SHIPS OF WAR, BUDGETS, AND PERSONNEL.
AUSTRIA.
The budget of the Ministry of Marine has been passed, as well as an extraordinary vote of 75,000,000 kronen. In addition to 8 new torpedo-boats of an improved type, with engines developing 2000 I. H. P., giving a speed of 26 knots, the construction of all the new ships is to be hastened. When defending the increased outlay before the delegations, Admiral Baron Spaun, the Minister of Marine, stated that "with the new credits, in a year and a half we shall have the same number of battleships as we had in 1870; but without them we should have had to wait eleven years for the reconstruction of the fleet." The Minister further explained that, as the result of the lessons of the Russo-Japanese war, a considerable sum must be expended on the better protection of the harbor and roadstead at Pola. He also stated that it was intended to construct one submarine for experimental purposes.
THE PERSONNEL AND MATERIEL OF THE FLEET.—The whole personnel of the fleet actively employed amounts to 10,906 officers and men, of whom 3122 officers and men are employed on shore service and 7784 afloat.
201 officers are employed on shore service, of whom 31 are employed at the Ministry of Marine in Vienna, including 1 admiral, 1 vice-admiral, 1 rear-admiral, 4 captains, and 6 commanders.
272 officers (including 2 rear-admirals) and 2578 men are employed in the Adriatic and Mediterranean Squadron; 128 officers and 1301 men are employed in ships on foreign service; 221 officers and 3284 men are employed in the training and harbor ships.
The total number of officers employed is 1442, with 9464 petty officers and men.
The materiel of the fleet, including ships under construction, is made up as follows: Battleships, 11, including 2 under construction; first-class armored cruisers, 3, including one under construction; second-class cruisers, 2; third-class cruisers, 6; torpedo-avisos, 7; first-class torpedo-boats, 24; second-class torpedo-boats, 38. River monitors, 6, including 2 under construction; river patrol vessels, 7. Special service ships.—Casemate ships for local defence, 5; yachts and station-ships, 5; sea-going factory-ship, 1; torpedo depot-ship, 1; submarine mining ship, 1; various duties, 12. Training-ships.—Sea-going training corvettes, 5; gunnery training-ships (including tenders), 4; torpedo training-ships, 2 ; submarine mining ship, 1, and two tenders; boys' training-ship, 1, with 2 tenders.—U. S. Institution.
The torpedo-boat flotilla of the Austrian navy is to be reconstructed, and in view of the discussions which have taken place as to the speed required for destroyers, the fact that the Austrians have fixed on 28 knots is interesting. This speed is to be attained when the vessels are carrying a load of 100 tons representing fuel and ammunition. The 25 1/2-knot boats for the British Navy are required to carry 120 tons, and it is matter for serious consideration whether this justifies the decrease in speed of our vessels.—Engineer.
FRANCE.
The French navy estimates for this year total 310,000,000 fr. (£12,400,000). Of this sum 68,000,000 francs (£2,720,000) are to be devoted to the building and completion of iron-clads, a circumstance which M. Pelletan very much deplores. He asks Parliament to devote at least 23,000,000 francs (£920,000) to the construction of small craft.
Only one new armored cruiser is, however, included in the building program for 1905. She is to be of the Renan type, and is known at present as C 17. She is to be built at Lorient, according to present arrangements. Four torpedo-boat destroyers of the Stylet class, of 28 knots speed, are also to be put in hand at Rochefort. For twenty torpedo boats the plans are not yet completed. With regard to submarine boats only very slight information is obtainable. At present there are twenty-three under construction, Omega at Toulon, Emeraud, Opale and Pubis at Cherbourg, and Saphir, Topaze and Turquoise at Toulon. These last six vessels were all commenced in October, 1903. They displace 422 tons, and are to have an indicated horse power of 600. Q 47—Q 62 are not yet laid down, while sixteen more, of the program of 1904, are to be built, four at Cherbourg and twelve at Toulon. The program for 1905 allows for eight more submarines, three to be built at Toulon, three at Cherbourg and two in Rochefort.
During 1905 there will be in all 95 vessels under construction for the French navy—six battleships, the Republique (to be commissioned during 1905), Democratic, Patrie, Liberte, Justice and Write; four armored cruisers, Jules Michelet, Victor Hugo, Ernest Renan and C 16 (C 17 being apparently indefinitely postponed) ; eight torpedo-boat destroyers—Stylet, Tromblon, Pierrier, Obusier, Mortier, M 38 and M 39, to be built in the public yards, and Claymore in a private establishment; fifty-five torpedo boats-ten to be built in public and the others in private yards, and the twenty-three submarines above mentioned.
