The San Francisco call., 1899-09-25

A new type of torpedo boat for the
German navy has just been launched from
Shichan's yard at Elbing. 1t is 223 feet
in length, feet draught and has trial
speed of 35 knots. Until further improve
ments suggest themselves this type will
be the standard torpedo boat in the Ger
man navy.
The Italian battleships Italia and Le-
panto of IA 400 tons, are to be stripped of
their armor and converted into cruisers.
The gain by removal of armor will be
utilized in coal stowage. and the new
bunkers, sixteen feet wide. will afford
great protection to the machinery. The
Italia was built in 1880 and the Lepanto
three years later, and they were very
speedy ships. Converted into cruisers,
their four 100-ton guns will be removed
and four ten-inch and a number of quick
firing six-inch guns will be substituted.
The Pallada, a protected cruiser of 6731
tons, was launched August 27 from the
new admiralty yard, Galierny Island, st.
Petersburg. She is 416 feet in length, 81
feet inches beam and q feet draft. The
machinery, triple expansion engines and
twenty-four Belleville boilers, is to de-
velop II $40 horsepower, to give speed of
twenty knots, and the armament is COM
posed of eight siX-inch, twenty-four three
inch quick firing guns and eight six
Founders, and the vessel has also two
broadside and one bow torpedo tube. The
Diana and Aurora, sister ships to the Pal
lada. are still on the stocks at Galierny
Island, although they were begun early
in 1897.
The trouble with the British battleship
Ocean has been discovered to be in the
cracked high-pressure cylinder of the
port engine and extensive repairs and
considerable loss of time will be entaied
at the dockyard. AS the vessel has not
vet been accepted by the admiralty the
loss falls on the contractors. Few ships
in the British navy pass through their
trials without accidents or defects being
found in their machinery. In contrast to
this, it is exceedingly rare that United
States vessels meet with accidents during
their trials or that defects of a serious
nature are developed, such being chiefly
confined to the torpedo boats, and these
are proportionately less than what hap
pens to British boats.
Peter the Greats first attempt to utilize
the navy he had built and organized with
so much trouble was a signal failure The
first squadron was sent to sea in 1719 to
fight Russa's old enemy, Sweden, in the
Baltic, and three Swedish vessels of in
feror force were oyertaken. During the
enga cement the Russian vice admiraIs
ship and that of the senior captain COM
modore ran aground and the junior cap
tain commodore failed to render assist
ance, and the Swedes escaped For this
the two senior Russian officers were de-
graded and the junior captain commodore
was sentenced to be shot. AT the last
moment, when the culprit stood blindfold-
ed awaiting the volley from the execution
ers, the death sentence was RENTED but
the fright he had experienced had upset
his reason, and he fingered but a few
years in Siberia, mental wreck. The
early Russian navy had many Scotchmen
and Englishmen in it as officers, one of
the latter, named Nelson, serving as cap
tain, and was a member of the first court
martial which gave the Russian officers
a taste of naval discipline.
Germany has been rather unsuccessful
in it's earlier armored shipbuilding. Four
second-class battleships, or rather coast
defense vessels, built in 1878 and 1870
named Baden, Bayern, Sachsen and Wur
temberg, of 7441 tons, were practically fail
ures, and had to be almost reconstructed
three years ago. The German navy also
possesses six coast defense ships of $500
tons of the monitor type, but having high
unprotected upper works, which make the
vessels unseaworthy and absolutely
worthless as fighting vessels. They were
built in 1sso-1-2-S, and although rated at
sixteen knots they are in reality slow
ships. Their coal capacity is only 225
tons, and in order to remedy this defect
it has been decided to reconstruct the
Hagen, launched in 1898. 1t is intended to
cut the vessel in two and put in twenty
five feet additional hull between the TWO
ends, thereby increasing the coal-carrvino.
capacity. The upper works will also he
greatly reduced. If the plan proves a
success with the Hagen the other vessels
of that class, namely, Beowulff, Heimdal
Hildebrand, Frithjoy and Siegfried will
be similarly reconstructed,