The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-06-26
qURRBTS OF Bh9TLBSHIPS
a Compromise Report by the Special
Board on Construction.
The supeFposcd Type Recommended
for Three New Vessels and the
Ordinary for Two - Minority Re
port. Submitted by Constructor
Taylor md Rear Admiral BARKER.

Secretary Long yesterday read and ap-
proved the report OF the special Board Of
Construction, which recommends that
superposed turrets be installed on the
battleships Pennsylvania, New Jersey and
Georgia, and ordinary turrets on the two
battleships authorized. to be called the
Virginia and the Rhode Island. 1t is re-
garded as somewhat strange that the ma
jority of the board, after voting in favor
of superDosed turrets, should have been
willing to compromise with the minority
and agree to report in favor of installing
ordinary turrets on the Virginia and Rhode
Island Five of the eight officers ap-
pointed to the board as tactical experts
voted for superposed turrets. and only
two for the ordinary turrets. the eighth
member favoring just such compromise
as was finally agreed to. 1t was UNDER
stood that the special boards decision
would settle the question whether the
navy is to install superposed or ordinary
turrets on all battleships. The explana-
promise is the desire of the board to
pIestHl d report.
Its conclusion and the Departments
approval leave the turret question practical
ly hanging In the air, and it will have to
be fought over again when more battle
ships.are authorized. The compromise re-
port sN AigIfed by twelve Of the thirteen
members. Naval Contractor Taylor SUBJ
mitted q minority report. Rear Admiral
Barker also submitted a report giving
reasons. why. in his opinion. it was not
wise to put superposed or ordinary turrets
On all the five battleships. The compro-
mise report is merely four-line recon-
mendation that three battleshiDs have
superposed ard two battleships ordinary
turrets. Admiral Barker's reSort Of his
suggestion that there be compromise Is
as follows:
1T is admitted by all the members OF
the board that both plans are. excellent,
and that battleships built on those plans
Will be most efficient vessels. Without an
exhaustive trial at target practice or bet
ter still, in actual war. it is, in my opin-
ion. impossible to state positively which OF
the two classes of battleships is the bet
ter. as there are advantages and disad-
yantages in both.
without before going into a long dis
cussion Of the merits and demerits OF
each class, am of the opinion that Of
the five battleships which are to be built
three of them should be built without
superposed turrets and two of them with
superposed turrets.'
The board. as has been shown. switched |
this around so as to give two ships without
and three ships with superposed turrets.
Constructor Taylor, in his minority re-
port, says:
The matter before the board is one of
prime importance, involving the principal I
feattreS nf fiye HAITI much Iarcar
than any previously undertaken by u.s. |
practically equal in size to the largest in |
the world, and to cost. complete. in round !
numbers. thirty million dollars. or the |
two plans before the board, one must be the |
better, and l believe that we should build |
all five vessels upon it, or if there is any |
reasonable doubt as to which Is the rea |
sorable plan. We should spare neither time /
nor cost to determine this point, obtaining |
incidentally the BY no means small advan-
taGes OF uniformity in the construction OF |
FIVE such important vessels. We have four |
turrets on two vessels OF the superposed |
principle which are complete and In wo- k !
Ing condition. Tests made with these tur- !
rets SO far have practically no bearing uEon !
the essential points at issue. While all Of
these points cannot be decided by tests. !
many Of them can, and I believe that il
thorough and exhaustive experiments were I
carried out by this or some other equally
representative board upon each of the four
superposed turrets of the Kearsarge and |
Kentucky, the board would then be practi-
cally unanimous in finally accepting or re- |!
jecting the superposed principles for our |
battleships.
ITO divide these vessels between two !
types is TO definitely advertise to the wo: Id !
that although We have completed two su- /
perposed turret vessels. We do not know |
they had been built with separate turrets. |
believe that we are az last In a position |
to settle this question. which has been |
such vexed one In the navy for five years,
and that such settlement should be no |
longer delayed"