New regulations for the trials of vessels have been promulgated, and the first vessel to profit by them is the Conde. The tests are now arranged as follows: (1) Coal consumption trials of six hours' duration, with fires lighted under half the boilers; (2) two machinery trials, one of ten hours at full speed, and the other of three hours at the highest speed obtainable with three-quarters of the boilers in use; and (3) a run of twenty-four hours at ordinary speed. The time between the trials is not to exceed three days except under special circumstances, which must be reported to the Minister of Marine.
On her full speed trials the Conde attained a speed of 21.35 knots, with a maximum horse power of 22,800. The coal consumption was about 35.23 lbs. per square foot of grate surface. On the twenty-four hours' trial she did 18.6 knots with engines developing 11,000 horse power; the coal consumption working out at 1.63 lbs. per unit of power per hour. The whole of the trials were carried out in seven days, whereas under tile old regulations they might have lasted weeks and even months.
The only other trial worth noting is that of the torpedo-boat destroyer Balliste. On a coal consumption trial, at a speed of 18 knots, she burnt fuel at the rate of 2.34 lbs. per unit of power per hour.—Page's Magazine.
THE NAVAL ESTIMATES FOR 1905.-The naval estimates demanded for next year, which have been laid before the Chamber of Deputies, amount to 318,068,813 francs (£12,722,752 10s.), as against 312,828,637 francs (£12,513,145 los.) voted for the current year, showing an increase of 5,240,176 francs (£209,607).
PERSONNEL OF THE FLEET.-The following are the numbers of the officers of different ranks on the active list of the fleet: 15 vice-admirals, 30 rear-admirals, 125 captains, 215 commanders, 754 lieutenants, 420 sublieutenants, 170 midshipmen, and 67 cadets, making a total of 1796, of which number 1279 are actually serving at sea.
The engineer department consists of: 1 inspector-general, 6 engineer-inspectors,
20 engineers-in-chief, 100 chief engineers, 1st class, and 200 2d class, making a total of 327.
The medical branch consists of: 1 inspector-general, 5 directors, 30 doctors-in-chief, and 373 other medical officers of various grades.
The accountant department consists of: I commissary-general, 1st class; 3 commissary-generals, 2d class; 18 commissaries-in-chief, 1st and 2d class; 30 principal commissaries, and 136 other officers of various grades.
There are 82 chief warrant officers, 33,186 warrant and petty officers and seamen, 14,692 engine-room artificers, leading stokers and stokers, 386 armorers, 353 bandsmen and 1057 men for special duties, making a total of 49,756, showing an increase of 2003 over this year's effectives, which number 47,671.-United Service Institution.
The French Minister of Marine has given orders to the Forges et Chantiers Company, of Havre, to proceed with the construction of four floating docks for the use of torpedo-boat destroyers at Cherbourg, Toulon, Bizerta and Saigon. The dimensions of these docks will be 164 feet long (with open ends) and of 41 feet width, capable of lifting vessels up to 360 tons.
France is entering upon a series of tests of submarine boats, primarily to determine whether the submersible or purely submarine type is the more satisfactory. The Aigrette is the representative of the submersible. She is vessel of 172 tons displacement, and is propelled on the surface by an internal combustion motor, and when submerged by an electric motor. She is designed by Engineer Lauboeuf. The submarine boat is of 20.2 tons displacement, and always travels under the water. She is the design of Engineer Mangas. In her case, however, the speed is less than with a senn-submerged boat like the Aigrette. The crucial test, however, is that which concerns the time taken to disappear when there is reason to suppose that the enemy has discovered the presence of the submersible boat. In this respect the British boats of the Vickers type are specially satisfactory,
At the coaling of the French Mediterranean squadron at Toulon recently the length of time was taken and the quantities shipped by the various vessels were as follows: Marseillaise, 1040, in 8 hours 30 minutes; Suffren, 900 tons, in 8 hours 35 minutes; Iena, 500 tons, in 8 hours 15 minutes; Charlemagne, 650 tons, in 5 hours 45 minutes; Gaulois, 600 tons, in 4 hours 50 minutes; Saint Louis, 500 tons, in 5 hours; Bouvet, 370 tons, in 4 hours; Du Chayla, 300 tons, in 4 hours 50 minutes; Galilee, 300 tons, in 5 hours; and the Linois, 164 tons, in 1 hour 11 minutes, which was the largest quantity per hour.
