The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-02-11
LAST OF THE MIANToNOMOH.
Recommendation That the old Mont
tor he Sold for Sc-np Iron.

From the New York Tribune.
Consigned to the scrap heap" is the
verdict which the naval survey board has
rendered upon the world-kpown double
| turreted Miantonomoh a vessel that has
had its ups and down for about two gener-
atoms. The survey board was detailed
toward the close of 1899 10 hold most
searching inquest upon the Miantonomoh.
with view Of determining the overhaul
ing necessary to place her in commission
| again. The board completed It's work at
| Philadelphia, II found that ii would cost
$i5OoO0 to put her into condition for effec-
tive service. and recommended that she be
disposed of by sale. Experience has been
that when vessels of the navy have been
sold as being out of date they have been
broken up, the wood being sold for fuel
and the metal sent to the scrapheap.
| The Marlborough has history that in
| cludes both the Civll War and the war
| with Spain. When the original monitor
| was built, and later halted the Confeder-
ate ram Virginia (yclept Merrimac) in her
| work of destruction in Hampton Roads, a
| new. era began in warShip building. Whcu.
| soon after the United States navy built
| others ships on the same model the fed
| eral government for the second time in
ulSAbi " lOSStHt'Ht lil.' ulD0t DbNtii III navy
in existence. The Miantonomoh was ono
Of these-and the most powerful of them,
| for she had two turrets.
| Although completed in the Civil War
| she did not see active service in battle
| then. She was begun as wooden ship
| covered With soft iron and armed with
| smoothborc cannon carrying spherical iron
| shot 1t was contcnded by experts of the
| navy that should She be called upon to
| meet a fleet of the sort she originally
! was she could send every one of them 10
| the bottom in an hour, and had the Mcr-
| rimac been of her design and prowess she
| could have scuttled Ericsson's original
Monitor with a single shot, and could
have done it, too, while lying beyond per-
| ous range of the Monitors guns
Soon after the close of the civil War
| and TO prove whether or not the carping
| critics were correct in their assertions that
| the Monitor class of vessels were not, ana
| could not be built 10 be seaworthy the
| navy department prepared a trans Allan
| tic cruise for the Miantouomoh at the sug-
| geston of Assistant Secretary GustaVus
| v Fox, who obtained leave of absence
| to make the cruise on her. The cruise ex-
| tended as far as ST. Petersburg and her
| seaworthness was amply indicated
Soon after her return home 1t was rec
| commended that improvements that had
| been made upon other warships should
| be carried to the Miantonomoh, but there
| were NeNhllOuS UtlhNS. ~ OilElbhhN
| built, the vessel was of oak. Her hull was
| built at the New York navy yard and
| her turrets and machinery were made by
| the Cornells. The present Miantonomoh
| may be said to be a reproduction of the
| original Miantonomoh although she Is
| now steel clad, little larger in size, ana
carries a battery of modern breech-load-
| ing guns
| Originally she was an ironclad-that is.
| the armor was bolted on over the hull;
| her turrets were almost twice as high as
| the present ones and were surmounted
by protected decks. from which the ma
| neuvers of the ship could be governed.
! In time of action it was arranged that
| the guards around the decks could be
| removed and the movements of the vessel
| be governed from coming towers built
| above the turrets. The original dimen-
| sions of the vessel were: Length $50 feet;
| breadth of beam, 90 feet; draft of water,
| IS feet AZ inches. Her dimensions at
| present are 2 feet longer and 2l2 feet
| broader of beam. She is of the low free
| board type the top of her deck being only
| twenty-five inches above the water line
| She Is built upon the cellular system, with
| eighty-seVen water-tight compartments
| and a double bottom. The latter extends
| 223 feet of her length, and Is divided into
+ forty-six water-tight compartments by
| transverse water-tght floors, and a verti
| cal keel through the center
In 1872 her wooden hun was found to be
| rotten. George M Robson, who was
then Secretary of the Navy. made con
tracts with the Roach Shipbuilding Works
to rebuild her of iron. Neglect of Com
| gress to make the necessary appropria
| tfons delayed the work of reconstruction,
| and it was not until five years LATER tina
| she was launched at Chester, Pa. She
was Immediately fitted out and placed in
| commission, with Capt. Francis Hgginson
| in command. Alterations and additions
| were made in her from time to time. Fin
| ally In 1888, she was sent to the New York
| navy yard, and there was afterwards fin
| ally improved,
The turTet armor was changed three
| times. Illuminated plates gave way to
| solid iron and next that yielded to blend
| ed steel and iron. half and half of each,
| welded into a solid armor twelve and one
| half inches thick. The turret adopted was
of the Coles. or English. pattern. This
| does not rest upon a spindle, as the old
| Ericsson turret does, but upon a row of
st eel balls laid horizontally in circular
| groove over these ballbearings the tur-
| ret revolves with each. Her battery con-
sists of four 10-inch two mounted in each
| turreO breech-loading guns Two 6-pound
rapid-frng guns and four smaller guns.
| AS all the living spaces are below the
| water line, no recourse can be had TO nat
| ural ventilation while at sea. There are
| powerful centrifugal fans, with a capac-
| ity of 10000 cubic feet of air a minute.
| on the after part Of the vessel are the
| cabin for the commanding officers, and
the wardrobe and state rooms for the
| other officers, while forward of the ship
| are the quarters of the crew. She took
| part In he war with Spain.
II Is admitted that the Mantonomoh.
| with all her alterations. is not completely
modern, even now. The Monadnock, the
| Amphitrite, the Puritan and the Terror
| are sister ships and in service.