The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1900-11-26

cases as may be necessary. Provision
will be made in the magazines for the
stowage of at least sixty rounds each of
the 12-inch guns. representing a weight
| of about IA tons; 125 rounds for each Of
the S-inch guns, weighing about 1s0 tons;
200 rounds for each OF the 6-inch guns,
the weight of which will be about 100
tons; 500 rounds for each of the 3-pounder
and 1-pounder guns, and an almost mex
haustible supply of ammunition for the
smaller guns.
| So much for the vessels of offensive
| qualities. To make their defensive quail
titles proportionately great, they are to be
provided with a complete waterline belt
of armor, eight feet in width amidships
IL incsles thick at the top, and eight in
ches at the bottom, tapering to uniform
| thickness of four inches at the ends of
the vessel. They will also have an ar
mored belt extending over 245 feet of
their length, of uniform thickness of six
inches, rising from the top of the main
belt to upper or main deck and Joined at
| dts after end to the barbette of the ~
inch turret by six inch armored bulk
head, and having at its forward end an
inclined armored bulkhead from side to
side six inches thick, thus forming a eta
del or redoubt within which the six-inch
guns will be mounted. The barbettes for
the turrets of the 12-inch guns are to be
ten inches in thickness for that portion
outside of the redoubt or citadel, reduced
to six inches in thickness within.
| The turrets themselves will be protect
| ed by armor ten inches in thickness. the
port plates. however, being eleven inches
The S-inch turrets will in all cases
whether superposed or independent. be
protected by six inches of armor, with
six and half inch port plates, and their
barbettes will be protected by similar
| armor. The coming tower and its shield
Will be nine inches in thickness and the
armored tubes will be protected by six
inches of armor and will be of sufficient
| size not only to receive all voice-pipes
wiring. ETC., but to also prevent of their
being used as passageway, If necessary.
| In addition to the coming tower there
Will be aft second tower, known as the
| signal tower, which will be protected by
tve-inch armor. From the bottom of the
water line armor belt there will rise q
curved turtle-backed nickel-steel protec-
| tive deck, one and one-half inches thick
on the fiat and three inches thick on the
sloping sides, to make assurance doubly
i sure that no projectile of the enemy finds
its way into the vitals offs the ship. AS
an additional protection to stability, a
| cofferdam belt, three feet in thickness
| and packed to a density of eight pounds
to the cubic foot, will be worked along
the two sides above the protective deck
| for the entire length of the vessel
| The material of construction will. of
! course, be of high quality steel which has
entered into all the vessels of our navy.
The main or upper deck, in addition to
being built of steel, will be the only one
upon which wood is to be laid. The lower
decks will be of steel, covered with limo
leum or some other like material. The
use of wood in the construction of the
vessels will be limited even more strictly
than it has been in the later battleships,
and all wood, except for the sheathing OF
the bottom, will be electric fireproofed.
| Bilge keels and heavy docking keels will
be fitted.
| 1t is proposed to make all of these YES
sells fiagships, and to do this it is neces-
sary to make provision for the accommo-
dation of one flag officer, one commanding
officer, one chief of staff, twenty ward
room officers, twelve junior officers, ten
warrant officers and 65S crew and mar
| ines, making a grand total of 703 Both
| officers and crew will have wash rooms.
bath rooms and other similar conveniences
such as will place the comfort and health
| 1ulneSS OF these vessels very high in the
| scale.