The Hawaiian gazette., 1913-11-28
CRUISER KONGO
A MODEL SHIP
Report That New Warship Is to
Visit Honolulu Creates
.f' Wide Interest.

ht H'NN VI lnt VISIT W
Honolulu of the latest addition to the
Imperial Japanese Navy. the battle
cruiser Kongo, recalls the enthusiastic
comment made by the European press
when this ine fighting ship was deliv
cred to the japanese government by
her British builders four months ago.
LIE Yacht, the French marine magazine
compares the Japanese battle cruisers
of the Kongo class with the latest
British cruisers, the Princess Royal,
Queen Mary and the Lion to the de
ci,led advantage of the Japanese ships.
! lie Yacht says:
'The Queen Mary is iie product of
| the lalmers shipyard: the Kongo, of
! Vickers Sons and Maxim. Bota are
! derivatives of the Lion type, one OF
the last creations of the distinguished
naval constructor, Sir Z. &. Watts. But
as the Painers yard, constrained to fol-
low the British official plans, courd
make only relatively slight improve
ments in them on the other hand the
Vfckcrs yard having more latitude in
its private capacity, has used to the
full extent the experience and practi-
cal knowledge of its chief constructor.
''There has resulted thoroughly
successful type of battle cruiser, which
j will constitute a perfect model for the
other three ships of the ciass-iiiyei,
iiaruna, and Kirishima nov under
construction or about to be laid down
in japanese yards.
- In the ease of the Queen Mary, it
should he stated, there were made at
the time OF its construction modiiica-
tions ms to masts and tunnels which
| were not made in the ease of the Lion
AVID the Princess Royal until after the
unsuccessful tests in the first mentioned
cruiser. II was thought wise in the
case of the Queen Mary, to increase the
disr 'acemcnt to $1,000 tons, instead of
retaining it ut 9G,350 as in the ease of
the Lion, the beam being increased
from $40 feet to 50 feet, the length he.
ing retained at G9S.5 feet and the
draught being retained at IS feet. In
order TO keep the speed of 90 knots. il
was necessary TO increase the power of
the Queen Mary IS. engines by 10000
hip, making il 80 600 instead of 70, 900.
Compared with the japanese tyne
the Queen Mary has the following dis
advantages: G) lnferiority of calibre,
both as regard the eight large guns,
which are 1875 inch against IA incl
for the Japanese, and as regards the
tintermediate armament, which for the
English ship consist of sixteen finch
guns against sixteen 6.inch for the
Kongo. t2) Ihferiority of projections
the Kongo having all its 6-ineh guns
! jill easements of thickness varying from
) inches to 6 inches, while the Queer,
Mary has only shields of . inches in
thickness to protect its inch guns
a protection which is more doubtful
80 lnferiorty of belt armor, the Kon
go carrying plates that vary from 9.s
Inches to 6 inches, instead of from 4
inches to 4 inches on the Queen Mary
1t is surmised that the Kongo
type represents the ideas of naval ar
chitectural advance which has govern
ed in the building of the Tiger, the
Queen Mary, successor the most re
cent and possibly the last, of the series
of British battle cruisers.
"Let ms add, in conclusion that No
. turret of the Queen Mary cannot fire
on the axis of the ship: on the othei
hand, owing. to a very happy arrange
ment the corresponding turret of tn,
Kongo fires to the rear over No. 4 tur
ret. 1t has therefore d much more ex
tensIve field of fire.
The Kongo presents better solution
of the battle cruiser problem and has
over its British prototypes, from which
it is nevertheless clearly derived, the
, same advantages of armament and pro
I lection as those of the already gained
by the Katori and the Koshmo ovel
, the King Edward class, of which they
were improved editions.