The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-05-12
OUR BIGGEST SHIP
The Battleship Florida Is
Launched at \. \. Yard.
Her Equal, When Finished, Is
Not Now AflOat.
SHE is 521 FEET LONG.
Has all Estimated Speed OF
20 ga Knots.
1t Will Take Over 1000 Men to
Run Her.

New York, May 1.-THE biggest
ship in the American navy slid off
the ways today at the New York navy
yard. when the battleship Florida
dropped into the water. Later on
when the Arkansas and the Wyoming
now under construction are afioat
they will exceed the FLORIDA in size by
three thousand tons. a difference suf-
fcient to make pretty good little lin
err in itself. The Florida herself is
by no means finished, for as she went
of the ways today she was only about
sixty per cent advanced towards COM
pletion, which means that she was not
much more than a vast empty hull
and still awaits all of the boilers and
main and secondary engines and ar
NOR and equipment that go to make
UP the ship ready for commission.
Probably there is not a battleship
ahoat that could tackle the Florida
on even terms. when her commander :
flag flies from the unSracetul, but
formidable, skeleton masIs which will
be placed upon her, that is, provided
the naval designers do not change
their minds. as to the utility of this
novel feature OF marine architecture
within the next eighteen months, by
which time the Florida should be IN
commission.
\ Navy Yard Product.
The ship is the first of any real i'm
portance to be constructed in gov
ernment navy yard for a number OF
years and naturally her performance
will be watched with keen interest by
the private shiDbuilders, who are now
building her sistership, the Utah in
Camden, y. J. As a matter OF fact
the North Dakota built by the Fore
7 :, IN, EgrrfTi and the
Delaware. constructed at Newport
News with the Florida and Utah will
make what IS described as a unit in
naval parlance. meaning that these
vessels are practically Of the same
type and may be expected 10 operate
together in naval warfare The North
Dakota and the Delaware are nearly
two thousand tons smaller than the
other two vessels, though the arna-
ment is practically the same and the
smaller vessels indeed are rated at
about a quarter of a knot faster.
The Florida is 521 feet 6 inches long,
nearly as long as a city block; her
beam is IS feet 21e inches; she draws
2slz feet OF water and displaces 2i.SZ5
tons in light order, While when fully
loaded, with her supplies and ammuni-
ton she will measure up to p, a., tons
Her estimated speed is 204 knots per
hour which would have been regarded
a few years ago as the topnotch for
swift uuarmOred cruiser. She viii
carry $500 tons of coal in her bunkers
which should enable her to make the
round trip across the Atlantic at half
speed. Parsons turbine engines. built
in the New York navy yard, Of the
enormous power OF $4,000 horse power
Will maintain the high speed Of this
big ship and the steam will be supplied
by sectional boilers.
Her Armament.
The main battery OF the ship will
consist of ten 12-inch rifles arranged in
on one would think that the Florida
had what is called superimposed or
double decked turrets like the Kear-
sarge and the Kentucky. but as mat
ter Of fact there are only two guns in
each Of the five turrets and the second
turret in the forepart OF the ship is
necessarily elevated on a superstruc-
ture so as to be able to fire freely over
the top Of the foremost turret. There
Is a very formidable secondary battery
composed Of sixteen fve-inch rapid
firers. four three-pounders, two one
Founders and number of machine
guns. There are also two 21-inch sub
merged tubes for torpedoes-
Just what the armor is TO be on
these ships the naval designers will not
tell. That marks the adoption Of a
new policy in the American navy where
heretofore II has been customary to
set out in smallest detail in the chief
constructors annual reports the thick
ness Of every inch of arrnor on the
ship. It is believed though that the
side armor will average about twelve
inches and that it will be extended
over length of the ship heretofore
uncovered and will be much wider
than the ordinary armor belt so as
not TO expose the underbody of the
ship when she rolls in a sea wave
It will take more than a thousand
men to manage this great fighting ma
chine; the minimum requirement is