In Le Yacht of July 9 we have a detailed account of the cruise of the Northern squadron along the French coast. As usual, special prominence was given to feigned attacks by submarines and submersibles. On Saturday, June 25, the submarines succeeded in accounting for the Jeanne d'Arc and Henry IV, while on Wednesday, the 29th, the submersibles attacked the squadron when approaching Cherbourg, and in two cases managed to get within easy striking distance undetected.
In commenting upon these attacks, the correspondent says, in conclusion, that there can be no longer any complaint of the want of proper training of the submarines. So far at least as those stationed at Cherbourg are concerned, it may be confidently stated that the crews are well trained and the officers full of zeal, so that, in spite of certain defects in matters of detail, submarines and submersibles may be counted upon to render important service in time of war, the first in the neighborhood of the port, the second further afield, anywhere, in fact, within a restricted area like the Channel.—United Service Gazette.
The Yacht describes the inspection made by Vice-Admiral Fournier of the French mobile defenses. The mobilization of the boats at Cherbourg Was conducted in the best circumstances, and three hours after the order had been given the boats were ready for sea with all stores and necessaries on board. The submersibles Silure, Espadon, Sirene and Triton, and the submarines Francais, Algerien and Morse distinguished themselves in their attacks on the armored gunboat Flamme, which served as a target for their torpedo. The correspondent who describes these exercises states that six first-class torpedo boats and two destroyers have been ordered at Havre. These are boats for retarding which the Minister has been reproached, but it is supposed that the delay will have enabled improvements to be effected in them. The torpedo boats will approach too tons in displacement, and are to steam at 26 knots with 2000 horse power, while the new destroyers will displace about 350 tons and are to be 30-knot boats with 7200 horse power. The Minister has appointed a committee to investigate all questions relating to submarine navigation. It is well known that he has a preference for small submarine boats, and some of the papers anticipate that he will appoint a committee to enforce his views. Admiral Fournier has urged him to authorize the building of the submersible vessels ordered by his predecessor and afterwards countermanded.—Army and Navy Gazette.
The French Minister of Marine proposes to increase largely the number of engineer officers of the navy, and is about to present a pro jet de loa embodying his plans. The corps will consist of a chief engineer of the fleet or inspector-general of .the first class, being a new appointment ranking with a vice-admiral, .two inspectors-generals of the second class (rearadmirals), six chief inspectors of machinery (captains), 12 inspectors of machinery (frigate captains), 45 fleet engineers (corvette captains), 210 chief engineers (lieutenants), and 175 engineers (junior lieutenants). The establishment will differ from the existing one by the institution of the officer ranking as a vice-admiral, and the increase of the rear-admiral's rank, also by the creation of 12 inspectors of machinery, 25 new fleet engineers, 110 chief engineers, and 175 engineers. The number of additional officers will be 124, or about 30 per cent, and the increase will be wholly for service afloat, the shore establishment remaining the same.—Army and Navy Gazette.
The French Northern squadron has been engaged in very interesting exercises with torpedo boats and submarines. It left Brest on the morning of June 24, and on the next morning the three divisions united to the north of La Hague. At half-past ten the ships' companies were called to quarters to keep a sharp lookout for submarines. The Jeanne d'Arc and the Henri IV, however, were both torpedoed, but we have not learned from the Yacht any particulars as to whether the ships were actually under way at the time. At three o'clock the squadron anchored in Cherbourg harbor, where the submarines attacked at night. The sky was clear and the periscopes could be distinguished at a distance from about 400 to 500 meters. Torpedoes were fired with collapsible heads, but the result appears not to be known. The following day was given up to rest, and at six o'clock in the morning the squadron again put to sea in superb weather, and the same evening anchored at Boulogne, where it was attacked at night by the torpedo boats of the submarine defense of Dunkirk. The Cassini and Forbin, with the destroyers, were employed upon picket service, and the attacking boats were discovered at a considerable distance. On Tuesday, the 28th, the squadron left Boulogne for the north, and at five o'clock in the afternoon passed Folkestone and Dover, from which latter place it had to bear away because of the firing of the coast batteries. The same evening the Dunkirk torpedo boats attacked while the squadron was under way off Cape Grisnez, but they were discovered. The squadron had not yet done with the submarines, which on the night of the 29th attacked between Cape D'Ally and Saint Valery. The first submersible emerged at a short distance from the battleships, the second a little later, and the third between Fecamp and Cape D'Antifer, all within range, though no torpedoes appear to have been discharged. The last attack was delivered before the squadron reached Cherbourg, but no particulars have been published. The exercises were favored by excellent weather and a very calm sea. The correspondent of the Yacht remarks that there can be no complaint of failure in the readiness of the submarines, and that at least those at Cherbourg are in an excellent state of training. The crews are good and the officers full of zeal, so that, in spite of the imperfection of some details, it may be assumed that both submarines and submersibles would be of great value in war.—Army and Navy Gazette.
