The evening times., 1899-10-28
BIDS FOR new CRUISERS
The Navy Department to Ask fer
Them Next Week.
SIX Vessels Similar to the Raleigh
anu Cincinnati, Bat Much More
Powerful. to Be Constructed With
in Two Years-to BE Known as the
Denver Class-The Descriptions.

| builders of the Oregon and Olympia called
at the Navy Department today for the pur-
pose of consulting with the officials rela-
| tive to the construction of the six new
protected cruisers provided for by the last
Congress. The department will call for
bids commencing November l. and the
heads of the several shipbui!ding firms
on the ATLANTIC coast are expected at the
department within ,the next few days on
missions similar to that of Mr.. Scott.
Although it cannot fbe definitely stated, it
is probable that the usual custom will be
followed, and the contracts for the con-
! struction Of the cruisers will be divided
among as many of the shipbuilding firms
as possible.
! 1t is certain that at least two Of the
vessels will be built on the Pacific Coast.
I The cruisers will cost in the neighborhood
! of Sl,1i0, 900 each, and about two years
and four months will be consumed in their
! construction.
| The new vessels will be known as the
| Denver, Des Mones. Chattanooga, Calves
ton, Tacoma, and Cleveland.
They viii be in one respect. that of be-
ing sheathed and coppered, radical de-
years Chief Constructor Hichb3rn stood
almost alone in his advocacy of sheathing
for ships bottoms, but persistent argu-
ment. combined with many object les -ols
from the reports Of our ships in service,
which tended to prove the statements in
favor of sheathing, have at last overcoTe
the strong prejudice againsl it, and all Of
the twelve ships authorized by the last
Congress-three first-class battleships.
three first-ciass armored cruisers, and the
six protected cruisers-are to be sheathei
and coppered.
On account of the Congressional limita-
tion of the price which the department
may pay for armor, and the improbable
OF being able to get any armor at that
price the six ships of the Denver class
are the only ones for which contracts can
be made without further action by Con-
gress.
Designs for these ships have been per-
fected by the Bureau of Construction.
They will be vessels of about the size of
the Raleigh and Cincinnati. but improved
and modernized. The latter ships were de-
signed at the time when the craze for
speed at all costs reached its maximum,
and to attain this extreme speed, which ii
will be noted could only be maintained for
a few weeks after they were docked and
cleaned on account of their rapidly foul
ing unsheathed bottoms too many other
qualities were sacrificed. and they are now
being altered to remedy this defect. The
Denver and her sister ships are designed
for a speed of sixteen and one-haif knots.
but will only make seventeen knots when
pushed. while the Raleigh and Cincinnati
were designed for a speed Of nineteen
knots.
The former will be able to maintain their
designed speed practically indefinitely,
while the latter could scarcely maintain a
speed of fifteen knots, and that with an
excessive consumption of ccal. The horse
power required in the new designs is 1850,
as compared with 10 600 in the Raleigh and
Cincinnati which means less than half the
weight of propelling machinery. The gen.
eral dimensions and features Of the Dem
yer and class win be as follows: Length
on load water line 292 feet; extreme length.
sos feet , inches; extreme breadth. about,
i3 feet; mean draft at trial displacement,
two-;hirds coal, ammunition, and stores,
l. feet, inches; extreme draft fully load
ed. I6 feet. S inches; trial displacement.
about 3.1oG tons; full load displacement,
about 3.iJ0 tons. coal carried on trial,
40 tons; total bunker capacity. not less
than 100 tons: speed on trial. not less than
16i2 knots: type of engines. vertical in
verted four-cylinder. triple expansion. es-
timated horse e-power. 4,500; type CT boi!-
ers. water tube. and number OF boilers,
6.
The armament will be as follows: Main
battery. 10 5-inch rapid-fre guns. Auxil-
iary battery: 6-poundeTs rapid-fire guns;
I-pounders rapid-ti fire guns; 1 Colt ma
chine guns; sail area, about. 5000 square
feet.
The guns will all be designed for smoke
Oh, viii ia
more effective than the old type of D.
inch guns. Eight of them viii be mounted
on the main deck in recessed ports. The
four forward ones will have a range from
right forward to 60 degrees abaft the beam.
and the four after ones from right aft TO
60 degrees before the beam. The two re-
naming 5-inch guns will be mounted
behind shields on the spar deck, one for
ward and one aft Four 6-pounders will
be mounted on the main deck. two forward
and two amidship, and four more on the
spar deck.
The two 1-pounder guns will be mount
ed aft on the main deck. and the Colt
machine guns on the top of the hammock !
berthing amidships.
The coal capacity of these ships is ae
tons when the bunkers are full This (
gives them radius of action at full speed
of about $500 miles AT the mcst economi
cal rate of steaming probably in the neigh
borhood of ten knots per hour, they will
be able to steam about $500 miles without
or more than sufficient to take
them from San Francisco to Manila. The
ammunition supply will be large. as 1t
should be to make rapid-fire guns effective.
For each of the 5-inch guns they will I!
carry $50 rounds, and for each of the g. |
Founders 800 rounds.
The wood material used in the construc- !
tion of the hulls will be reduced to a mini /
mum. All the bulkheads on the gun and !
berth decks will be of metal, and each f,
vessel will be fitted with a pilot house on
the spardeck built entirely of non-mag- /
netic metal. Where it is necessary to use
wood for any purpose, it will be treated |
with the electric fre-proofing process be- |
fore being worked.
A water-tight deck covered with half |
inch plate will cover the vessel from stem |
to stern, the sides sloping down to three |
feet below the water line, and the fiat or |
portion rising eighteen inches |
above the same. |
The cruisers will carry a complement of |
q officers, 25S seamen, and 25 marines.
Poisoned by Vaccine Matter.
NEWBURG, N. Y. Oct. 2S.-Four children |
in one family at Highland Falls, are dan