The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1919-05-09

In tnlS tOtdi tucfc dIc iuCiuucu uo
merchant vessels ordered by the gov
eminent ESQ that the standard ship
building program is completely ex-
cluded) and no general service trawl.
ers. or tugs. or handy craft built to
government order.
All Actual Fighting Ships.
All are actual fighting ships, carry
ing guns and designed-each within
its own sphere Of action-for taking
part In naval operations. The list Is
composed of battleships. battle-cruis-
ers, light cruisers, destroyers, subma-
rines, an armed merchant cruiser, u
seaplane carrier, monitors, mine
sweepers, those new vessels known as
''sloops," but which are really little
light cruisers or low speed destroyers,
gunboats, patrol boats, hospital steam
ers, and also those @ boats and p Q
boats of which so very little could be
said while the war was on, or can be
said even yet for that matter.
It is an extraordinary list, and as
tabulated, 1t looks more like a navy
in itself than the record Of the work
of one river during the war. 1t is
headed by that great Sheffield-C Clyde
bank firm, Messrs. John Brown & Co.,
Limited, who turned out no fewer than
forty-seven vessels Of 1916, 1853 tons and
1858, 800 horse power, and in whose
work there were included the great
battleship Durham and the great bat
tie cruisers Tiger and Repulse, not to
speak of the still greater Hood, about
which even yet nothing can be said
except that she exists, and is being
completed at Clydelbank.
The Hood was the greatest Of all
British mystery ships. She and the
Rodney Cat another Clyde yard-that
of the Fairfield company would have
been the great surprise packets Of the
war. In speed and gun-power they
were to have exceeded anything aflOat,
and what they were intended for only
our naval authorities and the builders
knew. Only the Hood, however, will
be completed.
When 1t became evident that the Of
fensive power of Germany was waning,
and that the naval power of Great
Britain and her allies was overwhelm-
ingly sufficient for all likely possi-
bilities, the question Of proceeding
with the construction of two such
great vessels came up for serious con-
sideration. If they were not to be
required for this war they would be
lost, as they could never be required
again. Even granting the possibility
of another war they would be out of
date before 1t came.
Decision to Complete Hood.
But while the Rodney was in the
early stages Of her construction at
Fairfield, the Hood was well advanced
at Clydebank. So It was decided to
complete the Hood as a great speci-
men Of the latest In British naval
architecture, but to scrap all that ex-
listed of the Rodney. That Is how
we are likely to have, for many years,
one great odd ship. capable Of out.
running and outranging any other ship
Of war afloat-unless 1t should unfOr.
tunately be the case that 1t will be
necessary to carry naval designs still
further, build still larger, faster and
more heavily armed vessels.
Meantime the Hood is the worlds
greatest fighting ship, and If ever the
Institution of Naval Architects are al
lowed to discuss her designs In public,
there should be revelations Of extra.
ordinary interest.
But 1t Is really In marine engineer
ing that the year 1918 and the war
period as whole has been extra0rdi-
nary. For the twelve months the rec
ord in the production of ships ma
chinery Is held by the Wallsend Slip
way company, Limited, of Wallsend'
on-Tyne, which turned out engines OF
318,290 horsepower. AS an achieve.
ment this would have been looked on
as almost impracticable before the
war. But there were many alm0st
as remarkable.
Second on the list came John Brown
& Co., Of Clydebank, with machinery
Of 1900 1. h. p. AS a matter Of fact,
this firm is first, as the Hood will be
Of more horsepower than their own
Repulse, which worked out at 115,OOO,
SO that their 1918 total must be well
over 100000 1. h. p. At present, how
ever, they can only be credited with
second place. in which they are fol-
lowed closely by their Clyde neigh
bors, the Fairfield company, with 201,-
600 1. h. p.
After them come Cammell, Laird
4 Co., Of Birkenhead, with 100000
1. h. D.; John Thornycroft & Co.. Of
Southampton, with 211,S43 1. h. D.;
Messrs. Harland & Wolf, Of Belfast.
Glasgow and Greenock, with 100000
I. h. p; and a large number of firms
with totals ruling between 100000 and
100000 1. h. p, each Of which would
have been considered notable in normal
times.
But higher records than any Of these
are to be found In the work Of all the
period Of the war. In 1915 the Fair.
field company turned out marine pro-
polling machinery Of a total Of 48S, 40
indicated horsepower; John Brown &
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