The Minister of Marine has decided that the additional station for submarines which was to have been established at Dunkirk, shall be at Calais instead. The submarines will have the breadth of the English Channel as a field of action, and will, it is considered, be able to prevent warships approaching Dunkirk roadstead from the Channel. The eastern half of the French Channel coast will be under the protection of the Calais submarines.—Engineer.
Regulations of remarkable stringency are being drafted for service on board French submarines. The period for general service may be extended for two years for special service on submarines, but under conditions which may be relied upon to prevent supply running away with the demand. Officers of submarines are to have the right to transfer a petty officer or man back to the general service at the first symptom of any physical or professional failing. Every six months the crews of all submarine boats will undergo a special medical examination, and any physical affection, however, slight, will entail immediate exclusion from the submarine section.—Engineer.
GERMANY.
The new scheme for naval expansion which has been brewing in German official circles for some time past is rapidly coming to a head. From Berlin advices, thrown out perhaps semi-officially as feelers, it appears that this new scheme altogether surpasses the program of 1900. No fewer than twenty battleships and ten armored cruisers, together with attendant small craft, are said to be in contemplation. Germany is poorly supplied with torpedo craft, and the new program is expected to make liberal provision for this class of vessel, to the extent even of 6,925,000 marks (£346,250). Submarines are also to receive more attention than has hitherto been the case.
The Lothringen, battleship, was launched on May 27, at the Schichau Yard, Dantzic. The Lothringen was built ready for launching in exactly one year, and her launch leaves only one battleship now on the stocks,
"N," which is building at Kid. The boilers of the Lothringen are a combination of eight Schultz and six cylindrical boilers, and with engines developing 16,000 horse power and driving three screws. She is expected to attain a speed of 18 knots. Her other characteristics are similar to those of the other vessels of the Braunschweig class, already described in these notes.
The Berlin, protected cruiser, is expected to be ready for service next April, by which time the Hamburg should also be complete. At her full speed trials recently, the Hamburg developed under a forced draft 11,582 horse power, giving her a speed of 23.15 knots. On a mean of four runs over the measured mile, the results were 11,889 I. H. P., 545 revolutions and 22.54 knots.
The active list of the German navy for 5904 is composed of 1139 officers, ranking as follows; 5 admirals of the fleet, 7 vice-admirals, 17 rear admirals, 6 post-captains, 136 captains, 273 commanders, 394 lieutenant commanders, 245 lieutenants. There are also 470 sub-lieutenants and 151 naval cadets.—Page's Magazine.
The work of repairing and modernizing the four battleships of the Brandenburg class, which is being carried out at Wilhelmshaven, is so far advanced that the Worth and Weissenburg will be ready for commissioning this autumn, when they will be attached to the second squadron of the active fleet. Among other improvements which have been carried out have been the substitution of steel, as far as possible, for wood; the removal of the torpedo-tubes to position below the water-line from the stations above water, where they were originally fitted, which has been a work of some difficulty; a complete overhaul of the engines and boilers, and the strengthening of the secondary battery amidships by an additional two 4.7-inch Q. F. guns. The other two ships of the group, the Kurfurst. Friedrich Wilhelm and the Brandenburg, will not be completed until next year.—United Service Institution.
The use of oil fuel is being extended in the German navy. Several of the torpedo boats in addition to some of the larger ships are now fitted to consume oil. The Imperial yacht Hohenzollern is so fitted, while all the new battleships of the Braunschweig type carry 200 tons of oil in their double bottoms. Large tanks have been erected in the dock-yards at Kiel and Wilhelmshaven, and at the coaling stations at Holtenau and Brunsbuttel for the storage of oil, while an oil transport-ship has recently been delivered at the Imperial dock-yard at Kiel specially built and fitted for replenishing the oil supplies in ships at sea or in harbor. The vessel is divided into twelve large water-tight compartments, besides being built with a double bottom; six of these compartments are used for the storage of oil, while in the after part of the ship is a powerful pumping equipment for supplying the oil to other ships, and a steam heating apparatus for maintaining it at a proper temperature.—United Service Institution.
The Danziger Allgemeine Zeitung states that the question is being considered of giving a stronger armament to German torpedo-boats in the shape of guns of larger caliber. At present the torpedo-boats of 400 tons carry only three 1.97-inch guns. In the English, French, Russian, and Japanese boats the guns are heavier, though the craft are for the most part smaller. The English boat of from 300 to 400 tons carries one 3-inch and five 2 1/4-inch guns, and that of 240 tons one 3-inch and three 2 4-inch guns. Japan, as in most things naval, follows England's example. France gives her 335-ton boat one 2.56-inch and six 1.85-inch guns. Russia's seagoing boats have each one 2.95-inch and five r.85-inch guns. Only the United States is in agreement with Germany in this matter, and, after all, the weapon of a torpedo-boat is the torpedo.—U. S. Gazette.
