The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-06-12
GREAT SHIPS OF WAR.
The Make Up of a Modern
Battleship.
COMPLEX FLOATING FORTS.
Machines of Destruction That Are
POnderOus and Delicate.

N~hN
Complicated system or Auxiliary Machinery
Tho Extent 10 which Electricity IL Used
on Ronrd-The Armor and Armament. Pro-
JectiIes nnd Powder-POwer OF the Guns
Some Recent ana Interesting Tendencies
In This Branch OF Marine Architecture.
The primary purpose Of a battlcshlp is TO pro.
vide n floating steel fort for tremendous guns.
which are to no used against an enemy in har.
bors or on the high seas. Almost the sole bust.
ness OF n battleship Is to fight, and 1t Is for this
reason that there IL less conflict and compro-
mise between the various elements that enter
into the construction OF such a vessel than ordi'
narily exist in the construction OF other war.
ships. The ono question to be considered Is how
10 fashion u floating contrivance of war that Will
do the most damage or, In other words, land
the largest number OF big proioctiles on q
given spot. In order to provide this moving
platform for the guns the bRttleship Is neces.
sary. and II is probably the most delicate and
complex thing that man has yet made. To
build one is a far-reaching affair. 1t not only
calls for a large amount of skill and a regiment
OF employees In u shipyard's plant. but 1t
afr ects the iron and steel industries in a way
that no other contrivance affects them. and it in
yades the domain OF mechanical electricity to
an extent not known in any other practical work.
The ordinary warship is n compromise. Armor
oIA ~ ~ l"A SNb"SiNss 'HN
speed enter into 1t ms equal factors. In a battle
ship. however. the chief thing is to have big
guns, and coal-carryinG capacity and speed are
secondary matters. 1t seems to be a settled
opinion In this country that sixteen knots an
hour is fast enough for our battleships. When
the battleship Iowa was planned 1t was the
opinion OF the Navy Department authorities
that 12-inch guns were largo enough for our
ships of this class. Before that we had used 49,
inch guns on the battleships of the Indiana
class, but it was soon found to be necessary to
TO back to the 13-inch type because of the ad-
vance in the making of armor.
Therefore everything is subservient in build
ing a battleship to-day to providing an ade-
quate fort and moving platform Tor 13.inch
FIfed guns. To accomplish this work thou
sands upon thousands of men are employed in
various capacities. The work really begins
away back at the iron mines. and in the forests
whore the trees for the woodwork are cut. By
the time the guns are fashioned. the armor
made. the engines put together, the frames and
plates OF the vessel riveted in place, the cleo
trical contrivances manufactured, the wood
work prepared and joined together. and the
vast amount of supplies and equipment pur-
chased, an army of men, with skill of high and
low degree, is employed. and the wonder is,
when one considers the completely of the entire
mechanism. that 1t does not cost more millions
Of dollars than the contracts really provide.
The first thing in constructing a battleship.
as in constructing any other kind of a ship. is to
provide what is called n q scheme A scheme
for a ship is simply a rough plan or sketch of
what Is desired. In n battleship the first thing
to be settled is the size and number of big guns.
Everything else is subsidiary to that. Having
settled upon the size of the guns. the next step
is to determine the thickness and amount of the
armor. After that comes tho question of coal
carrying capacity. The matter of speed. by
general consent, seems to be fixed at sixteen
knots. Having secured an appropriation for a
battleship of a given type, the Secretary
Of the Navy directs the Chief of the
Bureau of Construction and Repairs to draw
up what are called general plans of the
vessel. The first thing in accomplishing this
that the chief OF this bureau has to do. tho
general scheme being adopted, is TO settle upon
the matter OF tonnage. He knows. In a general
way, how much his guns and armor will weigh,
and one OF the most important problems Is to plan
engines of the lightest weight for the work they
have to do. and to make the hull on which tho
floating fort is to be placed OF the smallest size
consistent with safety. Tho chiefs draughting
force provides from twenty to thirty general
plans" on which shipbuilders may base their
estimate. At the same time elaborate speciflca-
lions covering every compartment of the ship.
its makeup and equipment are prepared 20 be
submitted to the contractors with the general
plans TOT the construction estimates.
The general plans are practically outline
drawings OF a ship in every department. They
have few of the details necessary for service
work marked upon them, but, with the specifca.
tions. they are sufficient to indicate to con
tractors thoroughly what will be required OF
them. There Is a vast difference between the
contract of building a warship and OF building q
merchant vessel. Not long ago in a report made
to the Department of Internal Affairs of Penn
sylvania the Cramp Shipbuilding Company oil
Philadelphia made public the contracts for the
cruiser New York and the steamship Venezuela
OF the Red d Line, both of which they construct
cd. The contract for the New York had nj
less than twenty distinct subdivisions, with
still further subdivisions in each of the
hrst subdivisions, ana consisted OF about 1000
words. The contract for the Venezuela was
very simple agreement in general terms, leaV
ing all details TO the contractor. 1t was no
more than 400 words long. Having drawn NJ
the contract, the specifications remain with thu
successful bidder for his guidance in fulfilling
his agreement. These specifications hll a bool
OF between four and rye hundred pages. and g
into every detail with such minuteness as fire.
Quently to lead to evaporation on the part O
the contractor.
REQUIREMENTS OF STEEL TESTS.
Take. Tor example. the specifications for tn
inspection of steel alone that were used in tn
null and machinery OF the Indiana class O
battleships. These specifications had no les
than l45 numbered items. They provided 10
the kind. quality and tests of the ship plate
and frames, Of the protective deck plating, tn
boiler plates. the hull riyets, tho boiler riveti
the rods and shapes for boiler bracinR, tn
boiler tubes. the connecting and piston rods, tn
various shafting of the engines. tho crank an
wrist pins. the forged engine columns. tn
forged tillers, the rolled bars for bolts. tn
blooms for various miscellaneous forgings an
steel castings. In the matter OF testing tn
frames and plates three requirements weI
made. Each sample had TO underR
a test of tensile strength. and ais
what is known as the cold-bending tei
and the quenchlng test. In other words. eac
sample had 10 he pulled ana twisted III
der various conditions of heat and cold TO sho
the purity and strength of tho steel that WI
used in this work. In the matter OF rivets, n,
only was there a tensile strength test, but
sheariug test and also a hammer test. in while