The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1914-10-28
BUILDING BIG SHIPS
UNITED STATES BUILDING LARG
EST OF DREADNOUGHTS.
Each Ship Will Displace $4,000 Tons
and Main Battery Hurls u Broad
side of 16,SOO Pounds.

Ten days ago the secretary Of th'
navy signed three papers, the signing
of which officially started the con
struction of the worlds greatest bat
tleships Of the super-dreadnough
type, tie California, Mississippi, ant
Idaho.
This trio of mighty fighting ship:
will represent when completed tota
displacement of $4,000 tons and vii
have cost the United States govern
ment between S45,000,000 and $50,
100000. TO man them will be nee
essary complement Of about 1,l0(
officers and men to the ship, eXclu'
sive of marine detachments.
They will be sister ships in every
sense of the word and each will be
able to hurl a broadside of 14-inch
shells, the weight of which broadside
will be 16,S00 pounds. This refers
only to the 14-inch guns, Of which
there will be twelve to a ship, mount
ed three to turret, two turrets for.
ward and two aft.
The authorization of these grea.
ships shows that in eight years the
size of American dreadnoughts has
exactly doubled, for the ships of the
Michigan class, the original dread
nought type of the American navy,
displaced $1,000 tons. whereas the
displacement Of the California and
her sister ships is $4,000 tons. The
Michigan mounts eight 12-inch guns
in her main battery, which fired in
broadside would give total of $500
pounds as compared to the 16,S00-
pound broadside of the California.
After the Michigan type came the
dreadnoughts Delaware and North
Dakota, authorized in 1907. In these
ships the tonnage per ship was in
creased to 10000 tons and the main
batteries consisted of ten 12-inch
guns mounted two to turret. two
forward and three aft. A Delaware
12-inch broadside weights $500
pounds.
The next step in the progression
brings us to the Utah and Florida,
the first of the superdreadnoughts.
In them the displacement reached
21.S25 tons, and the 12-inch broad
side remained in weight the same as
in the case of the Delaware and North
Dakota. The construction Of these
ships began in 1900.
The following year the present fleet
flagship Wyoming and the first divi-
sion flagship Arkansas were authoriz-
ed. They represented great stride
in American dreadnought design.
Each of them displaced $4,000 tons.
and in them the main batteries were
increased from ten to twelve Pinch
guns. A Wyoming broadside weighs
10000 pounds. -
After the Wyoming and the Arkan-
sas the keeis of the monster super
dreadnoughts New York and Texas
were laid in 1911. These were the
first United States warships to mount
the powerful 14-inch ordance. In
them the displacement wes increased
to $4,000 tons. The New York
broadshide of ten 14-inch guns
weighs $4,000 pounds.
The Nevada and the Oklahoma,
which are soon to be added to the
feet under Admiral Fletcher, came
next. They displaced 27,500 tons
and. like the New York and Texas,
have main batteries to ten 14-inch
guns to the ship. The turret ar
rangement is different, however, for
instead of two guns to turret, as is
the case with all the other ships nam
ed, the guns are mounted in four tur-
rets. In two of the turrets are three
guns, and in the other two turrets
are two guns. This represents an
entirely new departure in American
gun arrangement. The Nevada broad
side, like that of the ships of the New
York class, weighs $4,000 pounds.
From the New York to the Arizona
is the next step in the progression.
In these ships the tonnage was in
creased to 1880 tons and two addi-
tional Pinch guns were added to the
main batteries Of each. In them also
the new funnel scheme of only one
funnel to a ship was adopted This
single funnel arrangement is also fol-
lowed in the ships of the Nevada
class.
After the Nevada come the Cali
fornia, Mississippi and Idaho, the
ships whose construction has Just
been authorized. No other navy in
the world possesses ships. either
built, under construction. or author
lied. that are the equal in either Of
fensive power to Americas latest
authorized" trio of giant fighters.