The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-06-02

The really significant fact about these two great ships is their construction in a Japanese navy yard by Japanese wcrkmen.
 Working Noght and Day
 At Kure Japan has as fine a navy yard as | the world knows. Here there is to be found everything in the way of the most modern ma achinery. More than 30.00o men are con tinually employed, work being carried for ward by night as well as by day. The Jap anese naval authorities point with pride to the fact that the Aki was turned out, from the date of laying down to the date of lAunchings in eight months of actual work ing time They have good reason to feel proud of this feat.
 A few weeks ago announcement was made r the Japanese press that battle ship of 2l, 900 tons had been ordered in England. This announcsment was immediately follow ed by an official denial. With the construc- tion facilities she now possesses at home, and in view of the natural pride over the success with the Aki and the Satsuma it seems improbable that Japan should at this time go elsewhere for her big ships even if she did go to England for her battle ships Katori and sKashima. Should it de- veiop that there has been this call upon out side facilities the fact will doubtless be taken as an indication of haste altogether most significant.
 Following upon the heels of the launch ing of the Aki, the construction of the 16.- 900 ton armored cruiser Ibuki has been be- gun at Kure. The launching of this ves- seI is scheduled for the end of October, but six months being allotted for constcuc- ton. This is of three armored cruis- CTS embraced in what is termed in official circles the third naval expansion pro- gram" This program covering a period of seven years. has approximately five years to run In it embraced the Aki and Sat- KoSh infa uyhf w built in England, and three armored cruis- CTS and two cruisers yet to be ordered, as well as three dispatch boats. now, under construction, and twenty-nine destroyers to he launched in the course of the year saese details, taken from one of the most reliable of the Japanese papers are doubt less authoritative. No Japanese paper would make such publication without authority. In the same connection it is announced that in addition to this third naval expansion program" the sum of 76.b77.1O2 yen (S3S,- 2Ss,551) is to be expended for seven more consecutive years under the name of the warships and torpedo boats replacement funds in accordance with law passed in | 1899 From this fund four 20,o 900 ton bat tie ships or five armored cruisers of 13,0oo tons each may be constructed. Analyzing these figures this authority says:-
 ''Thus it is estimated that the naval strength of Japan seven years after will be twice tha; during the Rnsso-Japanese war" &sss ssH sss9Sa
 count Only xodns ships.
 In their estimate of naval strength the Japanese experts eliminate vessels ten years old and over, since in view of the great progress made in naval architecture and construction such ships cannot be counted on as able to take their place in battling | against the newest and most modern ships Tn the following table are shown the vessels large and small, which by this process o elimination are ciassed as practically obso- iate. In the case of vessels taken iron Russia the original names are given for pur- poses of identification:-