Pine Bluff daily graphic. (Pine Bluff, Ark.) 1893-1942, 1916-10-27
PRIVATE YARDS
Will BUILD FOUR
j. 5. BAIIlESHIPS
Bids for Big Dreadnaughts
Range from $40, $50, 900 to
Sill, 475,000 Each.

were opened today at the navy de-
partment While all the tenders
showed a heavy increase in prices.
due TO abnormal conditions, they
We're within the departments limit of
d)sts. and it is virtually certain all
tour ships will be awarded to private
concerns, and that the government.
itself will not construct these nor any
OF the twenty destroyers for which
offers were also received.
Prices for the battleships ranged
from s1o,o60.0oo to s11,475 900. as
against the departments limit for
hull and machinery of 81 SOC. 900. A
study of the bids is now in progress
and awards will be made only after
careful review of the notifications
proposed h.' every bidder
1t is believed the Newport News
Ship Building and Dry Dock com
pany will get two of the ships and
the Fore River Shipbuilding dpmpany
the other two.
The four battleships will be the
first Of the American navy to carry
16-inch rifles in their main batteries.
Each will be equipped with eight of
these big guns-the heaviest known
to have been placed aboard warcraft
although it is currently reported that
Great Britain is preparing to arm an
experimental ship with 1S-inch rifles.
The ships are expected to have
cruising radius of nearly 1000 sea
miles without refueling. They wAl
have the steam-electric drive and
make at least 81 knots.
In additio - to the 16-indh rifles, the
new ships will carry eighteen 5-inch
torpedo defense guns, four of the new
high range 3-inch- anti-aircraft guns
and the usual equipment of torpedo
tubes. Their main batteries will be
mounted two guns to turret, de-
parting from the three gun turret
construction on the Pennsylvania and
later ships. 4
The scout cruisers will be the first
scouts, designed for that work alone,
to be added to the navy The old
light cruisers Salem, Chester and
birmingham, known as scout cruisers
have not the speed necessary for
modern sea picket.
The scouts will make sustained
speed of 81 knots an hour They will
look like big destroyers and be nearly
six times as large as the greatest
torpedo craft displacing 7.10O tons
and having length Of $50 feet. The
mass of machinery necessary to drive
them at express train speed will be
covered by light armor and each will
carry eight long range 6-inch rifles,
two 3-ineh anti-aircraft guns and
four torpedo tubes
will Garry Aircraft. 4
The most striking new feature OF
the ships will be the installation of
catapult devices which will permit
the launching of Observation-Disclosures in
any weather. Each scout will be fit
ted to carry four aircraft to extend
her range of observation.
The twenty new destroyers will be
virtually the same in design as the
latest craft of the type laid down cX-
cept that they will have a maximum
speed under full load Of So knots an
hour, an increase of nearly five knots
over the present high speed mark of
the American flotilla. The boats are
eXped ed to be as fast as any de-
stroyers afloat. They will carry four
4-inch guns each. and two 3-inch anti |
aircraft guns and four triple torpedo
tubes, giving each boat broadside
fire of twelve 21-inch torpedoes, the
most deadly naval weapons ever de-
vised.
OF the 80 submarines 81 will be of
the coast defense type. substantially
similar to the L-type boat now in
commission. improvements and re-
finements of design have been made
but in the main, the present type has
been duplicated in the interest of
speedy construction. They will have
new features but their nature had not
been disclosed beyond the fact that
all will carry disappearing 3-inch !
rifles for surface use.
The other three submarines will
vary IN size between 500 and 1900
tons. Each will be essentially differ
ent in type from the others as it is
planned TO make them experimental
fleet submarines to accompany the
battle fleet on the high seas. The
sea going qualities of each will be ap-
praised to determine fixed type
later for American fleet submarines.
nine Of which, in all, are included in !
the three-year nrogram.