The evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1907-1908, 1907-07-05
% Battleships and 4 Pro-
tected Cruisers to Go to
Californian Waters.
GO AROUND THE HORN
Rear Admiral Evans Will Com.
mand.-Fleet Will Leave New
York or Hampton Roads
Early in Fall. CoaIing
Arrangements.

tfaA ~
the vast movement of the Atlantic fleet
to Pacific waters have been theoretically
worked out weeks in advance by the
Naval General Board. But these de-
tails are necessarily subject to constant
change resulting from the withdrawal
of battleships from active commission
on account of having been declared
antiquated or in need of repairs, and
the substitution of other ships just
going into commission and fresh from
the builders hands.
The opinion of the officers en- duty
today Is that but one route Is feasible
for the big ships, and that is by way
of the Straits of Magellan. The route
from New York. across tha Atlantic
and through the Mediterranean and the
Suez Canal, is open to the objection
that 1t would bring the big ships almost
into japanese waters and the move
ment might be consequently regarded
as a menace, which Secretary Metcalf
has stated has lever been contemplated.
The Suez route, too. is longer by a
thousand miles than the Magellan
route. This, according to the calcula-
tions and allowing for short visits to
ports not on the nearest sailing route,
is about $1,000 miles in length.
1t is considered that Rear Admiral
Robley Evans will command the fleet
in this great movement. He already
has had an extended period of sea
in command rank-longer, per-
than any other admiral In recent
years-but it Is known by his friends
that he would like to wind up his active
career by safely conducting around
the American continent the greatest
fleet of waTships ever gotten together in
these waters, and there is no DISPOSE
ton on the part of the officials of the
department, who have implicit conf
dence in his ability, TO deny the officer
this request.
1t is believed now that the sailing
route of the ships will be about az
follows:
Leaving New York or Hampton
Roads, just which point has not been
decided, in the early fall, the battle
ships would probably steam straight to
Culebra, where coal would be taken on.
The next stop will be Rio de Janeiro,
and from that point the vessels would
halt until they reached Sandy Point
in the Straits of Magellan. Here again
the coal supply would be replenished
for the run to Callao, Peru. The next
stage would be from Callao to Panama,
and from hat point the ships would
proceed without a stop to San Fran
cisco.
1t Is believed that a fter reaching
Peruvian waters the movements OF The
vessels will be much more deliberate than
to that point. Although the reason for
this statement Is not officially obtainable
II is apparent that the explanation is to be
in the fact that the battleships will
within easy reach OF San Francisco. In
other words they could In an emergency
arrive at the port before any other fleet
could.
Naturally the question of coaling the
fleet Is II very serious one. Two methods
Of doing this has been provided for in the
plans of the general board, and 1t IL not
at this moment TO say which will
be finally selected. The first is to send
the battleships a sufficient number
Of GOLFERS TO enable them to replenlsh
their coal supplies without any dependence
foreign coallng stations. In this case
a fleet OF no less than twenty GOLFERS will
he necessary because something like 1000
tons of coal will be burned ON this cruise.
In the second case. the plans provide
for the free use of merchantable coal along
the route, which, of ours would diminish
need for golfers.
Admiral Evans will, il is expected, start
out with sixteen battleships besides the
which will move more or less In
dependently and indeed will probably pre-
cede him considerably. The armored cruls-
ers Washington and Tennessee. which are
now In French waters, are under orders
to return to the United States and after
to proceed to the Pacific coast, to
form part OF an armored cruiser squadron
to be assembled there. II is possible tina:
they will be detained and accompany the
battleshlps on the cruise.
When Admiral Evans arrives off the
Pacific coast his fleet will be Increased by
The addition Of the battleship Nebraska,
newly commissioned and simply awaiting
he rounding out of her skeleton crew.
The battleships Wisconsin and Oregon,
low at Bremerton navy yard, Puget Sound,
will probably have completed their extern
sive repairs by next March, so that they,
too, may be added to the fleet, which will
then comprise nineteen battleships, besides
The armored and protected cruisers of the
fleet.
The composition Of the fleet today is as
Battleships-Connecticut Captain Hugo
commanding; tonnage, $780,,
guns. "a; speed. Is knots.
Maine. Captain Nathan E. Niles; tom
lage. Il 800; guns, 20, speed. Is knots.
Louisiana. Captain Richard Wainwright;
onnage. 5000; guns, "a; speed. Is knots.
Missouri. Captain Greenlief A, Merriam,
onnage. 1850; guns. 20. speed. IS knots.
Virginia. Captain SeatOn Schroeder; tom
lage. 1898: guns, "a; speed, 10 knots.
Georgia, captain yet to be named; tom
lage. 14,94S; guns. "a. speed, 10 knots.
New Jersey. Captain William w. KIM
tonnage, 14,S4S; guns, "a; speed, 10
Rhode Island. Captain yet to be as
'igned tonnage, l4,eiS; guns, "A; speed,
- knots.
Illinois, Captain Gottlieb Blocklinger;
onlage. n.525; guns. IS; speed. II knots.
Kearsarge, Captain Herbert Winslow:
tonnage, l1,525; guns, q; speed. 16 knots
onnage. 11.525; guns %; speed, 16 knots.
Ohio. Captain Lewis c. Heilner. ton
IL, 500: guns. 10; speed. IS knots.
Minnesota. Captain John Hubbard; ton.
1850; guns. "a; speed, 10 knots.
onnage. II $50; guns, "a; speed. IS knots.
Kansas, Captain Charles e, yreeland
1onnage. 1850; uns "a: speed, Is knots.
Protected cruisers-Charleston. Com
Frank Z. Beatty, tonnage. 300;
runs. "a: speed, % knots.
Chicago, Commander Robert n. Doyle
Milwaukee, Commander Charles A.
Move; tonnage. 400: guns. IS; speed. IS
& Louis. Commander Nathaniel r.