Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1917-02-06

could do when one OF them comes down in its
midst" he saws
There would be nothing TO hurt if you did hap
pen TO hit her, and she could fire all the torpe-
does she wants TO at you One of young Off.
GERS recommended vessel of that type. Natural
conservatism on the part of the older men who
control the upper end of all services--and it is
the natural conservatism of large bodies that
troll our government-stands in the way of just
such proposition; those men do not quite like
the radical idea. But just the of those
novel craft will pop up one of these days; and
for all we know It will come out of Wilhelmshaven
before this war is over"
1t is well-known fact that the destroyer has
proved the submarines worst enemy. and for two
reasons: First because of its speed, combined
With effective gun power; and, second, owing to
the difficulties of retaliation through torpedo
attack, the submarines only sufficient answer to
the destroyerS rapid frers. More often than 9TH
erwise the underwater boats principal weapon has
sped harmessly under the destroyer without
ing, simply because the destroyer draws far less
water than the submarines intended quarry, the
big vessel
The torpedo is ordinarily set to run deep enough
TO strike we'll below large ships armor belt
and therefore is apt to pass without hitting below
the keel of a destroyer It was this idea that
Captain Sims had in mind when he said that the
novel battle craft to be built so that moth.
ing could get under II"
There is another advantage too. in this arrange
ment. A ship so constructed would be able to
operate in waters where ordinarily only light
gunboats destroyers could maneuver in safety
Accordingly 1t would be easy for a craft of this
character either to hide where least expected
TO to when the odds offered by armored
ships were too heavy against her.
Great Britain has found is necessary TO utilize
monitors, especially modified for the work, in her
offensive operations against the German positions
on the coast of Belgium. Shallow draft and fairly
ID
ably effective. However, the monitors have not
been able to destroy the German naval station
at Zeebrugge and the kaisers designers have no
doubt long been busy davising a naval foil to the
British attack.
This probability in part Is warrant for Cap
tain Sims assumption that something out Of the
ordinary likely to issue from Wilhelmshaven
before the end of the present struggle 1t rs takes
the form suggested the ship will not be a fornid
able foe only for England's monitors but it would
certainly prove very dangerous antagonist for
well-nigh any of Great Britain's heavy fighting
ships
AS with so many things concerning our national
defences no secret has been made here of this
proposed order of craft Captain Sims has
said:
ut has been before our people for a long while
1t has been discussed at the War college and pa
pers have been written on it,
Foreigners have undoubtedly made themselves
about the ship and certainly the type would go
long way toward offsettng the disadvantage in
numbers under which the German fleet iabors
Moreover there are economic reasons why
fighting ship of this peculiar type would commend
itself especially TO people circumstanced as are
the Germans
AS Captain Sims says: II have always believed
that a vessel could be designed in that way with
out any necessity for waste of side armor be-
cause she would have nothing above her water
line to protect that is substantially nothing She
would have turrets. which cost so much in
weight and She would have no bic guns, which
cost in the weight of the gun, ammunition, ETC.
"She would carry two towers from either of
which the ship could be controlled: One TO be
used In case the other was Knocked out They
would be of sufficient size to hold the people who
maneuver the craft Her smoke pipe would be
armored so that if could not be shot away so
close to her deck rs TO do any particular damage
She could be armed with eight torpedo tubes on
her side and she could carry a great many tor
pedoes for each one Of those tubes"
At the Naval War college strategic experts have
given this suggestion numerous theoretical tests