The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1901-08-10

seIs-To BE Built on the stocks
where the BHttIeship Maine
RcSted--DimeHsions OF the ship.
PHILADELPHIA. Aug 1O-Wort on
! the new armored cruiser Pennsylvania,
| one of the six new cruisers ordered by
! the Navy Department. is already under
way at Cramps shipyard- ON Wednes-
| day afternoon the first plate of the low
] or keel was laid The inner keel and the
/ horizontal keel viii be in position. it is
/ expected. within the next two weeks
| after which "a force of men will be put
D % work on the framework of the ship
! The Pennsylvania will be built on the
stocks on which the lately launched
/ Maine rested. though it has been found
| necessary 10 louEthen them leo feet. She
/ viii go up side by side with the Colorado
/ another of the new cruisers ordered. on
/ the framework of which work is already
| well advanced. 1t was originally intended
/ that the keel of the Pennsylvania should
q be laid before that Of the Colorado. but
p work on her was delayed by the change
; made in the building plans by Rear Ad-
/ miral B0wleS. Chief Constructor Of the
! Navy. who was opposed to the use Of
/ wood shcathinC. and who was successful
| in having it eliminated from the plans.
| As the Colorado was planned from the
first without wood sheathing, there was
| no delay in her case.
! The principal dimensions Of the Penn
! sylvania are: Length. or the load water
I line. 5o2 feet. extreme breadth. 90 feet 6
l inches: displacement at trial draught of
% feet, 1900 tons.
The principal feature Of the Pcuu5yl-
| vania and her class is the great area of
I armor protection afforded. The extent
/ of armored area is unprecedented for
! ships OF the same class. Except that
! there is a scaling down in thickness. the
, protection is the same as that given
( first class battlcship. The water line belt.
! which will be Z feet inches in width.
/ will extend the entire length of the YES
| sci For a distance of PA feet abreast
of the boilers and engines, this belt will
be 6 inches thick at the upper edge. and
will maintain this thickness downward
for Az feet when it will taper to inches
at the lower edge. The belt viii be COM
pIeted 60 bow and stern by armor plates
| 81 inches thick
Above the main belt the side viii be pro-
tccted by 5-inch armor for a length Of Do
/ feet. Transverse armor is 10 be worked
| at the ends Of this side armOT, thus form
ing central casemate fo- the G-iuCh
guns The four 6-inCh guns on the upper
/ deck at the corners Of the supcrstructure
! Will be protected by 6-inch armor. The
coming tower will have 6-inch protection,
I the coming tower tubes 5-inch and the
| signal tower 5-iuch. The 6-incn guns on
the main deck will he further protected
by splinter buIkheads Of 2z-inch nickel
steel. The protective deck viii be one and
a half inches thick on the fiat and four
| inches thick on the slopes.
| The main armament of the cruiser will
/ be four S-inch brcech loading rifles and
fourteen G-inch rapid fire rifles The sec
| ondary battery will be eighteen 3-inch
| rapLd-lre guns. twelve 3-pOunder semi
! & utOmatic guns four 1-pounder heavy
[ Tapid-fire guns, two 3-inCh field guns Of
so CaIibre and six automatic guns Of 30
calibre. She will be provided with two
submerged torpedo tubes. fitted TO take
the Whitehead 1914 foot t0rpedoes- They
will be located in one compartment for
ward
The S-inch guns viii be mounted I'm pairs
In two electrically controlled. ellipticaI
! balanced turrets, one forward and one aft
on the middle line of the ship, and having
!, an arc Of fire Of go degrees. The objec-
/ tiOn has been raised against the cruisers
OF this class that for ships Of their size
they are not so powerfully armed as they.
should be However, with the improve
--aHl-A AA4tA'Af -al the o-liltll Ils
cy IN point Of main battery is not so great
as it would seem TO be.
on the upper deck at the corners Of the
superstructure four 6-Inch guns viii Doe
I mounted on sponsors, one at each corner,
each having an arc Of fire OF not less
than 2t5 degrees On the main or gun
deck ten G-iuch guns will Doe mounted iu
bIOadSl1e, lEg on each side, having au arc
of not less than 10 degrees. except the
forward pair. which are o. Doe on spOu-
| sons, and viii also fire directly ahead.
! The secondary battery Will DE mounted
/ IN commanding positions. and will have
| large arcs Of FIRE An innovation Will DE
! made in the mounting OF the 5-iuch guns
: / which viii De given --IUCh protection. and
/ VIII, besides be separated by splinter
] Dulkheans. The proposition that this De-
| done was made by the Cramp Company,
| and the idea was adopted 10y the depart
| meut for the other cruisers OF the class
| Her engines are 10 Doe vertical twin
| screw, triple expansion engines Of com
: / Diued indicated horsepower of 300 the
. | steam pressure 40 be at least 20 pounds,
4 | stroke feet diameters 70 DE sufficient
II for the required indicated horsepower at
L | 30 revolutions per minute. There viii
1 | be % boilers Of the water tube type in
i ! 5 Water-tight compartments. having 1884
i | square feet Of crate and IS 900 square feet
4 | Of heating surface The coal bunker ca
/ ! paCity viii be 200 tons. The speed of
Il | the Pennsylvania is 10 be y knots.
Il The cruiser VIII be fitted as a flagship,
} and her complement will comprise ! flag
= / officer. ! commanding officer. ! chief Of
| GERS. 10 warrant officers. and ~ crew
] including marines making a total OF SD
| So far as possible the use OF wood will
| be eliminated in her construction. The
: I main deck viii be the only one on which
: l wood viii be laid. All wood used will De
| made non-infammab
| Electric motors will be used to operate
! much Of the auxiliary machinery OF tho
? | snip. including turret turning gear. blow
! ers. turret ammunition hOistS. hammers
turret ammunition hOiSts for heavy guns
e ] air cOmpresseTs for charging tOTDedOcs
- and machinery in the general workshop.
The other cruisers of the class are the
% CalifDTuiaFn Colorado. West Virginia
- ! Maryland. and South Dakota.
e The Russian bdttleshD ECJviZau is rap
o idly getting iu shape for her preliminary
- trial trip. which IL IS expected. viii tax,
70 place about September J. The vesse
q ! makes very imposing spectacle as she
"a lies ~ her dock in Cramps shipyaTd. heI
d. | massive upper works giving her tho aD
peaTauce Of floating fortress. Men wrr.
70 | husily engaged yesterday ia screwiuE OT
Z the top of her forward Jurr,t. which vii
Z ! Doe ia working order IN couple 0f days
| Two of her lS-ilch guns have beer
mounted. and an her smaller armament
70 Is Do position. The bdttIeship will Doe com
10 manded on her trial trip by Captain Sar
, geaut. She is expected 90 cover with tas1
K SAW A BABY SEA SFRPENT.