Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1906-04-04

u IAAo MA6ALy oAAP Wco tdlu, q Ie@oi>
which it was expected would take six
months to accomplish, and in view OF
this remarkable record it is more than
probable that she, will be completed
within the estimated period Of Is
months from the laying of the kee'.
The significance of this rapid construc-
ton is seen in the potent'al.ty OF re-
placement it suggests If Great Britain
were engaged in a lengthy war. There
are a dozen yards in England that
could build one or two ships of the
class Of the Dreadnought In about the
same time; and this would mean the
creation of new battleship fleet of a
dozen vessels in the period covered by
the Japanese war.
The three striking features OF the
new battleship are its armament. its
turbine engines and its armor protec-
ton, and these points and others net
yet known were worked out by sps~
cial committee, corresponding to our
board Of construction In this country.
to which was submitted all the infor-
nation which was obtained from study
OF the naval engagement in the Sea of
Japan. It is said on the highest official
authority that Great Britain had sew
eral of her naval officers upon Admiral
Togo's fleet, who had been specially
detailed to secure technical informal
ton OF the valuable kind which can
only be gathered in an actual sea fight,
and it was this data which was used.
The matter for first consideration
was the size of the vessel and the
armament which she was to carry.
Apparently it has been demonstrated
to the satisfaction of naval experts
that the bulk of the fighting must be
done by the battleships carrying the
heaviest guns, and that practically the
only batteries needed are the heav;
and the light, the former for fighting
at long range and the latter for use IN
repelling torpedo attacks.
AS to the size the Dreadnought ex-
ceeds in tonnage by 1000 tors, the
heaviest battleship of the Lord Mel
SON. type in the English navy, anu.
as compared with the ships of the
United States navy, is over 1000 tons
heavier, the Maine, our largest battle
ship, having displacement OF only 49,
713 tons. :.4~
AS to armament, the Dreadnought Is
expected to create a new. type of bat
tleship, inasmuch as the secondary
battery is entirely eliminated. In all
of the battleships of the United State
I'm "a CT 10Th ~ ho
ondary battery far exceeds that of the
main battery, being on the Maine 49,
six-inch guns to four l2-inch guns,
for it has been the theory that these
smaller guns would be the only ones
which could be used at short range,
and it was expected that most of tho
fighting would occur within one-mlle
or two-mlie limit. But directly the
contrary was proven true in the Japa-
nese war, and England mas FASTENED t.
provide battleship which would more
nearly meet the actual demands Of a
sea engagement. For this reason the
greatest possible displacement has been
secured, SO that ten instead of four big
guns could be carried in steel-covered
turrets on her deck. Two of these H.
inch guns will be placed in a double
turret forward and two will be SINH
larly mounted aft, while from each
broadside there will extend three, guns
mounted in single turrets. These r.
inch guns will be Of the wire-wound
type, and about Is calibers in length.
Each gun will throw an 850-pound
shell with a muzzle energy OF 1865
foot-tons. And owing to the improved
methods of handling the Pinch guns,
they viii be- theoretically capable Of