The Cairo bulletin., 1904-04-21
GRIM TERROR OF THE SEA
ANCHORED Off OUR CITY
Torpedo Destroyer Lawrence Arrived Here Yesterday Afternoon
and Departed This Morning For Evansyile-A Wonder
iu Offensive Fighting Machine

With the speed Of fast mail train
the torpedo destroyer Lawrence cut
through the murky waters OF the Ohio
and TO the deafening screetches of
nteamb9at, locomotive and factory
whistles glided rapidly mp to a point
directly opposite The Bulletin office.
Her powerful engines ceased to pound
and turn at the rate Of $50 revolutions
a minute and precisely at 3:15 in the
afternoon an anchor was tossed into
the river, while thousands who, at
the first sound Of the many whistles
had hurried to the leyee, stood and
looked at the handsome lines, but
ugly and grim war-like appearance,
made so by her black paint, as she
SAT cold and silent upon the bosom Of
strange water.
Long and narrow, pointed at the
stem like needle. soping gracefully
in beautiful lines to past amidships,
where her greatest breadth of beam,
223 feet--a perfect model, built for
speed and exemplilying the greatest
pent up destructive power that floats
on the surface of the waters, easily
putting out of commission the largest
l5,000-ton battleship afloat, could she
but successfully come within the radi-
us of one of her two lS-nch White
head torpedoes with war head" at
tachedthis is the Lawrence
There was no noisy booming of can
non. no demonstration whatever upon
her part-nothing but business She
simply came into our harbor, anchor
Ell during the night and departed
early this morning for Evansville,
where she will arrive tomorrow morn
ing about 10 o'clock, but will return
and stay with us one day and accept
Of Cairo's bounteous hospitality,
Much has heea written about the
Lawrence and the land bubbers who
drive pencils on the river press have
attempted to give an accurate de-
eoriatinn ,of. the wonderful oaensive
fighting machine, with varying sue
cess.
A representative OF The Bulletin
Paid the terror of the seas a visit i'm
mediately upon her arrival, having
recourse to a skiif as a means of con
veyance description would not
convey to the average person con
ception of the ship, it must be thor
oughly examined and then compared
all the time with the following history
OF ,he building of the Lawrence and
complete technical description talk
en- from pages 797, 1926, 92S and 1910
Of Secretary of the Navy Moody's re
port for the year OF 1908;
Torpedo boat destroyer No. 9, Law
rence--Building by the Fore River
Ship and Engine company, at Quincy.
Mass; experimenting constructor. r
NJ Watt. naval constructor. L. S.
navy. Date of contract. September
20. 1898: first order for hull material
forwarded December Z, 1898; lines
were faired complete in mold loft No
yember, 1898: Keel laid. April 10,
1899 vessel launched, November :,
1900; first dock trial of machinery,
December II, 1900; first sea trial of
ship by contractor, January s, 1901,
official Standardization trial, October
10. 1902; official endurance trial Jan
uary T. 1903; preliminary accepted,
April T, 1903; delivered to govern.
mept, April 7, 1908. The contract date
of completion of the Lawrence was
January 29 1900; contract time was
extended by the department to the /
date Of her delivery, April Z, 1903.