Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1903-04-11
BUILDING OF WARSH|PS.
Government and Private ConStruc-
tio1 Compared.
A TEST IN ENGLAND.
What Has Been Done in Other European
CountrieS-Chilean Contracts
Hurried.

In view of the experiments Of the
British admiralty department, now Ill
progress, TO ascertain whether a private
shipyard can build warships with great
er speed than the government shipbuild-
ing yards. the results in this direction IL
other countries afford interesting com
parsons. In Germany and France Bat
IleshiD construction in both the private
and state yards is very and unnecessa-
rily protracted And this delay consti-
tuteS 4 grave national danger which, II
would seem, the respective governments
do not adequately appreciate. In Eng
land, where, on the other hand. such
work is carried out With all possible ex-
petition. il has now become an axiom
that Great Britain can afford to wait
until the admiralty knows the designs
and efficiency of the projected vessels Of
other tEurOpean) nations before she com
mences to build new vessel to excel
them" In the case of the German bat
tleship Kaiser Karl der Crosse, a vessel
3IT feet t inches in length and Of II SOC
ions displacement, with four 9.4-inch
guns and eighteen 5.9-inch guns and
with enginsS Of $4,000 i. h. p, capable
of develCs&g a speed of IS knots. she
was erected in the private shipyard of
MesSrS. BlOhm q Voss at Hamburg
and no less than 40 months and : days
til delivered to the government. Even
the krupp firm, notwithstanding it's mod
ern and extensive equipment, are not
much faster. since they occupied thirty
five months i'll building the Zaehringen.
With respect to the imperial docIyards,
they are quite as slow, since it was
nearly four years before the Whittels-
bach, a similar vessel to the Kaiser
Karl der Crosse, was ready for sea.
In France similar state of affairs eX-
lists. but in this case the delay is more
attributable to the uncertainty and hest
fancy of the naval department, since the
French government have peculiar way
of suddenly stopping work upon the CON
struction of one vessel and directing
operations upon another ship. But in
the case of three new battleshipS Dem
ocrate, Justice, and Nerite, which
are each to be of $4,000 horse power, ii
is calculated that they will occupy -four
years in building. What is the result
of this protracted construction! These
three French battleships are OF ire
mendOus power, but progress in naval
affairs and ornaments is so rapid that
by the time they are in commission they
will be somewhat out of date.
In considering the practice III England
we find that although the government Is
comparatively slow in construction, ey-
,erything is being done by the admiralty
10 decrease the IlIlie oCtupieu III buliSlhHS
The private shipyards. when they have 2
vessel in hand, crowd the worknen upon
it. and get it off the ways as quickly as
possible. The recent eases of the Chilean
battlesliips Libertad and Constitution
and the new type of torpedo destroyel
Erne, offer striking examples Of the speed
with Which battleship construction IS car
ried out. The two first named. notwith
standing their large dimensions and dis
placement were launched ten months aft
err the signing of the contracts, while thu
builders actually undertook to have thu
vessels complete and ready for use Witll
in eighteen months; AID if the speed o.
building with which they. were com
menced had been maintained, the con
tract time would have been short
ened bv one month. To bult
and eunip a first-class modern bat
tleship such as these Chilean wa
vessels. ready for action, within seven
teen months. is Il Commensurate achleYs
ment. In the instance of the terped
boat destroyer Erne, record in auifl
construction was accomplished, Ihl
vessel was launched seven months afte
the signing of the contract, and VIII D
handedsoyer to the English admiralty 81
months below the contract time. Eve
in the government dockyards qHick cor
struction is the chief desideratuln. thong
in this case the speed is not so great a
in the private shipyards. But the Eng
fish admiralty are determined to Gu
down the time for building to the min
num- and they have now inaugurated
new system of decentralization, by whic
there is a superintendent for naval COZ
tracts. Speed in construction is the col
tinual demand of the government, and
is furthermore a great national demand
For the battleship costing $5,000,o00 III
ward. when launched. to be out of dat
owing to the long time occupied in il
construction. is a result which, III th
interest of the citizens and the defense
Of any country. should be remedied ut a
costs.--Scientitc American. --...