A Berlin correspondent telegraphs: "An important change is about to be introduced in the torpedo-tubes used in the German navy. For a long time the need of submerged tubes capable of being trained in any direction, like a gun, has been felt. The difficulties connected with the construction of such tubes have at last been overcome, and the torpedo boat Schwaben will shortly be equipped with the first set. It is stated that, owing to the inferior armament of German torpedo boats as compared with those of other nations, the question of arming them with heavier guns will shortly be considered."-United Service Gazette.
In addition to the vessels of the active fleet the following will take part In the grand German naval maneuvers: From September 4 to 10. The battleship Schwaben, the large cruiser Prinz Adalbert, the small cruiser Fellican, the training ships Olga and Carola, and two torpedo boats. From September 4 to 13-The small cruisers Nymphe and Hamburg. The German Emperor will be on board the battleship Kaiser Wilhelm II, and will probably command in person. Superior officers of the German army to the number of fifty will be distributed on board the various warships in order to watch the maneuvers, which will include landing operations. Among them will be a large proportion of artillery officers.-United Service Gazette.
GREAT BRITAIN.
During the discussion on the shipbuilding vote on August 4 the following information was given by Mr. Pretyman on the subject of the design of the new battleships and cruisers shortly to be put out to contract. The battleship class will be known as the Lord Nelson class, and two ships of the class are to be laid down in private yards this year, the name ship and the Agamemnon. They are to be vessels of 16,5oo tons, will carry four 12-inch and ten 9.2-inch guns, the former having a command forward of 37 feet and aft of 32 feet, the latter having a command of 22 feet, and their engines will develop about 16,5oo horse power, giving a maximum speed of 18 knots, with a continuous sea speed of 164 knots. They will ordinarily carry 900 tons of coal, with a maximum of 2000 tons. They will have 12-inch armor amidships, 8-inch on the upper deck, 6-inch forward and 4-inch aft. The total cost will be about 17000 more than that of the King Edward VII. The cruisers are to be known as Minotaur, Shannon, Defence and Orion. They are to displace 14,600 tons, and carry four 9.2-inch guns and ten 7.5-inch guns each. Their maximum speed is to be 23 knots, with a continuous sea speed of 21 knots. The guns are to be well protected behind 8-inch armor. The battleship will be slightly larger than those of the King Edward class, and the cruisers will not be so long as the Drakes. In armament and general power they are expected to be an advance on anything yet constructed in battleships or first-class cruisers.—Army and Navy Gazette.
The designs of the new battleships of the Nelson class are now in an advanced stage, and the invitations to shipbuilders to submit tenders will be issued towards the end of August or beginning of September. Their chief characteristic will be the great gun power. There will not be any reduction of freeboard, as has been intimated. This would have been a serious departure from what is regarded now as a first essential to successful fighting in a seaway. The monitor class may have the advantage of a small target, and may minimize the weight of the armor protecting the broadside; but there is the overbalancing disadvantage that the placing of the guns so near the water-line would cause the muzzle to be water-covered when the ship rolled towards a wave, making rapid fire and accuracy impossible. The tendency rather is to insure a high gun platform, and thus in the new Nelson class there will be no guns on the main deck, as in our earlier ships; all of them will be on the upper deck.
The guns of the new vessels, too, will be more powerful. There will be two barbettes—one forward and the other aft—and in each there will be two 12-inch breech-loaders. This is the same as in all our modern battleships. The secondary armament will consist entirely of 9.2-inch guns. In the King Edward VII class there are four of these guns, in addition to ten 6-inch quick-firers; but in earlier ships there were twelve or fourteen 6-inch guns only. But according to present intentions there will be in the Nelson class ten 9.2-inch guns, which will make them by far the most powerful ships afloat. Twin 9.2-inch guns will be mounted in turrets at the four quarters of the citadel, and a single gun in the center on each side. These guns will be built into the upper deck, which is to be heavily armored, the mechanism and mounting being protected by armored hoods or turrets. Thus the broadside of 9-inch Krupp armor will be utilized for protection from broadside attack, and the main armored bulkheads forward and aft for shielding the gun mountings from raking fire. The broadside armor will, therefore, not be weakened by openings, and at the same. Time the lower parts of the gun mountings and ammunition hoists will be effectively protected.—United Service Gazette.
