Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1909-02-10
THE SOUTH CAROLINA.
The Greatest Battleship Ever Built.
Will Cost $7,OOO,OOO.

az Il udI tue SOutn SdTOuua, the new
biggest battleship" of the United
States navy, will be presented with
silver service costing either $4,000
or $4,000 is, practically assured, The
Senate committee has reported favor
ably with. amendments making the
appropriation to be carried with the
Joint resolution $4,000 insteal of
$4,000 as provided and the House
committee has also reported favor
ably upon the resolution.
The matter has moi. been discussed
in the Senate yet, but there will not
likely be any opposition in either
house on the passage of the resolu-
ton. @'N
The South Carolina will be a COM
pleted war machine in IL months
and Is one Of the battleships author
lied by Congress in the naval appro-
Driations act OF March 3, 1905. her
siste:' ship being the Michigan, which
was launched a few weeks ago at the
dock Of the New York Shipbuilding
Company.
The South Carolina Is being built
by the Cram Steamship Company, Of
Philadelphia. The contract for her
construction was signed on July 21,
1906. Her keel was laid December
Is, 1907, and she will be H. Ally COM
pleted and turned over to The United
States on December 81, 1909. The
contract price, exclusive Of armor
and armament, was $3,540,OO0.
When completed she will have cost
the government about $7,0OO,OO0.
Some of the features of the big
ship are: .. .
Length between perpendiculars
$50 feet.
Breadth so feet.
Draught "a feet inches.
Displacement, 10000 tons.
Engines, 1900 horse power.
High speed, 1Sk knots.
Bunker capacity, 2,100 tons.
The main battery will consist Of
eight 12-inch breech loading rifles
mounted in four turrets,
The South Carolina will have a
displacement Of 10000 tons; a speed
Of 1875 knots; coal carrying capacity
OF 2,10O tons; armor belt, ~ inches;
barbettes and turrets, 10 and IL
inches.
Armament, eight As calibre 12-
inch guns; % 3-inch guns, torpedo
tubes, two submerged 22-inch.
Her length between perpendicu-
lars will be 450 feet; breadth on
load water line so feet; mean draft,
"a feet inches; full load displace-
ment, 1860 tons; horse power,
1900. Her total complement, in
| Guiding officers and crew, will be
about 900 men.
This battleship is Of particular in
| terest because she Is one of the first
OF our battleships designed after the
conclusion OF the Russo-Japanese
war, and her designers have en-
bodied in her the ideas gathered
during the naval operations of that
conflict.
Possibly the greatest change made
In her construction from that of for
| mer ships Is the elimination of the
intermediary or secondary batteries,
| which were composed of 5-inch,
6-inch, 7-inch and S-inch guns. In
stead of having these guns, the GUS
tomary number Of heavy guns in the
main battery has been doubled, so
that instead of four 12-inch the
South Carolina will carry eight such
guns, mounted in four turrets. A
| large battery of small rapid fire guns
is retained, however, as defense
against torpedo boat attacks.
| In general appearance the South
Carolina will differ greatly from any
other Of our battleships. The most
|
l2-inch gun turretS mounted in pairs
on the aXial line of the ship, two for
ward and two aft of the suDerstruc-
ture. Since the displacement Of the
ship was limited by act of Congress
TO $4,000 tons, it was necessary, in
order to save weight, to reduce the
freeboard Of the ship by one deck
from the after end of the superstruc-
ture to the stern. The two turrets
OF EACH pair are mounted in close
| proximity to each other, OH roof of
the turret of the adjoining pair.
! 1t has been proven by experiments
that there is no blast interference
and therefore all of the 12-inch guns
are available for training through
a maximum arc of fire of 27O de-
grees. 1t is possible to fire four guns
ahead or astern, and eight on each
broadside. The forward guns have
a command of "a and 80 feet re-
spectively and the after pair "a and
% feet and 80 feet respectively.
The armOr protection has been care
fully worked out, it's most important
| element being a water line belt of
IL inches thick, eight feet wide and
more than 800 feet long. The case
ment armor above this will be nearly
300 feet long and from to 10
inches in thickness.
With this associated triangular
athwart-shiD armor ten inches thick
| ntted at the after end OF the armor
belt between the protective deck.
| mere VIII be an athwart-ship armor
Dulkhead ten inches thick, extending
entirely across the ship at the for
ward end Of the belt. Other armor
1 wi