Richmond daily palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1876-1904, 1900-02-26
PROGRESS OF NAVIES.
Recent Tendencies as Shown by
Practice of Foreign Lands.
LESSONS TAUGHT By SPANISH WAR

B~attleships the Real FtShtink
of Little Guns-EMciency of Torpe-
do Boats and Torpedo T1be-Ger-
manx's Naval Programme.
The naval annual just issued from
the Office Of naval intelligence at
Washington is of exceptional interest
AMI breadth of scope. The leading
| feature is an article entitled Recent
Tendencies of Foreign Naval Develop
ment and the Effect Thereon of the Re
cent War With Spain" by Lieutenant
Commander George H. Peters. This
article presents in succinct shape many
of the lessons taught by the Spanish
war and utilized by the narsies of for
eign nations. says the Philadelphia
Public Ledger. Beginning with the
~sta.rfuant that the most striking fea-
ture is the marked effort now being
made by the important maritime pow
ers to increase their naval strength.
the article points out that one result of
h Spanish war was to demonstrate
beyond further argument that battle
ships constitute the real fighting
strength of a navy. even in France.
which has long chung to the armored
cruiser. Armored coast defense yes
sells have been practically ignored in
new construction. While the war threw
no new light on the value OF torpedo
boats, attention was freshly directed
10 their vulnerability. and Germany
has abandoned the building of any
more small boats. Still. some weight
Is attached TO the moral effect of tor
pedo boats and their use in training
young officers
Another war lesson was that the big
guns on board ship are secondary here
after and dependence must be placed
upen a primary battery of rapid fire
guns of modern caliber. Already the
German navy has reduced the caliber
of its heaviest guns to 9.45. Above
water torpedo tubes hav been aban-
tubes are retained the tendency is to-
ward clearing a battleship completely
of these devices.
Armor must be widely distributed
and not restricted to the water line and
gun positions. Foreign navies are Sc
curing the very best armor regardless
of cost. There is a universal effort TO
abolish wood and combustibles from
naval vessels. Canvas boats are to be
tested. Water tube boilers are now be-
yond discussion for naval use, and the
only question pen is that OF type. Tor
pedo nets have been abandoned. Ire
mendous efforts are making in foreign
nayies to improve gun practice. and In
Germany Ia ships go to sea every day
for target practice, even reserve ships,
while the British navy has largely in
creased its allowance of ammunition
for practice firing. Foreign opinion
criticises American gun pointers as
showing much room for Improvement,
based on their performance at Manila
and Santiago. Commander Peters,
however. comments that never before
have fleets been so utterly destroyed
through fire.
A comprehensive idea of the ire
mendous naval programme of the Ger
man empire is afforded by an article
contributed by Lieutenant E. w. Kit
tele. entitled The Creation and Main
tenance of a German Battle Fleet"
He gives from German authorities in
great detail all of the argument which
ltauS 10 lje SoNeElIieHl uetldIIu tlldt
the navy be increased owe and above
the present building programme by 81
battleships, Is large cruisers and SO
small cruisers, to cost 1,tO0,o 900, 900
marks. He quotes German technical
papers as saying that the government
has eliminated the continental powers
in calculations based on the attitude
of foreign countries toward the Ger
man increase. The discussion is said
to ave narrowed down to Great Brit
ain, Japan Il the United States. and
one paper holds that England and the
United States will soon be checked in
the increase of their nayieS by the
question of manning ships n Japan
by h question of money, so that Ger
many will be in a position to cope with
them severaily or collectively.
The usual chapter on ships and tor
pedo boats is this year contributed by
Lieutenant c. C.. Marsh and abounds
in notes upon the foreign construction
that has taken place during the year
and that which is projected. The large
place filed by Japan in this chapter Is
worthy of note.
Lieutenant Commander William II.
briggs furnishes an article on ord
nance and armor, in which he draws
many useful conclusions from a COM
parison OF the Spanish and American
ships during the late war. Contrary to
some other writer's. he insists that the
Spanish commanders Of the torpedo
boat destroyers lacked neither dash
nor discretion. He holds that the boats
failed to 10 damage owing to their in
ability to run through the American
gun fire. Commander briggs says that
a battleship car easily take care of two
such boats on each beam in clear
weather. He takes vigorous issue with
the continental writer's. who have be
Titled the skill of the American gun
ners. d-isagreeing with their statement
that the percentage of hits was onl.
between three and four. but insisting
that even so that was all hat was
needed. This officer attaches great
value to the automatic pistol. which
has been adopted by Germany and
Italy in the army and navy. ard he
supplies a full description of the de
tails OF the weapon. which fires ten
bullets by one depression Of the trig
ger.
Thoite is said to have given the most
promising results OF all high explosives
already tested. A 10 inch shell load
ed with joyite is said to have beer
ired through a l4h inch face hardened
plate of nickel steel aud then exploded
by a fuse in the rear. Notwithstand
ing this feat. black powder is still held
10 r the best explosive for bursting
shells. Our naval smokeless powder Is
held TO be superior TO the British cord
tie IS demnuSIraf ted by a trial M lie hy