Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1914-03-22

at one end of that FIVE miles and the
puny Jap at the other are toeing the
! line in a scratch race, a race which
will be won not by Drawn and mus
Gle, not by unconquerable courage,
not by any dreams of a glorious past,
but by the steady nerve, the keen eye
and the poise that come of unremit-
/ ting training and discipline.
Our Nays Weakness.
To-day, even more than when Ma
| poleon uttered his famous dictum, it
| is certain that Heaven fights on the
! side of the heaviest artillery" and it
is because the dreadnought carries a
broadside of such overwhelming SUI
| periority that no pre- -dreadnought
can engage it with the slightest hope
of success.
We shall now give the reasons that
have relegated all but the twelve of
our thirty mine battleships to the sec
ond line
l. Overwhelming concentration of
gun-fire. 1t is generally agreed that
because of the danger of fighting in
the head-on position (Which exposes
ship to the risk of a raking fire
in which more shells would strike, and
when they struck might pass through
the whole length of the Vessel) flu
ture engagements will be fought
broadsde to broadside, with the two
fleets travelling on parallel courses.
A line OF four Wyomings would
be about one mile, and a line of
twelve Connecticuts nearly four miles
The four Wyomings would be able to
oppose As 12-inch guns against the
IS 12-inch guns of the four leading
ships of the Connecticut line. The
result would be that the four Wyo-
mings would be able to crush the
head of the Connecticut line by over
whelming gun fire, and then com
mence dropping back until the whole
fleet had been silenced
But suppose that the II Connect
icuts found themselves in line against
- Wyomings with As 12-inch guns
opposed to 144!
A Dreadnought Advantage.
?. The all-big-gu battery makes
salvo firing accurate. The fact that
only one caliber of gun is carried in
the dreadnought's main battery gives
it an enormous advantage over the
pre- dreadnoucnts The Connecticut
carries Pinch. S-inch and finch
guns. If all of these are engaged,
it is impossible to distinguish the
splash Of the several guns, and the
work OF the spotter is rendered UNI
certain.
With the guns all of one size. the
spotter can determine the mean
point OF fall and correct the elevation
of the whole ships battery accord
ingly.
3. The more modern equipment OF
the dreadnoughts guns would enable
them to do more accurate and faster
firing.
4. The armor of the dreadnought is
thicker, of better quality, and is bet
ter distributed.
). The saving in personnel on the
dreadnought is a valuable feature.
The Connecticut carries LOCO officers
and men for four big guns, the
PENNSYLVANIA carries the same num-
Der for twelve big guns-250 men per
gun for the pre- dreadnonght and
only "a per gun for the dreadnought.
Japan Rivals v. S.
on the new dreadnought rating,
then, where do We stand? Naval
statistics show that there is one
first-class navy. the British, with
~ of this type butt and building;
one second class navy, the German.
with 26 such ships, and three navies
of the third class. that OF the United
States with twelve, France with elev-
en- and Japan with ten dreadnoughts.
And both France and Japan, be 1t re-
membered. are building faster than We
They are adding to their dreadnought
fleets at a rate which in a few years
tire will relegate US to the fifth po-
sition
Unless Congress listens 10 the adj
vice Of our Naval Board the drop of
the United States to the low rank Of
fifth in naval strength is as certain
as the ebb and flow Of the tices ard
the rise and setting OF the sun.