Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1904-10-14
NEW IDEA IN BATTLESHIPS
VIII Eclipse All Other Fighting Machines
A Radical Departure in Respect to
the Armament

The experts OF the United States navy
are preparing plans for a new battle
ship which when completed will eclipse
any fighting machine now in existence
The battleship will be from is 900 to 20
600 gross tonnage. but the most radical
departure will be In respect to armament
Instead OF, as now, arming the vessel with
main battery Of heavy guns and grad
/ uatinC the rest Of her armament from
siX-inch rifles down to six, three and one
Founders in her second battery. the new
ship will carry only two types Of naval
ordnance Her main battery will consist
OF ten twelve-inch guns, the heaviest
now in use in the American navy. placed
in turrets and broadsides and the sec
ondary battery will be made up entirely
of at least twenty of the new three-inch
quick firing guns.
While the plans for the new and mas
siye ship Of war have not vet been COM
pleted. and will not for some time and
although they can be considered. at best
in view OF the construction and other
problems involved. only tentative, the
greatest interest surrounds the com
templated new departure in battleshp
construction and armament arrangement,
and naval experts are watching with con-
siderable anxiety the working out OF the
I difficult problems which must be met and
conquered before the plans Of such a
fighting machine as that contemplated can
]
Congress.
II is conceded that a battery of ten
! twelveinch guns would constitute the
most formidable floating armament that
at present exists for long range combat
/ with vessels of a similar type. while the
secondary battery of three-inch guns
would. 1t is believed form the most for
midable floating defence from torpedo or
/ destroyer attack. In fact, the naval ex-
perts Of the United States some time ago
brought the three-inch gun TO such a
state Of perfection that il is now being
introduced generally, replacing the one.
three, six, twelve and fourteen Founders.
which for some years back have formed
the secondary batteries OF ships of war.
The three-inch guns can be fired as
rapidly as the guns of smaller calibre. has
a much wider range, and can. OF course,
do much more effective work The de-
velopment Of this rifle, 1t may be said,
has kept pace with the extension OF the
range Of the submarine torpedo. Some
| years ago. owing to the limited range of
/ the torpedo six and twelve Founders were
/ considered adequate for the purpose OF
! repelling attacks by this means. When,
/ however, the submarine engine of de-
struction was brought to such a stage
/ of practical efficiency. with wider range
/ and greater accuracy of control. IL was
! found that new weapon of defence was
( absolutely necessary, and as a result of
]
three-inch gun, considered the best of its
/ type now in use by any nation, was in
vented.
The advantage from almost every point
] of view of having a battleship in whose
armament there are only two calibres is,
! of course. recognized by naval experts
1t is true that in order to construct a
/ ship of the tonnage and beam required to
/ carry the increased weight of heavy guns
/ contemplated for the new battleship some
sacrifice must be made In other directions.
1t is probable that the speed of such a
ship could not exceed sixteen knots. but
as vessel of this class would be built
ito fight and not run away" as a high
! official of the navy put 1t recently, this
sacrifice would not be considered draw
back.
The American navy is at present COM
posed OF vessels, the majority of which
can be separated into homogeneous
| groups. There are about half a dozen
battleships of recent type which are es-
| sentially homogeneous. five new cruisers
which can also be so classed, and the
| somewhat less modern ships can also be
| divided into other groups of fighting units
! For future ships, however, the experts
are considering three types ony-the bat
! tleship, the armored cruiser and the
destroyer. They think that a navy COM
! posed of merely these three types of ves-
sels-with the possible addition OF the
suoiha ING, Whlch is considered YET In the
| experimental stage, would be more eff
cient than navy made up of all the
different prevailing types. 1t is very i'm
probable, therefore, that the construction
OF any more cruisers OF the type OF the
Charleston, Milwaukee, Columbia, Min
neapolis, Olympia, Chicago, Newark, and
San Francisco will be recommended The
protected cruiser is at present practically
discredited, largely through the results
| or sea nights which have occurred during
the present conflict in the Far East