The new South-news., 1908-10-31
=. Battleships Of Tomorrow :.
Two Monster Ships Begun This Year. One Bssshp Of 1920.
IONS With turbine EnRines---esfy Construction Of
the $4,000 Ton BaltIeshp Probabla

The coming OF the Dreadnoughts
~ all the world knows, has meant a
complete revolution In naval consiruc-
ton In the opinion Of most naval
onicers the future Is TO The Power
wnlch Possesses most Of these ship
and can use them well. writes II. w.
Wilson. In the London Daily Mall.
II VIII be interest, then. In view Of
the pause which has been made dur
Ing the present year In shipbuildin9.
10 examine hos the British Navy
stands IN this latest type OF ship and
what are the derigna likely TO be
adopted IN the near future. The Ad-
miralty Is committed 10 the large bat
ueahip and Il viii scarcely 10 back.
Nor would II be wise to do 80 in view
OF the fact that almost an foreign
Powers are faithfully copying British
designs.
For the present year two monster
ships--a battieship and cruiser
have been voted. The haitleship. con
irary 10 the reports circulated win be
similar in all important respects to
the g. Ninccnts. That IL to say she
VIII diaplace 1920 tons or there
ahouis. viii carry ten or twelve 12-
infi guns. and win be propelled by
turbine engines aetuatcd by steam.
Thus she viii make mp the group of
four 81. Nincents. and when she Is
completed for sea the British Navy
VIII possess two groups. each four
strong OF all big gun battleships The
other vessel WIN resemble the Inyincl-
o,es. wi,n Improvements. ana VIII
complete the group Of four 25-knot
cruiser battleships.
SO much for the present. II will
be seen that there is nothing sensa-
tional In the design OF the ships for
this year which are meant TO hll the
gaps In the existing organization. But
next year It Is possible n al there may
be new and startling departures.
From hints which Ministers and 9th
crs have dropped. the Admiralty will
be compelled TO ask for not fewer
than hye monster battlcships More
may be needed. but this must neces-
sarily depend on the progress which
foreign ships mako In the next few
months.
Germany 1t must be remembered
has now building or sanctioned seven
hattleships OF Drcadnought tyne
'against the British cieht) and two.
or possibly three. cruisers of the In
Nincible type tagalnst the British
four). And under her fixed program
she Will lay down three more mon
ster battleships and one more mon
ster cruiser nest year. the iattleships.
II Is believed, displacing 900 tons
o. oven more. A british program
on i've bat,lcsni,s anu CO monst4r
aruored cruiser would lfine The nrft-
ish' total OF Drcsdnou~1ts up to ord v
eighteen, as against the German I'd
tai OF thirteen or fourteen The Brit
lsh margin OF -four or five ships. which
Il would give. would b. FAR less than
what the strict two Power standard |
demands.
lf, thon. We assume that the Brit
lsh program consists of five battle |
ships and one improved lnvincible>l
nothing less will satisfy the
claims of national security-it is
probable that the Admiralty will lay
down one group OF -four improved st.
Nincents--iour battleships. that is to
say. each carrying twelve 12-inch
guns. But the NTH battieship may
quite possibly be an experimental