The Savannah morning news., 1902-11-29
VESSELS AND MEN r.
!. e IN UNITED STATES SERVICE
The Annual Report of the Secretary of the Navy
Is Made to the President

Washington, Nov. 2S.--The' report Af
the Secretary. of the Navy, which was
made public to-day. says. that at the
close of the last fiscal year the follow
ing vessels were under construction:
Eight battieships. ) armored cruisers.rs
protected cruiser, monitors, 10 torpe
do-boat destroyers. q torpedo boats, and
Z submarine torpedo boats. The gen.
,eral progress of work upon these. ves+.
sells, particularly those of the larger
class, has not been found tor be satisr,
factory. The battleships WERE on June
90, 1902, !. from ten to- twenty -nfne
months behind contract times the ar
mored cruisers from four to thirteen
months; the protected cruiser from six
TO eighteen months, while the mont
tors were from sixteen to- nineteen
/ months. The department has recent
ly taken steps to remove, as far as
practicable, any, grounds of delay over
which 1T can exercise control, and has
notified Contractors that they will be
held to accountability for failure to
push forward the work of construction
with due diligence, if such. failure shall
occur, and particularly for any delays
which may at any time be caused by
preference being given to private over
public work.
In the case of torpedo boats and the
destroyers, the contractors have assign
ed as an additional reason for delay
that the contracts for their construc-
ton were so exacting that compliance
with them has been we'll nigh impos-
sible.
During the fiscal year the following
vessels have been finally accepted The
battleships Alabama, Wisconsin and
Illinois, the torpedo boats Bailey, Bag
ley, Barney, Biddle. Shubrick and
Stockton. The torpedo boats Thornton
and Wilkes and the, destroyers Deca-
tur, Perry and Preble have been pre-
limnarily accepted. Between. July j.,
1902; and Nov. l, 1902, the Thornton
has been finally and, the following YES
sells preliminarily accepted: The mont
tor Arkansas, the torpedo boat de-
streyers Barry, Chauncey, Dale, Paul
Jones, Truxton. Whipple and Wordon,
and the torpedo boat De Long.
At the last session of Congress, by
act of July 1, 1902, the construction
of the following. additional vessels IF
the navy was authorized Two battle
ships, one to be built at such navy
yard as the Secretary might designate:
two armored cruisers and two gun
boats. In pursuance of this act the
department without delay approved
plans for the construction of the two
battleships and directed that work on
one of them, the Connecticut, be conf
menced at once at the navy yard, New
York.
The contract for the construction of
the othek battleship. the Louisiana, has
been awarded to the Newport News
Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company,
after competition, for the sum of 3d.
10000. The specifications for these two
4. battleships. the most powerful yet laid
down by the navy, call for vessels $50
feet. in length upon the load water line;
about "a feet abeam; gross draft. about
26% feet; trial speed at sea, to be
maintained four hours, Is knots. II,
The plans, and specifications for two
14,500-ton armored cruisers, the Ten
nessee and the Washington, are COM