The daily morning journal and courier., 1903-04-17
MINNESOTA LAUNCHED.
LARGEST VESSEL EYER BUILTIN
 THIS COUNTRY.
Also the Greatest Cargo Carrier In the WorId-Ten Thousand Visitors nt New London to Witness the Event.

New London to Witness the Event.
 New London, Conn.,, April 16.-The steamship Minnesota was successfully launched at 2:15 D. m. to-day at the yard of the Eastern Shipbuilding com- pany in Groton. Thousands of persons watched the launching. Her sister ves- sel, the Dakota, is to be launched few months hence. Every trolley car from Norwich, vehicles from the suburban districts, and special trains on the New York New Haven and Hartford railroad brought loads of spectators. It is esti- mated that there were 10000 visitors in town.
 The steam yacht Waconta, bearing Pres1dent James J. Hill of the Great Northern Steamship company and party arrived in the harbor early in the day, aTter tempestuous sound trip from New York. Miss Clara Hill, who named the new steamer, and who is the daugh- ter of President Hill., was one of the party.
 The steel cargo and passenger steam ship Minnesota" built at New London for the Great Northern Steamship com- pany, and launched to-day, is not only the largest vessel of any kind con- structed in America, but it is the largest cargo carrier in the world.
 The Cedric" which is registered at the same tonnage and exceeds the Minnesota" in length, has less dead weight carrying capacity by more than 5000 tons. The dead weight carrying capacity of the Cedric" is IS, 400 tons, while that of the Minnesota is 2S,- 0OO., The Minnesota" and her sister vessel, the "Dakota,' which is to be launched in about ten weeks, will car ry 2S,000 tons of coal and 2S0,0O0 barrels of flour. This is fifty per cent. more than the dead weight carrying capacity of the two giant carriers of the White Star Line, the Cedric and the Gel tic"
 As compared with the largest steam ships built at American shipyards, the Minnesota" and Dakota" have very nearly double the tonnage displace- ment and fully double the net dead weight carrying capacity. The new cargo and passenger carriers, Fin land" and ''Kroonland,' of the Red Star Line, have a tonnage of 12,200. The Korea" and Siberia" of the Pa cific Mail company. have registered tonnage of 11,30O. The "Minnekakda' and "Minnedora" Of the Atlantic Transport company, have 15,40O gross tonnage, The "St. Louis" and "St. Paul. of the American line have 1O,- 300 tonnage. The Minnesota" and Dakota" on the usual basis of forty cubic feet to the cargo ton, have a cargo space for 31,652 long tons, while the actual dead weight carrying capac- ity is, 2S,0O0N 0Nand their tonnage dis placement 3S.OOO. ~ .~
 The great vessel now building in Ger many, tsKaiser Wilhelm IT," is some what longer than the Minnesota" but has less breadth, and has moulded depth of. forty-four feet as compared with nearly fifty-six for the "Minneso- ta.? The tonnage displacement of the big German vessel is over one-third less than that of the Minnesota" and Dakota
 The strength of the ''Minnesota's" hull is shown by the fact that it is twice as thick as that of the American battleship the Oregon" Where the Oregon" uses steel deck plating of a half inch in thickness the Minnesota" uses an inch to an inch and a quarter plate. Where the Oregon" uses a main frame six by three and a half inches, the Minnesota" uses a twelve inch The Minnesota" is of the inter- mediate cargo and passenger type and built under Lloyd's survey. She is 630 feet long, seventy-three feet six inches wide, t1fty-six feet high to upper deck, eighty-eight feet high to captains bridge, TIT feet high to top of most and hav five continuous decks, all plated with steel. Four decks not continuous are the "forecastle, promenade bridge or boat decks, and on top of all comes the captains or navigating bridge, making nine decks in all.
 In the hull and decks of the Min nesota" there are no less than 12,000 tons of f@steel plates and shapes and 375 tons of rivets a greater total of steel strength than is found in the hull of the greatest battleships or of any other mehchant vessel in the world. It is in- teresting to note by comparison that the Park Row building in New York contains 5000 tons of structural iron and steel, or one-fourth less than the Minnesota" that the Prick building in Pittsburg contains 7,500 tons, or nearly