The Washington weekly post. (Washington, D.C.) 1878-1916, 1899-02-21

trlclty. This kind OF turret has q slant
ing front, which il an advantage not only
IN causing protectiles that strike IL to
glance OF, but also by reason Of the dimin-
ished size OF the openings through which
the muzzles Of the big guns protrude.
These openings will be only about one
half as large az the old-style turret, there
by sessening proportionately the chance
that a shell will enter. Furthermore, the
Hichborn tirrets are balanced IN such
manner as to be turned with an ease and
quIckness hitherto unknown.
The fastest Of our frst-class battle
ships now afioat is the Iowa. which can
do seventeen knots an hour under favor
able circumstances: the oregon comes
next with sixteen and three-quarter
knots. and a speed o. sixteen knots is de-
manded OF the quintet OF the Alabama
class now building. But the Maine, OHIO
and Missouri. Will steam at eighteen
knots. and will thus be the speediest YES
sells q their type IN the navy. They Will
be twenty feet longer at the water-line
than the ships OF the Alabama class,
tWenty-eight feet longer than the Iowa,
and forty feet longer than the Indiana
and Oregon The horsepower will be l6.-
Ca each, against the lowas 12,l05. the
Oregon's Il,I1l. tire Massachusetts I0,4Q3
the Indiana 2. 30. and the l0,e99 apiece OF
the Alabama quintet.
Il have already said enough to give you
a pretty fair notion Of the points In which
the three battle-ships OF the Maine class
viii be superior 10 any OF their predeces-
sors. Their coal endurance will " some
thing astonishing. giving them an unpre-
Cedented radius OF action. The increased
speed is Of great value, because il en-
ables a fighting vessel TO OveTtake an ad-
VersaTy or TO choose its own position in
a battle. Fireproof wood throughout
another novelty-will render these ships
safe from flames started BY bursting
shells. Their bottoms will be shea1hed
with wood covered with copper, which
will prevent fouling. and the Importance
Of this can hardly be overestimated, mas
much as a fouled ship is a slow ship and
requires much more coal TO run her.
Each Of the Maine triplets will have
two military masts, and on each mast will
be two tops. The lower tops viii each be
provided with two revolving One-pounder
cannon. while the upper ones will be &C.
Cupied by sharpshootiHg riflemen. II will
be the business of the men in the tops TO
pick off the personnel of an opposing YES
sci, and, inasmuch as they themselves
Will be comparatively exposed and "A tar
get for the quick-fire guns Of the enemy,
they can hardly expect to survive a bat
tie. Each of the three new ships will
have a complement of 500 men and Off
GERS.
THE art of naval construction is con-
tinUally advancing, and if a navy is to be
kept up To date each batch of ships or
dered must be superior TO the best ones
previously contracted for. Accordingly,
this Congress, accepting suggestions Of
fered by Secretary Long, will appropriate
money to pay for three new battle-ships
of 1850 tons displacement and three new
armOred cruisers of 12000 tons each, car
rying the heaviest armOr and most pow
erful ordnance for vessels of their class
e., and TO have the highest possible speed
and greatest radius Of action. The battle
ships viii cost about S. 0O0, 900 each,
and the armored cruisers perhaps
$5,50O0o0 apiece. To these will be
added six unprotected cruisers of
twenty-five tons each, and probably
also three 60O0-ton protected cruisers of
the Olympia class. improved The battle
ships will be 1.000 tons bigger than the
Maine triplets and even more efficient,
5000 tons heavier than the Brooklyn, and
nearly 1900 tons heavier than the New
York, with a good many important i'm
provements on those two excellent sea
lighters