Evening star., 1937-01-31

speed Of some 80 knots. The former
has already been started and the
other is following Immediately.
Indications are that Japan proposes
to lay down two battleshipS this year.
Italy has the two capital ships, Lttorio
and Vittorio Veneto, under construc.
ton. They were laid down in 1884. but
| in the interim, Mussolini has had the
| conquest of Ethiopia on his hands and
construction of these two vessels has
teen slowed up. Prospects now are
that they will be completed by 1910.
l:ach Of these vessels is of $4,000 tons
displacement, with an estimated speed
Uf Just over 80 knots.
"A ND SO, with Uncle Sans two new
warships soon to be on the ways,
he is in keeping with the rest Of the
major powers. 1t has often been
stated, erroneously. that the United
States decision to build two new war
ships at this time will start naval
race" President Roosevelt, the Of
flcials pointed out, decided in ac-
cordance with the law to lay down
the two new vessels only after he had
ascertained that the other powers were
doing likewise.
According to information reaching
this side of the Atlantic, Great Brit
aims new battleships will be equipped
to meet attack from the air and pro-
vide an extension of anti-aircraft
armament.
All the powers are 1oath to make
| public any great amount Of informa-
| ton about the characteristics of their
floating fortresses. Uncle Sam, using
Secretary Swanson as his mouthpiece,
has made available to the public only
| the broad, general outlines Of what the
new warships will be like. Each will
have three turrets, but there is as
yet no artists conception Of how they
will look available
The main armament of the British
battleships will be 14-inch guns. Your
Uncle Samuel Is awaiting Japan's
answer, before deciding on what size
Of his new guns will be. The Wash
ington Navy Yard may well be ex-
spected to have an important role in
construction Of the offensive weapons
for the new vessels.
BY the treaty signed in London,
March IS, 1886, Great Britain, the
United States and France agreed to
limit themselves to battleshipS of
$4,000 tons with maximum gun cali
bre Of 16 inches. All the parties to
the Washington Treaty have until
April / to signify if they will adhere
to the 14-inch gun limitation.
THE United States has IS capital
ships; the British Empire has IS;
Japan has 8; France has 8 and Italy
has 4. There are no battle cruisers
flying the United States flag.
The passing years have wrought
their transition on the very appear
ance Of battleships. The United States
was really the only nation that went
in for cage or basket masts. Now these
masts-evidently built upon the
! theory that If part of the mast was
shot away, the rest would stand up
have been abolished, for the most
part, in Uncle Sans Navy. They
have given way to the tripod, in later
types.
In the latest designs, in lieu Of
foremast, American battleships pos
sess in reality series Of towers and
then there Is the signal stick" re-
placing what was formerly an impos-
ing skyward construction. Now the
tripod is fading out.
Science and the experience Of naval
engagements and other factors leave
their imprint upon battleship con-
struction. Accordingly, the two forth
coming battleships should be the en-
bodiment of extended experience and
study-with a critical eye on what
potential enemies of the United States
are doing, also.
Some observers believe that the IA
year gap since the United States has
built a battleship will have its effect
in the epoch-making construction.
All the latest developments will go
into this new pride Of the American
Navy" and these ships. too. will be
protected against aircraft.
sky-these will be carefully consid-
cred in the construction Of these
giants Of the seaways. Out of the
metallurgist's crucible will come the
strength that will be pitted against
the brains Of the hostile man of the
air and his destructive machines, now
and in the future.
THE Roosevelt administration stands
ready to bet $100, 0,000, 900 of the
taxpayers money on the fact that
battleships are still good investments.
Franklin D. Roosevelt, student Of ma
val history and President, and Secre-
.tary Swanson, who has seen may
types Of warships rise and fall in his
long years of public service, are con-
,, vinced that the old adage is as true
as the multiplication table-"the bat
tleship is the backbone Of the fleet"
And the action of the principal for
eign nations bear them out.
Today's battleship construction had
its genesis in an historic naval en-
gagement not so far from Washington
-dL f1dIIlpIOu EtOduS, td., OL udICkl
9, 1862, when the Monitor and Mer-
rimac battled for supremacy. That
: convinced the naval constructors that
these extreme types were new fac
tor. Here was turret. with mov-
able gun, and through all the years,
. this basic principle remains.
The first ship of the New Navy
} as the transition from sail to steam
was called-was the 4,500-ton craft
U. s. S. Chicago, which was launched
at Chester, Pa, December 5, 1883.
Later, her name was changed to
Alton, honoring the city Of Alton, Il.
After steel and steam showed su-
premacy in the Navy, much to the
chagrin of Doubling Thonases, wood
and sail faded fast. There was a
period Of stagnation following the
Civil War in naval construction, but
with the coming Of the Chicago in
1883, things picked up. This progeni-
} | for ~ 1nVn 1fy,a NJ hire uras