The San Francisco call., 1898-02-20
THIS COAST
 IS PROTECTED Admiral Kirkland Speaks With Confidence of
 His Ships
Ready to-. Meet Any Force of Spaniards That May Be
 Sent Out.
Vessels at Mare Island That Will Re in Shape for Service Very
 Soon.
Special Dispatch to The Call

VALLEJO, Feb. 19.-"We can take care of any force the Spaniards can send against us on this coast" said Admiral Kirkland, the commandant of the navy-yard. to-day. If we were to go up against England or France or Germany we could truth fully say we were not prepared just at present for war, but with Spain we are now in position to take care of ourselves.
 "On this coast we have two ships the Monterey and Monadnock, ready for battle at an hours notice, and either one of them could whip the best ship in the Spanish navy. Then there is the Oregon. She is now in the drydock at Port Orchard, but she could be ready for service in a week or perhaps less, if she should be call ed upon.
 Tn a few weeks we could have the Philadelphia, Charleston and York town that are now in the yard ready for sea. With those six vessels we would have formidable fleet and the coast could be we'll protected should war come with Spain.''
 The loss of the Maine is attracting all the attention of the officers of the y and with the conversation comes the ories that big ships of war are not as Serviceable or as effective as small ones. There is hardly an officer at the yard from Admiral Kirkland down to the newest ensign who is not of the opinion that big battleships are not what they are in theory represented to be.
 Whether the Maine was destroyed by design or by accident, they say, it shows the fallacy of constructing such large vessels. A battleship like the Maine, or the Oregon, or the Texas, or any of that type of vessel, costs about $5,000,000 when complete with her ma chinery, armament, ammunition, stores and equipment. She carries from 400 to 800 souls. She can be only at one spot at one given time. She requires deep water to float in, and most har- bors are inaccessible to her. Should she touch soft bottom it means end less expense and great damage. Should she get on rocks she is likely to be permanently disabled, if not totally de- stroyed.
 In case of accident to any one of her end compartments she will be so sub merged she cannot enter a place for safety unless she has a deep channel to enter by. Fifty pounds of dynamite
 
 tom will either incapacitate her or else destroy her totally if applied under her magazines or boilers.
 monitor of the Monterey or Monadnock type would give her fair battle, and two such vessels, both costing almost one-half that Of bat tleship, would easily blow her out of the water Ten torpedo boats costing s200, ,000 each and aggregating $2,000,0 ,000, attacking her simultaneously under or dinary conditions of night, will sink her.
 If the battle-ship should destroy one or two, or even three, there would only be loss of s6O0.0O0 and a few lives on the one side as against many mill lions of dollars and hundreds of lines on the other.
 These torpedo-boats burning liquid fuel could harass the officers and crew of the big vessel until the battle-ship would be demoralized. They could out run the big warship and make their attacks at their own convenience. They could keep her surrounded at all times and be invisible to her in the confusion of a night attack. Such a thing as accurate firing at rapidly nov ing objects of such small size as a torpedo o-boat would be practically im- pOSSih1e