Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-09-11
MARYLAND LAUNCHING
Preparations Completed for
Christening of New Cruiser.
JENNIE SCOTT WATERS,
DAUGHTER OF GEN. WATERS,
WILL BREAK THE BOTTLE.
Gala Day at Newport News Tomorrow
Great Throng Will Be
Present.
Special Dispatch TO The Evening Star.

Special Dispatch 10 Inc Evening star
NEWPORT NEWS, Va, September IL
All the preparations complete for the
launching of the armored cruiser Maryland
at the yards of the Newport News Ship
building and Dry Dock Company tomorrow
at l pm. The christening platform has
been finished and tomorrow morning the
ship will be decorated with gay colors.
while patriotic bunting will be used to hide
the rough and unsightly material used in
the construction of the stand
Invited Guests.
At the office of the shipbulding company
today it was announced that 400 invited
guests were expected to attend the launch
ing, and adequate preparations had been
made for entertaining them. There will be
no delay at the launching. and the big
cruiser will take her initial dip promptly at
the time scheduled. After the launching
the guests will be conducted to the Cham
berlin Hotel at Old Point Comfort, ten
miles from the shipyard. and the Newport
News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company
will entertain them at an elegant collation.
and grand ball.
Miss Jennie Scott Waters the charming
daughter of Gen. Francis Waters of Balti-
more, a member of the staff of Gov. Smith
of Maryland, has been chosen sponsor. and
She will break the traditional bottle of
sparkling champagne over the ships PROV,
giving the cruiser her name. The Sponsors
party will arrive at Old Point tomorrow
morning and after a short stop there will
proceed to the shipyard. where it will be re-
ceived by Superintendent Walter A. Post.
Miss Waters will be escorted at once to the
sponsors stand. few feet above the plat
form. and here she will remain with her
father and her maids of honor until the
vessel has cast off her mornings holding
her to the land and has glided down the
ways and out into the middle Of the James.
Gov. Smith Will Preside.
Gov. Smith of Maryland and his party
will arrive at Old Point on the same boat
with Miss Waters and her party, and the
two parties will probably be merged into
one. Gov. Montague of Virginia has been
invited to attend the launching, and he Is
expected here with his staff tomorrow
morning on special train from Richmond
The shipbuildng company has chartered
the steamer Newport News to bring the
guests of the company from Washington 20
this city tonight. and President Calvin 3.
circuit will arrive aboard the Newport
News.
Tomorrow will be a gala day in Newport
News. Excursions will be run here from
Richmond. Norfolk Washington, Baltimore
and other points. and the city is prepared
to entertain 2oO0 guests After the launch
ing a big tournament will be held, and at
night a grand ball will complete the tri-
umphS of a glorious day.
The Maryland is a sister ship of the West
Virginia. launched at the same yards on
April IS.
Description of the Vessel.
The general description of the Maryland
Is as follows: Hull-Length on water line.
t02 feet extreme beam. 90 feet 61a inches;
draft or normal displacement of 13, 676 tons,
81 feet / inch; full load displacement Gam
munition and stores on board 15,104 tons;
designed indicated horse power 23,OOO;
speed, % knots: coal supply, full bunker
tIfD ttS1
7s3. ~ -'
Engines and boilers-There will be two
sets of vertical inverted, triple-expansion,
direct-aCting, propelling engines designed
for 5000 collective horse power at 120 rev.
olutiOns per minute. Each engine will be
placed in a separate water-tight compart-
ment and will have cylinders 3Sn inches.
631s inches and two IA inches In diameter
by IS inches stroke of piston.
Steam at 80 pounds pressure will be sup
piled from sixteen watertube boilers of the
Babcock & Wilcox marine type. The boil
ers will be arranged in six water-tight
compartments. The total CRATE surface of
the sixteen boilers will be coo square feet,
and the total heating surface will be 70,944
square feet. The smoke pipes will be four
in number. standing fore and aft.
Armor-An armor belt will extend five
feet above normal load line and from stem
TO stern 1t will be six inches thick at the
top and five inches thick at the bottom.
The maximum thickness will be preserved
for a depth of six feet from the top. The
armor will taper at the stem and stern to
thickness of three and one-half inches.
The armor on the HichbOrn balanced oval
turrets. with inclined port plates will be
six and one-half inches thick the port
plate and six inches thick on the sides and
Battery-The main battery will consist of
four S-inch breach-loadng rifles mounted
two in each turret on the center line of the
vessel. There will be fourteen 6-inch rapid
fire guns and secondary battery of
eighteen 3-inch and twelve 3-pounder guns,
besides four 1-pounder automatic guns.
four 1-pounder rapid-fre guns, six Colt
automatic guns. two machine guns and two
3-inch field guns.