The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1911-06-19
4 MONSTER FLEET
TO Be ASSEMBLED
United States Battleships to
Engage in Great War
Game This Summer.
(National News Association

fNdI1Ondt NEWS ASSutldtloHy
Washington, June 19.-Plans are un-
der war for the assembling off Cape
Cod in July of the largest battleship
fleet ever brought together under the
American flag. The fleet is to be
composed OF twenty-one battleships,
with their auxiliaries, making the most
formidable squadron in the navy's his
tory.
The new fleet will be divided into
five divisions and the flagship. COM
prising twenty-one battleships, six Of
which are dreadnoughts and four arm
ored cruisers. In long-range guns it
will be nearly twice as powerful as its
predecessor-which passes out of ex-
istence as an organization July l.
mounting 116 twelve-inch and sixteen
ten-inch guns. as against eighty-four
twelve-inchers in the old fleet.
Entirely Of Dreadnoughts.
The addition of the two new and
powerful dreadnoughts, the Utah and
Florida. now fitting out in the navy
yards, makes it possible for the first
time to form the first division entirely
of dreadnoughts. With forty-eight
twelve-inch guns, that division alone
contains more than one-third of the to-
tai strength of the fleet.
The van will be led by the flagship
Connecticut, which held the same hon.
or in the old fleet for several years.
The first division will comprise the
five Observation-Disclosures Florida. Del
aware and North Dakota-each OF 90
900 tons or more displacement. and the
Michigan, of 10000 tons. The sixth
dreadnought. South Carolina. and the
four 16.00O-ton sisters Louisiana,
Kansas, Vermont and New Hamp.
shire-will form the second division.
In the third division are the four 49,,
000-ton sisters-Georgia, Nebraska
New Jersey and Virginia-and the
smaller 12.5OO-ton Ohio. The fourth
division is made up of the Minnesota
$4,000 tons. as flagship: the Mississip.
pi and Idaho, Of $4,000 tons, and the
two sisters. Maine and Missouri of
1880 tons each.
The fifth division comprises the four
armored cruisers, Tennessee. Montana
North Carolina and Washington. sis
ter ships. of 1850 tons each
Crews viii Total 10000.
The total displacement of the fleet
is nearly 100000 tons. and to man all
the ships requires more than 10000
men besides the officers. The total
number of guns carried is 1.436 and
there will be IS underwater torpedo
tubes
In addition to the vessels mentioned
it is probable that when the summer
| maneuvers begin the fleet will be aug
mented by the three swift scout cruis
ers Birmingham. Chester and Salem
and the Atlantic torpedo fleet. con
sisting of sixteen or seventeen dc
stroyers and seven submarines. bring
ing the number OF fighting craft in ths
! fleet to more than fifty.
! Rear Admiral Osterhaus will be in
command of the fleet.
The vessels will engage in maneuv
ers in the vicinity of Cape Cod ba,
| during July. One of the interesting
day and night drills in connection
with the maneuvers will be an attack
upon the fleet by the submarines, with
the destroyers acting as a line of de
Tense between the battleships ant
their submerged enemy. Night battle
attacks. with searchlight drills ant
landing attachments on shore as in
fantry and light artillery. will be in
cluded in the summers work.