Omaha daily bee., 1906-11-04

perhaps the still more massive guns and
turrets.
Other months pass until the work of a
full regiment of brain and Drawn begins
| to reveal impressive results. The skeleton
| is done, and now remains to be clotheu
| In armOr. Plate after plate is welded anu
Irveted over her sides until, READY lo'
Launching, she wears a cOrsage OF eleNtH
Inch case hardened steel weighing some
| -four thousand tons. Arrayed thus ana
weighing in bridal trim round ten thol-
| sand tons, finely lined and perfectly poised;
/ she gracefully answers a sudden powerful
| touch general ted by an electric button ana
Launches down the ways. Then comes the
| most important feature Of the entire pro-
Igramme--the installation OF her turrets
and guns OF heavier armor belts, or vast
boilers and engines which may develop
|l6. 800 horse power, and the thousand ad-
Idi.ions necessary to matriculated battle
/ ship.
II has been asserted that these costly
agents Of destruction or protection in war
and of patrol in peace are too himsily
built, that they would shake themselves to
pieces and would be surely destroyed II
grounded. Experience has shown these
predictions to be false in the main. War
ships have gone ashore and sustained
heavy damages, but have beer saved, re-
haired and restored to active service.
Swift armored cruisers have not shaken
themselves to pieces, but have remained
intact, though their propelling machinery
has been relatively more powerful than
that Of any transoceanic liner, Facts Of
this calibre have routed prophets Of pes
simism, criticisms, formerly frequent,
have now been pra stically silenCed, and
designers of merchant vessels have bene-
MED In many ways by the daring initia-
= tive taken by the architects of war.
! II was with the Crimean War that the
age Of the irOnclad really was inaugurated
ana II Is one OF the strangest features OF
history that Russia, who to-day has no
standing In the naval world, was the
! pioneer and inspiration of modern naval
warfare. Prior to 1854 inventors had
/ dreamed dreams and seen visions, sugges-
! lions had been advanced and failures re-
4 corded, but ntty-twO years ago the visions
ana suggestions were mateTialized At
ISlnope in 1853, the first damaging effect OF
shell fire on wooden vessels was shown In
action Turkish squadron, numbering
seven frlgates, pair OF corvettes and as
many steamers, was anchored under the
guns OF a battery in Sinope Straits. The
Turks were not expecting a Russian at
tack ami knew moth ng Of the Sleeping de.
struction In thu smooth bore shell guns
hecking the Russian battery. They were
swiftly and utterly annlhilated and a new
note OF war was sounded
1t reached the ears of Napoleon III. who
In September Of the following year ordered
five floating batteries equipped with arrnor
M.
siXty-four feet long and Of only eight feel
draughL Sheath!ng each timber hull was
an iron belt OF armor four Inches thick
His vessels had some deck protect on
above the batteries, and boosted the germ
Of what has come 10 be known as ths con-
ming tower-a bullet proof iron shelter for
the pilots. HIS heavy, su.len vessels were
soon copied by England. Then came our
Merrimac and Monitor and no period lr,|
human record has Witnessed changes sol
numerous, so startling and so far reach
ing as the succeeding one Of forty-odd
years.
II we shall realize this In its broad sided
impresslveness VIC much approach and
examine the newly launched battle ship OF
to-day. Scanning her massive body 1, Is
difficult to realize that she has greater bulk
below than above the water. Her sub
merged body measures 24ia feet leaving
q feet from water 10 deck rail, IS feet
inches to military topmast and los feet
inches 70 signal top. Her beam Is 70 feet