The more the new battleships and cruisers of the Lord Nelson and Minotaur classes are discussed, the more evident it becomes that both types of vessels are far ahead of anything that has yet been designed. It is almost a misnomer to describe the Minotaur class as armored cruisers, for they are in many respects superior to battleships in our own and other navies which have been designated "first-class." Comparison of gun power alone is, as many authorities have pointed out, misleading, but it is mainly in gun power that we find the overwhelming superiority of these new vessels. They transcend the vessels of all other navies in this respect, and the design which comes nearest to them is that of the American Kansas class. The principal armament of the Lord Nelson, the 12-inch 45-caliber gun, will, it is calculated, pierce 12-inch Krupp steel at 4000 yards, while the 50-caliber 9.2-inch gun of the secondary battery is superior in penetrative power to the 12-inch guns of the Majestic class. Added to this the fact that with a well-trained gun's crew these pieces can fire three shots a minute, it becomes evident that no ship at present afloat is in the same category as the Lord Nelson. This is as it should be, of course, but we have yet to see what other nations will build. The loss of half a knot speed is more than compensated for by the immense offensive power gained, and the fact that the armored cruisers which ought to form a second division have all the speed necessary for a long running fight.
The cruisers mark, as do the battleships, a noteworthy advance on their precursors. They are larger than any other vessels of their class yet designed, their nearest rivals being, as in the case of the battleships, the cruisers building by the Americans, of the Tennessee class of 14,500 tons. These vessels will be about equal in gun power, but much inferior in Protection, to the Minotaur class. Factors of very great importance in cruisers are, of course, speed and coal capacity. The Minotaurs are not in these respects equal to the Drakes, or to the Ernest Renan class of the French navy. But in coal capacity they will surpass the Tennessee class, and their twenty-three knots speed, if they can attain it, should be adequate. Previous experience with large cruisers in our navy has led us to expect them to exceed rather than fall short of their designed speed, and if the Minotaurs do this they will be the most formidable armored cruisers afloat. We have heard much of the power of the vessels of the German navy, but in this class they have nothing to approach our vessels. The Roon, armed with 8.2-inch and 5.9-inch guns, and with a belt of 4-inch armor, fine ship though she is in many respects, would be helpless against the Minotaur, and the Ernest Renan has neither the offensive nor defensive powers of the British ship.—Army and Navy Gazette.
The Monmouth, of the County class, which recently experienced some trouble with her condensers, has made the trip from Gibraltar to Plymouth in 53 hours 7 minutes, which gives an average speed of 20.5 knots. Whatever may be said against the County class, the old reproach about their steaming capabilities is now very out of date. Her engines and boilers were constructed by the London and Glasgow Shipbuilding Company. The engines are of the four-cylinder vertical triple-expansion type, and the boilers of the Belleville variety. The long distance cruise from Gibraltar to Plymouth is nowadays thought a good deal more of than the relatively short full power trial, and we congratulate her builders upon the record that they have obtained in a ship that was supposed to be under a cloud. The case is yet another instance of the advisability of taking stories of failures that appear in the daily press with a good supply of salt.—Engineer.
The Repulse, battleship, arrived on July 23 at Sheerness, and went on to Chatham, where she will be completed for transfer to the A division of the Fleet Reserve. In addition to a thorough overhaul of her machinery and the making good of structural defects the vessel has been fitted with six new 6-inch guns, which necessitated various alterations to the ship. The steam trials were of a severe character, the machinery having to develop and maintain the original maximum indicated horse power (9000) for eight hours. No difficulty was experienced in doing this, the average I. H. P. for the full. time being about gm), while a speed of 15 ½ knots was obtained. The trials of the gun mountings were also satisfactory. The Repulse is to be ready for passing into the Fleet Reserve towards the end of August.—United Service Gazette.
H. M. S. Pathfinder, the first of the two fleet scouts now building by Messrs. Cammell, Laird & Co., Limited, was launched on July 16 at the shipbuilding works of the company at Birkenhead. The scouts, of which this vessel is one, are designed to be the fastest sea-going vessels in the world, and it is expected that 25 knots will be obtained on a prolonged full power trial. The following are the principal dimensions of the vessel: Length, 370 feet; beam, 38 feet 6 inches. She will be propelled by two sets of four-cylinder triple-expansion engines of 16,500 horse power, balanced on the Yarrow, Schlick and Tweedy system, steam being supplied by twelve water-tube boilers of the Laird type, arranged in three water-tight compartments. A protective deck is worked throughout the ship. The engines are protected by 2-inch specially treated Krupp non-cemented steel made at the company's armor-plate works at Sheffield. The armament consists of ten 12-pounder quick-firing guns mounted as follows: Three on forecastle deck, three aft on upper deck, four on upper deck in waist of ship. Also eight 3-pounder quick-firing guns and two 18-inch torpedo-tubes above water. When in commission the vessel will have a complement of about 290 men. H. M. S. Patrol, the second vessel of this type now building by the firm, is also in an advanced stage of construction.—Engineer.
