The San Francisco call., 1904-06-20

the Kent class, designed in 1899 and laid
down between August 90. 1899. and
March IL, 1901, have been completed.
The average time of building these
ships has been a little over three years,
and the dockyards have almost kept
pace with the contractors. The Essex,
Kent, Suffolk and Cornwall were built
at dockyards, and the Bedford, Ber-
wick, Cumberland, Donegal, Lancaster
and Monmouth in private yards. The
hulls are identical, of $500 tons displace-
ment, and the horsepower of machinery,
stipulated at $4,000, was calculated to
give a speed of twentythree knots.
Some difficulty was experienced with
the earlier built ships in attaining this
speed, for the Kent never got above 2l.I
and the Bedford, Essex and Monmouth
attained only 22.7, 22.79 and 22.5S, re-
spectively, but in the later ships the
calculated speed has been considerably
exceeded, the Lancaster making 24.l
and the Suffolk 24.7 knots.
There are several interesting facts TO
be noted in connection with these ships.
In the first place, in a lot of ten iden-
tical ships there is a grand opportu-
nifty for comparison of cost, time and
workmanship of those built in the dock
yards and those built by contract. The
average estimated cost of the ships
built at the dockyards was given on
April last at $3.S43, 500, the highest be-
ing the Cornwall at $3,93S,200, and the
lowest the Kent at S3.669,00 The six
contract built ships averaged $S,70I 5O0
the highest $3,SS4, $40 and the lowest
$3,545, ,425. All the engines were fur
rished by contractors, and those deliv-
cred at the dockyards ranged from
81 ,29O. 900 to 81 $50 900, while those put
into contract built ships varied from
S. 400, 900 to 81 050 900. Five firms sup
piled the machinery, Hawthorn & Les
lie delivering three sets of engines,
namely, for the Kent, Lancaster and
Cornwall. In the performance OF these
ships the results varied greatly. The
question Of the relative merit of water
tube boilers of the Belleville, Niclausse
and the Babcock & Wilcox types again
presents itself for the Belleville was
fitted in seven ships, the Niclausse in
two-the Suffolk and Berwick, and the
Babcock & Wilcox in the Cornwall. The
engines for the Lancaster and the Corn
wall were supplied by Hawthorn &
Leslie, but the speed attained by the
Lancaster, fitted with Belleville boilers,
was 2401 knots, against 2S.6S7 knots of
the Cornwall, with Babcock & Wilcox
boilers, thus demonstrating that the
Belleville is not nearly as bad as al
legged by its opponents.
RESULTS OF CHANGES.
To a limited extent the United States
navy has had the same experience of
varying results with ships and their
engines. The builders have received
their plans for hulls and machinery
from the Navy Department and built
according to specifications, but as
work progressed changes were made
here and there which singly were of
slight Importance, but in the aggregate
affected the final result. In the Oregon,
Massachusetts and Indiana there was
a marked difference and subsequent
ships have likewise proved more or less
speedy, although built on the same de-
sign. The Oregon class was designed
for 5000 horsepower and IS knots
speed, but the trials gave 973S horse
power and 1851 knots for the Indiana;
10415 horsepower and 1921 knots for
the Massachusetts, while the Oregon
developed II, Ill horsepower and 1919
knots. In a steam trial various causes
affect the result; state of weather and
sea. coal used and the efficiency of the
personnel. But in the long
run as years pass on and the parts
of the machinery naturally wear out
two questions will arise, namely:
Whether the workmanship has been in
with the spirit of the speci-
ications and whether any undue de-
terioration is chargeable to inherent
bad work or through want of proper
care and attention. In these respects
the Oregon has proved that work on
her was well done, that she has been
well cared for and that she is still
leading the other ships, which have de-
Perforated and are no longer to be con-
sidered as being in the Oregon class.
THE "PESKY" SUBMARINES.
Those "pesky" submarine boats are
causing more trouble to the personnel
of all navies than any other contriv-
ance yet devised for naval warfare.
The battle of the boilers" and the
Gun IS. Armor" are trivial affairs in
The advocates of the sub
marine and its opponents are naturally
doing their level best in evolving new
ideas to improve on methods of attack
and defense, and the trials going on
in Portsmouth Harbor are interesting.
The latest device to trap a submarine
was successfully tried and consisted
of a fine wire net about 250 feet in
length and seven feet deep rigCed on
long booms attached to steam
launches. The submarine attacked the
net in vain for several no lrs, finally
became entangled in the meshes and
acknowledged defeat by coming to the
surface.
M Bertin, director of naval con-
struction' in the French navy. has sub
mitted his report to the Naval Inquiry
Commission. Mr.. Bertin says: I'VE
have no reason to envy Great Britain.
We are the first builders of the world
from the point of view of strength,
navigability and finish. The English
are only superior to us in one point
that of rapidity of construction. They
also have an advantage over us in the
large sums at their disposal for naval
construction.
The Russian Government is said to
have liquid fuel supplied to the ships
of the Baltic fleet when 1t departs for
the Far East Tank steamers will
either proceed ahead of the fleet or ac-
company the ships. The operation Of
pumping oil from one ship into another
.,s.ria Germany