief Engineer
Beig and Ensign Campbell. The two ves-
sells have crews. respectively. of $50 and
ninety men.
Philadelphia, March 1.-The work of pre-
pairing for sea the war vessels now at
League island is progressing rapidly. A
naval officer stated to-day that the only
one TO go into commission Immediately is
the monitor Miantonomah. A large number
of men have been working on her contin-
uously. With the exception of receiving her
coal, she is almost ready for sea. Steam
was gotten up in her boilers to-day in Or
der to test her engines, which were found
10 be In good working order. At present,
she has only a skeleton crew on board. but
a full complement of men is expected to-
morrow from Norfolk. n. Y, and Boston
Work on the ram katahdin is also nearly
completed. She finished coalinE to-day.
The coaling of the cruiser Minneapolis
which was started yesterday, was continu-
ed to-day and will not be completed for a
day or two.
The cruiser Columbia. which has been ly-
ing in the back channel at League island
for some months, was to-day brought out
of her berth and towed up the Delaware
river 10 the League Island dry dock. She
was TO have been docked to-day. but il
was found that the tide was too low to
permit her to enter safely. She will &C
In at high tide tomorrow morning. Hel
bottom will be cleaned and painted, and
some minor repairs will be made.