Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1901-02-26
Building THE NAVY
y
PLANS FOR NEW SHIPS
TO COMMAND The SEAS
Most Formidable Vessels of Their Kind
in the W r.d---All the
Latest Ideas in
Construction. wr

Washington, Feb. bids for the
construction Of three protected cruis-
ers have Just been opened at the Navy
Department. The successful bidders
appear to be Cafe & Levy of Phila.
delphia, at s2.7iO.OOO; the Newport
News Shipbuilding Company at s2.74l.-
600. and the Bath Shipbuilding Com
pany. at s2,75O,OO0 Reservations made
In each bid. however. prevent a posi-.
tive statement at present.
These cruisers are designed to be the
most formidable vessels in the world Of
their class. They will resemble closely
the type Of second-class aimored cruis-
ers and might be easily mistaken for
such. The act Of Congress authorising
this class of cruisers stated that the
vessels should carry "the most power
flil ordinance. for vessels Of this type
and have the highest speed compatible
with good cruising qualities and great
radius Of action" Admiral Hichborn
chief constructor of the Navy, who has
been foremost in the preparation of
plans for the building of the new
navy" says that in an engagement the
new cruisers would be able to cope with
and prove more than match for some
OF the armored cruisers of foreign
navies.
The new vessels are to be named the
st. Louis Milwaukee and Charleston,
the last to continue the name of the
ship wrecked November 2, 1899. in the
Philippines. Their trial displacement
will be about 5000 tons. They will be
equipped with 21.OOO horsepower twin
screw engines and will have a speed of
90 knots per hour. The vessels will be
424 feet In length and Sc feet in ex-
IRENE breadth. The bunkers will have
a capacity of 1900 tons The main
side armor will be four inches in thick
ness all around. as will also be the up
per and lower casemate armor. Two
and half inches OF steel will encase
their protective decks. The main
decks of the cruisers will be supplanted
with covered superstruc-
lures. within each Of which will be To-
Gated four six-inch rapid fire guns and
six fourteen Founders Of the same type.
Outside the superstructure will be two
more six-inch guns located on the CEN
ter line. one forward and one aft. On
the gun decks the greater batteries will
be located, of eight six-inch. twelve
FOUNDER and four one-pounder
rapid-fre guns. Sixteen rapd-fire guns
are to be placed on the superstructure
deck and bridges. The remainder OF
the battery will be located in the fight
ing tops of the military masts.
The vessels each will have four lofty
seventy-siX feet above the
loadwater line. providing draught for
the sixteen straight water tube boil
ers situated in four water-tight COM
These boilers, together with
the engines. will be protected by the
side armor, sloping deck armor. and
a twelve-foot coal bunker. The inner
bottom Of the vessels will extend to the
of the protective decks,
above which a. cellulous cofferdam
thirty inches wide vial extend the
length of the cruisers.
INN 90
struction are to be provided fop the
accommodation and comfort of the OFF,
GERS and crew. In the commission the
of officers will be thirty-nine
and the crew Will number 525 men. for
which are provided sixteen boats rang
ing from a thirty-six foot steam cut
ter to sixtecn-foot dlngy, besides two
punts and two life RATS.
It has been believed in some quarters
that the three cruisers could not
be built within the limit of cost named
by Congress. However, a calculation
based on the price to be paid for the
unsheathed armored cruisers would
tend to disprove this theory. The aver
age cost Of the three unsheathed ar
mored cruisers of 13,iO0 tons trial dis
placement and go knots speed is to
be s3,76S,333 each. or 1881. % per ton.
Mt this rate a cruiser Of 9700 tons dis
placement would cost s2,727.s34. or
s72,lO6 less than the amount appropri-
ated, namely, $2,S00,000. AS about
100000 will be required for armor out
Of the sum appropriated, 1t has been
necessary to eliminate certain, items
from the specifications. as In the case
Of the sheathed battleships. Cramps
contract price for the Maine, an eigh-
teen-knot battleship of l2,50O tons trial
displacement, was $2,S55,0OO, or 1898
nor ton