Los Angeles herald., 1907-04-24
AMERICAN FLEET
AWAITS VISITORS
DEATH-DEALlNG CRAFT NOW
IN READINESS
Three Hundred Thousand Tons Of
Floating steel at Hampton Roads.
Foreign War Vessels Ar
rivlng Daily
BY Associated Press.

BY Associated Press.
NORFOLK, Va, April 2S.-The great
est fleet of American vessels ever as
sembled in the historic waters of
Hampton Roads-3O0,00O tons of float
ing steel-was made ready today to
receive the first of the visiting foreign
battleships and cruisers which are
from time to time to take part in the
celebrations which will mark the
progress of the Jamestown tercenten-
ary exposition.
At the opening of the exposition,
Friday, the 26th, the war vessels of
Great Britain, Germany and Austria
are expected One of the visiting Ger
mans, the dark-hulled cruiser Bremen,
commanded by Lieut.. Commander AL
berts, is already in the roadstead
awaiting the arrival of the Room, a
big arfnored cruiser, typical of the
modern fighting craft of Emperor Will
liams navy.
The Room, it is expected. may arrive
late this afternoon. She will be Off
cially welcomed by a boom of cannon
from the Connecticut, the flagship of
Rear Admiral Evans, commander of
the Atlantic fleet.
All the American vessels now at
anchor belong to the Atlantic fleet.
There are probably twenty-five battle
ships and cruisers in the line which
is headed by the Connecticut just off
the government pier at Fortress Mon
roe and which extends almost to the
point up the broad channelway leading
to Norfolk
The fleet has been arranged so as to
give the visitors to the exposition the
best possible opportunity for reviewing
the fighting strength of the American
navy.
All Types Represented
Practically every type of fighting
craft in the American navy is repre-
sented. The battleships range from
16,000-ton monsters of the Connecticut
and Louisiana class-the forerunners
of the Dreadnaught about to be added
to the navy-down to the all but
abandoned old Texas, the oldest Amer
lean battleship and sister of the Maine,
which was wrecked in Havana harbor.
The Texas was built at the Norfolk
navy yard many years ago and, being
local product, is to remain at the
exposition as a permanent feature of
naval exhibits. With her eight guns
and paltry 6345 tons of weight the
Texas, which ranged alongside the
mammoth Connecticut which mounts
twenty-four guns and displaces 10000
tons of water, offer a striking example
of the progress of the American navy
since the days when the Texas and
Maine were first authorized by con-
gress.
The cruisers of the fleet are all
modern craft, though the variance in
size between the largest and smallest
is as great as that which marks the
heavier sizes of the battleship class.
Fleet and Strong
The armored cruisers Tennessee and
Washington. each of 14,500 tons and
mounting twenty guns each. are the
heaviest of the cruisers. They can hurl
a weight of metal almost equal to the
first class battleships, while they pos
sess the 1eetness of the ocean grey
hound.
The smallest cruisers are the Denver
and the Cleveland of 3100 tons each
the third class of the protected vessels
of the navy. In the cruiser class the
most interesting vessel is perhaps the
Brooklyn, the flagship of Rear Admiral
Schley in the battle of Santiago.
The English naval squadron, under
command of Rear Admiral Neville, is
expected in Hampton Roads either to-
morrow or Thursday. There will be
four armored cruisers in the squadron,
a homogeneous set of gray-coated
fighters built along the fleet lines Of
all the modern English vessels. The
flagship will be the Good Hope, and
the companion ships will be the Ar
| gyl, Hampshire and Roxburgh.
The Austrian vessels, the armored
cruiser Sankt George and the protected
cruiser Aspenwall, either arrive Thurs
day evening or Friday morning. It is
hoped they will be here in time for
the opening ceremonies. The vessels
of the navies of the world will arrive
on dates yet to be fixed The Japanese
squadron is expected May 8.
President to Review Fleet
President Roosevelt will review the
American fleet and the visiting for
eigners from the deck of the May
| flower on Friday morning before he
lands on the exposition grounds.
The foreign vessels will be given po-
sitlons Of honor inside the long, sweep
ing circle of American ships during
their stay. Fifteen hundred blue
jackets will be landed from the Amer
lean vessels to take part in the mill
tary and naval parade Friday after
noon, which will be reviewed by the
president from the stand erected on
the exposition plaza known as Lees
parade.
The foreign vessels in port at that
time will be invited to land parties,
and If they consent TO do so their
forces will be given the right of line.
~aRnH-n an IaNnHH