Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1908-02-27
EQUAL OF ANY.
Yankee Warohips RIOT Surpassed Any
where, Says Admiral Caps.

Washington, Feb. o6-Just how far
the Senate committee on naTa! affairs
will 50 into criticismcntG of battle
sou, Chief Of the bureau Of ordinance,
at an extra session tomorrow Dur
ing the afternoon session today Rc"r
Admiral c;IppS. chief constructor of
the navy, concluded his statement in
reply 10 and III rrfutation OF the
Rrutertiahl charges and ii Was agreed
t" call tomorrow Pear Admiral Ma
son. chi"t Of the bureau Of ordnance
{" met til" criticisms made by Mr.
i;rut. :'iahl on turret construction and
ammunition EniStS.
chairman Hale read to Tho. commit
IT,. a letter H. had received from COL
h. :. lecture. suggesting thai Lieut..
Commander N0G"lgcsang. whom he
designated as an expert in regard to
turrctS and Lieut.. Hill, designated as
an expert i'll matter of the distribution
of drrnor plates. lie called as Witnesses
Col. Mcclure stated explicitly that
neither OF these officers had in any
manner contributed to the Reutpr,lahl
article. Mr.. Hale said that h. deemed
the request as entirely proper and
that he had given assurance that the
officers would be called Both are now
IN Washington. Lieut.. Commander
Nogelgesang being in command Of the
Mayllower, Familiarity known as Prca-
cent itcoSeNcltS yacht. IL practically
mas been settled that all officers Of
the navy. whose names have been con-
hected with the recent criticism Of
construction shall he called, and that
COL Mcclure also shall be given an
opportunity 70 appear and make Il
statement.
In concluding his testimony. Rear
admiral Camps showed that the pro-
VISION OF the naval appropriation act
OF 1906 requiring the depart mcnt to
reServ" plans and specifications for
batt!eShips from private naval archi-
tects had been complied with in the
case of the two big ships of the Della
ware class. the largest yet authorized
by the United States. Nine designs
were received outside of those pre-
pared under department supervision.
The admiral asserted that the Ameri-
can ships are the equal OF ships OF
am navy III the world. The most
serious charges made. he said. were
height from waterline to deck: insult
ticient gun height and improper To-
cation of main line arlnor belts and
all these he explained had been the
subject of the closest study for many
years by naval designers OF every
country. Admiral Capps characterized
as exploded the theory that if q
shell penetrated the armor plate at a
slight incline it would be DETECTED up
ward by the armor of the protection
deck
AN Efforts he said. should be ii-
rected toward keeping the shell out; all
the armor should he put on the shin
III vertical form
Put il all on the outsideo" remarked
Mr. Tirhran
Exactly. for if shell goes through
IL inches of armor it will explode any
way. The protected deck would no.
be n protection at all"
The admiral said the fact that in the
Drtadnought class i'm Great Britain
and the Delaware class i'll the United
| states, the forward freeboard has been
made one deck higher than the preyI
Gus class does not indicate that the
latter WAS tno low ''Thev are inst
, right for t'ccir type he said The
delaware is made high forward i..-
cause she is designed on finer lines.
: much longer and for greater speed,