THE ST73TDAY OMGOXiA", PORTLAND, JTJXE' 25, 19051
38
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the: united rcrf n x-Fr wr cmpkep
V
A In battery -an j fiySWBjWSPf f ' Sil
the United States frigate Con- armament hitherto unapproached I JhBH 1 "5- ' BjK I
eMwJtha'baU OUr ar tTOm 5 to per cent finished j ' f 11 BgrV .
she thrown P in the real jjjjKm BM Sft HB
PTodaytheewn Hampshire of alloftt and -ready, for action, ; ;r"" v--' ; "il! tOtKiittr ! " 'jH jjK'"
throw 73S0 pounds of chilled steel In two years, will compare with" t'be Navy . v, VIL ' , SBBtl' - - 2 - t IfqMSJB0' "T Kt- SBil
one discharge of her main battery t the SpanlshAmertcan War. ln ac- TfC" If Bi Ml 1 It IsB mJ i&BBrl'
ouSOou'nds morethan at'onanJ has been more than quadrupled within I Jjfc If BeI " il Kro 1bRLbV ' 'tfttBIIA
& of metal with an energy 1JKM! SSremft Xir'V MT tlJL " VaC 'MSlUilHflHHB
more than 0.000 foot And the Bauirhii.- mmb4 dam ......". L JHPBMBBBl Sl -iA' MMfiLW f HtfV jl 'M Htir 'BHBSBPBIi
six battleships of that class which are Armored cruleere 5 12 ' MiSjJfl gzO' ' I jBa; laBP ' j
broadsides as as they can pelt Sooutte " 4 UK -,1 BBBMMK
4 flrt-citsa a-Kolnr'"battiei.:hip. American Gun Power. ft "Tt Tf' J'lffc I 9
1 rraend-riam turret sea-colnr baitlMp.. ThLs Navy will earry 1411 great gunw In W V' iV Vi'7'-' V . H KfllinHlS i Ml UlRIIIfSslSl SJnHH
: armoml cniltm. Its main batteries eat-steel rlfled.breerh- j nST VVTt, 1 - vi - - . . ' , piMPT wJMBBM BB4lyH2i4SH
13 protected crulsrrw. loading cannon, any vlngle one of which J W 'jjg
3 unprotecled cruleers,
16 runboats.
6 fteel double-turret menUors.
1 dynamite cruiser.
1 ram.
tt torpedo-boats.
This fleet was augmented by
hurried conversion of purchased
els, moBtly mercantile, when
Spanish-American War began.
real navy was as given.
Fit for Fight Today.
Today the United States Navy, afloat
and fit for Immediate service. Is:
11 first-class nen-icotnK co&At-Hne battteOilpc
1 recond-cla turret sc&.Kins battlestlp.
2 armored cruUera.
18 protected crultr.
5 unprotected cruiser.
12 frunbo&ts.
6 composite punboat.
3 Itpht-drauiht cunbojita.
21 g-unboatt under 300 ton.
4 rteel double-turret menitors.
1 dynamite eruleer.
1 armored ma.
16 torpedo-boat deBtroyer.
80 ateel torpedo-boats.
8 eubmarlne boat.
1 -ooden torpedo-boat.
16 colliers
1 supply und boepltal chipa.
Besides these, there are 9T auxiliary
cruisers, converted yachts, armed and
unarmed tugs, training-ships and sailing-
vessels, bringing the total of ships
of all kinds to 265.
The Fleet In Being.
Tnere are building now:
14 ftm-claM eea-roins CO&st-Hne battlechll.
10 armored crullers.
ft protected bruisers.
3 teout cruivers.
2 composite runboatr.
6 steel torpedo-boat.
2 tralnlnr ehlpt. -
1 tratntnc brig-
2 cotllero.
2 turn.
In addition to all these will soma two
mighty battleships of the first class,
the Michigan and the South Carolina,
authorized by the last Congress, and
required ander the law to be "super
ior to any now afloat. The plans for
these are still to be finally drawn. It
Is possible teat they will carry 12 and
WITH TfW F OTilEF. NOT?NX!
j would have been able to put the biggest
i 44-gun frigate of the lEta century out of
action.
In the secondary batteries are s many
smaHer gns. ranging from more than
two inches In caliber to machine guns
firing balls little larger than rifle ammu
nition, that U would require a caialcgue
is to detail them.
Thej run far into the thousands in
number enourh to destror the bigreat
1 standing army In the world If their tire
could be concentrated on It.
The liU great guns are made ups a fol
lows; 22 12-inch rifles. 12-lnch rifles
and 42 10-Inoh rifles mounted in turrets;
IK eight-inch rifles. f$ seven-Inch rifles.
455 six-Inch rifles. 1 five-Inch rifles. 1S2
four-Inch rifles and 177 three-Inch rifles,
mounted both in turrets and behind steel
armor. .
The combined weight of these guas
themselves is 13,165 tons that is, the guns
alone of our modern TNavy amount to al-
most as much as the entire tonnage of
all the ships that the Navy was able to
put into commission at the beginning of
the War of 1J13. They had a combined
tonnage of only 15.3C. and the total num-
ber of their guns was 4C
From the beautiful slender bores of the
14U there could be hurled In one single
blast exactly X7.S17 pound of pointed
, cast-steel projectiles 11S.9
tons
to- blast
; the sea.
, They don't look 1U Except in length,
; the chocolate-brown things are far less
, Imposing than the old savage guns of the
smooth-bore days. Thej- are too pretty,
i too dainty to Inspire the awe with which
4 people used to look at a frigate, whose
J sides were terrible with gaping black
j muzzles.
J But If those dainty gua eyea up on an
armored ship 5000 yards, or almost three
land miles off. which Is nearly aO times
the. fighting range of the old frigates, that
usually engaged within hailing distance,
and almost five times the ordinary ranges
of the Civil War navies, their conical pro
jectiles, striking fair and full against
the face of the armor, should smash as
follows: , .
The . 12-inch SJO-pouad projectile. 15
Inches of Krupp armor; the eight-Inch
250-pouad projectile, 10 inches of Krupp
armor: the seven-Inch Impound projec
tile, six Inches of Krupp armor: the six
Inch 100-pound projectile, four inches of
Krupp armor.
So much for the aggregate firing
strength of the new United States Xavy
Now for the detailed strengths.
Much of the "paper power" "ot navies
will be altered by the lessons to be learned
from that first great sep. battle between
modern steel ships that was fought In the
Sea of Japan. All other previous modem
fights, including the fights of the Ameri
can ships In the Spanish-American War.
were mere engagements compared with
that.
Many so-called "lessons" will be laid
before the world In haste; but the real
lessons will not be demenstratable for a
long time to come, perhaps a year. Ele
ments of wind, atmosphere and sea; ele
ments of personnel and strategy: ele
ments of ammunition and armor will all
have to be weighed minutely and reduced
to their proper relative values before the
naval experts will be able to speak with
some measure of authority.
Tuese are the great questions that
will be answered then answers which
every naval power awaits wlta keen
anxiety.
Were the armored shlps-j-battlesalps
or the great armored cruisers, them
selves essentially battleships tho
determining factors? Was It swiftness
of gunfire or welgnt of Individual pro-
, Jectlles' Was It swiftness c? engine
I or tnickness of nrotective armor? Did
the torpedo-boats play a decisive partf
What did the submarines do?
Now how would our new and great
Navy stand in power in the face of
any of these answers?
If swiftness of gunfire turns ouc to
nave crushed -the Russians, we are
safe. In 15 recorded minutes during the
naval battle of Santiago, one gun on
(QoscIa(ld 08. Faxs. 43