An interesting Parliamentary return has been issued at the instance of Mr. Kearley, M. P., in connection with the trials of the new destroyers of 25 1/2 knot speed, which indicates under what severe pressure the speed is realized by these larger craft. They are on an average 230 tons heavier than the earlier boats of 30 knot speed, ranging up to 550 tons. Their construction was decided upon as a result of strictures made on the strength of the lighter boats by the court-martial which sat in judgment on the loss of the Cobra. Events, however, have proved that these criticisms by officers, who were not versed in naval architecture or in the problems of stresses of sea-going craft, were not justified, and the committee of experts appointed to make thorough and scientific investigation of the subject came to the definite conclusion that there was no reason for the alarmist attitude taken. Larger boats no doubt have their compensations, but without increasing the gun power they cost 25 per cent more and reduce materially the radius of action at any given speed. Moreover, events in the Far East have shown that speed is everything in destroyer tactics, so that the reduction from 30 to 25 1/2 knots is a serious matter, especially as the lower sped is difficult of realization. In the old days a ship was not expected to require more than 1 inch or 1 1/4 inches of forced draft in the closed stokehold, although in some extreme cases this has been considerably exceeded. With these destroyers, however, the pressure was under 2 inches in only three cases out of seventeen trials completed, while in the other it ranged up to 5.3 inches, in two cases it was 4.4 inches, and in the others it ranged between 2 1/2 and 3 inches. The Yarrow boats seems to have done best in this respect. Two of the boats are turbine-driven, and one, the Velox, steamed 27.1 knots for 7.35 tons of coal per hour; the other, the Eden, 26.2 knots for 7.45 tons per hour. The best result with reciprocating engines was 26.2 knots with a coal consumption of about 5 1/2 tons per hour, this vessel having the remarkably low rate of 1.65 lbs. per I. H. P. per hour. Another reciprocating- engined vessel returned 1.56 lbs. for 25.8 knots, which also gives a better result than the turbine vessels. A third, which steamed 26.1 knots, only consumed 1.9 lbs. All these three vessels were Yarrow boats. In the case of the other vessels the consumption ranged up to 2.79 lbs., so that the average result is not more than the 7 1-3 tons recorded for the turbine vessels. Where the consumption was over 21/2 lbs., the vessel had to carry an increase in load at the rate of four tons for each tenth of a pound in excess of 2.5 lbs. per I. H. P. per hour, while for less consumption a deduction was made for the saving on the same basis.
Details have just been received concerning the loss of the destroyer Sparrowhawk on the China station. On the night of Friday, June 17, she struck an uncharted rock northeast of Chesney Island, one of the Parker group. The flagship Glory and the destroyer Fame stood by her all night, and so hard did all hands work under the superintendence of Flag-Captain the Hon. W. G. Stopford, that she was towed off on the Saturday morning and brought alongside the Glory. Subsequently she sank in eight fathoms. The rock pierced her hull abaft the third funnel, and after being towed off it is supposed that her engine-room bulkhead gave way, causing her to snap in two. All her guns, torpedoes, ammunition, spars and loose gear were saved, and no lives were lost. Fortunately, only her forward furnaces were going when she sank, otherwise she might have blown to pieces.-United Service Gazette.
The new Exe class destroyers now building are fourteen in number and named as follows: Thornycroft boats—Chelmer, Colne; Yarrow boats—Gala, Garry; Hawthorn Leslie boats—Kale, Doon, Boyne; Laird boats—Moy, Ouse; Palmer boats—Ure, Wear; White boats—Ness, Nith. The fifteen boats projected for the 1904-05 program have not yet been named or commenced.—Engineer.
