Daily Kennebec journal., 1911-04-01
OLD BATTLE SHIPS AS FORTS.
Engineer Has Plan to Make Perma
nent Coast Defenses Out Of Them.

nCnt Toast CerenSGS 0ut OI
A Hattloship. costing SlO.O00090 to
Sl2.ooo,O9O, is becoming obsolete after
seven t. ten years ol service. and at
te- y Years OF life it is. for decp-sAa
lighting. practically useless. Tile de-
terinration is chiefly in the speed. and
somewhat less in the armament, the
hghting range of the older guns be-
ing less than that Of the modern out
put Of our ordnance factories, The
armor remains good for all time. I'll"
hull. If properly protected against
corrosion. should be available for Il
long lie of usefulness. The lim.ta-
tions in speed and in The range of the
guns soon renders ship unable to
take her place in the first lighting
line. Then, this investment of from
S6,oOa.o0o TO s12.o0o.Q00 is put up Tor
auction and goes to the scrap heap.
If some duty could be found for the
obsolete battleship, in which Il 10000
to 1890 Yard lighting range Tor the
guns was not indispensable. and in
which speed was of no account what
eyer. a vast amount or most valuable
fighting material would be saved .or
military purposes. Now ii has been
suggested that such a sphere of use,
fulncss can be found for our obsolete
battioships by emplacing them per
Eanently upon certain shoal grounds
at the entrance to our harbors or con-
tigiOus waterways, and turning them
into permanent, fixed. coast fortii'ca-
tionS. We present series of draw
ings showing how this might be done
in the ease OF such a battleship. say.
as the cid Iowa"
We can we'll believe that the up-to
date naval man who thinks in terms
OF 23-knot, 3o,000-ton battleShipS. :tnl
1i-inoh guns of 12.00 to 1900 yards
effective fighting range, will look at
this presentation with smile OF
amused curiosity. 1t is certainly ly-
brid: but like many another proposal
% startling originality, it will be found
ubon closer and thoughtful attention
that the suggestion has great many
valuable features. which should com
mend il tn the earnest consideration
OF our army and navy.
Briefly stated, some shoal place
could b. selected at the entrance to Il
harbor. or at some other waterway
t. i" defended, and, by means OF dou-
bic rows OF pilng. cofferdam would
be driven. of sufficient dimensions to
allow the battleship To be hoated with
III il. Previous 10 its entrance, how
ever. lines of piling would be driven
in the proper position to support the
ship along her central and her dock
inr kcels. The mud or sand would
then be dredged out. the piling cut OFF
at the proper height, and the ship
would be floated in and allowed to set
tie upon the bed thus provided. The
coTerdam would then be closed. and
sand or other suitable material would
be pumred or otherwise filled IN
around the ship to a point we'll above
the protective deck. or as high as
might be deemed eypedient. This fill
ing would be continued seawara on
the channel sides for a distance Of
So to 100 feet, finished with an easy
slope, and rip-rapped on its face to
protect it against wave action. She
coife-dam and filling would be eX-
tended on the lee side to incios"
rectangular hasn, which would form
n harbar oC refuge fer fleet OF de-
stroyers and submarines. 1t should
lie explaiaed that after the filling was
completed. the whole exterior Of the
shell uf the ship would be protected
by srouting it up with cement. by
tn, method which is use0 in supaque-
Gus channels.
On the channel side. tubes would
he built through the emhankmene
from the interior of the ship To the
water. with suit2blc concrete EN-
hraSrrcs would be mounted torped"
discharge tubes. of.the kind now in
stalled on warships. These tubes, OF
course. would lead out toward the
channel that it to be defended
TIL, advantage OF this form Of de-
fensc may be summarized as follows:
\ lattlesllip tort will have a solid
gun platform, the battleship resting
solidly on the bottom and being i'm
hcdded. as described. in earth to the
lc,el of her upper deck. ordinarily /:
to Il feet above sea Level. With large
caliber guns on solid gun platforms.
located at approaches, with wtde
base line available for ranges. the ac-
curacy of the gun fire of a battleshIp
fort will be perfect and much superior
to that of an enemy's attacking battle
ship which must he aiioat with un-
stable gun platform and limited
range finding facilities.
The eartlworh surrounding battle
ship fort will render it perfectly Sc
cure from any torpedo attack, while
the tubes running ont from the battle
ship fort will enable the fort to fire
modern high-power torpedocs vita
great accuracy, at any hostile battle
ship.
Very it'll, damage could h" in
hicted on a battleship fort BY the gun
fire of an enemy, but the cncmyS bat
tlesliip could be sunk by gun fIce OF Il
battieship fort.
In every respect of defensive ana ot-
fensiye mancuver, except pursuit 81
the enemy. a battleshp fort las the
most decided advantage. so much So
that it is highly improbable that any
battieship would ever engage battle
ship fort. except incidentally in an ef-
fort to run by and get n,to our ports.
with least possible exposure to the
fire of the fort.
The battleship fort is therefore the
most formidable type of coast-defense
fertilization; so much so that the cx-
istnnce of an adequate number of such
dcienscs. located at strategic points
at the apDrOacheS, will probably in