The first-class armored cruiser Duke of Edinburgh, which was launched on June 14, is the first of the new class to take the water, the remaining five being the Black Prince, Achilles, Natal, Warrior and Cochrane. These cruisers represent a type which has been evolved as the result of experience gained with a succession of armored cruisers, commencing with the Drake and Cressy classes, and passing on to the Monmouth and the improved Monmouth, or Devonshire type. The weakness of all the vessels named consisted chiefly in the adoption of the 6-inch B. L. gun as the preponderating arm. In the Duke of Edinburgh the 6-inch gun is retained on the main deck, but her design provides for six 9.2-inch guns to be mounted in barbettes on the upper deck; one forward, one aft and two on each broadside. This powerful armament, and the fact that these vessels will be the first cruisers to have a complete armor water-line belt, are the most important distinctive feature of the Duke of Edinburgh and her sisters. The remaining armament will comprise twenty-four 3-pounder Q. F. guns, with four machine guns. The full armament of the ship will therefore be six 9.2-inch B. L., six 6-inch B. L., and twenty-eight smaller guns. This represents an enormous increase in offensive power over that possessed by any previous cruiser. In this connection, also, she is possessed of a new feature in the shape of a center line submerged torpedo tube. Years ago it was customary to fit stern tubes above water, but they were abandoned because of difficulties experienced in directing the torpedoes. Latterly, however, a new invention has removed that difficulty, and hence the Duke of Edinburgh is to be fitted with a stern submerged tube. She will also have one submerged tube on each side near the bow. All three will discharge 18-inch torpedoes.
It is reported that in the four last laid down vessels of this class, the Achilles, Natal, Cochrane and Warrior, the ten 6-inch guns on the main deck are to be done away with, and four additional 9.2-inch will take their place on the upper deck, but this seems doubtful.
The principal dimensions of the Duke of Edinburgh are: Length, 480 feet; extreme beam, 73 feet 6 inches; mean draft as designed, 27 feet (her actual draft when complete will probably be about 9 inches more) ; displacement, 13,550 tons. The estimated weight of the hull, when complete, is 8015 tons. There is a complete armor water-line belt 6 inches thick amidships, tapering to 4 inches forward and 3 inches aft; the 3-inch and 4-inch armor extends only from the lower to the main deck, but the 6-inch will be carried to the upper deck, and superimposed on the main deck at the points forward and aft where the 6-inch armor terminates. Athwartships, armor bulkheads 6 inches thick will be fitted between the main and upper decks, which with the side armor, will form a central citadel. The lower deck of the ship is curved downwards towards the sides, forming an arch throughout. It is built of two thicknesses of -inch plating. The main deck within the citadel is formed of a single thickness, but outside at both ends it is worked in two thicknesses of 1/2-inch plating for protective purposes. The upper deck over the citadel is built of two thicknesses of -inch plate, but beyond it towards both ends it is worked in single thickness. The plating of the top sides, where there is no armor and aft, is 7-16 inch thick.
Above the upper deck, terminating at about. the same point as the thick side-armor, a superstructure will be erected, which will be carried forward to form a boat deck. A similar superstructure will be erected above the forecastle also, at about the point where the thick side-armor terminates forward. Twenty of the 3-pounder guns will be mounted on these superstructures, ten forward and ten aft. Along the sides, but at some distance from them, hammock berthings will be built, thus connecting the aftermost superstructure with the forecastle. On the upper deck abaft the superstructure, and on the forecastle immediately before it, the barbettes for two of the 9.2-inch guns formed of 6-inch armor, and built on a strong substructure, erected upwards from the lower deck, in each of which one 9.2-inch gun will be mounted, will be constructed. These guns will have an arc of fire of 270 degrees. At the four corners of the central citadel on the upper deck similar barbettes will be constructed, and in each of these the other 9.2-inch guns will be mounted. The after- !post of these guns on both sides will fire 2 degrees across a fore and aft line, and, in order to permit this, the top side plating above the main deck has been recessed back to form a lengthy embrasure. Beneath these corner 9.2-inch guns 6-inch guns will be mounted on the main deck, and the two after ones will have a similar range to the larger guns above them. Between the foremost and aftermost 6-inch guns, at equal distances along both sides, three other 6-inch guns will be mounted, all at ports, and all having a range of 120 degrees.
The interior of the ship is divided into compartments on much the same lines as other ships. The boiler and engine rooms occupy the middle part below the lower deck, and the magazines, shell rooms and store rooms are at the extremities. The lower coal bunkers skirt the boilers rooms along the sides, and the ammunition passages, which afford communication with the principal magazines and shell rooms, and the tubes through which the ammunition is passed to the fighting positions, occupy the inner upper corner of the coal bunkers on both sides. Three passages contain a novel feature. Immediately under each of the broadside guns, magazines and shell rooms to contain ammunition for "ready use" are to be constructed. These compartments will considerably reduce the coal capacity of the bunkers, but this point is apparently considered of comparatively little importance, as the inter-bottom spaces on both sides throughout the entire length of the boiler rooms and below the second longitudinal have been constructed to carry oil fuel. The coal capacity of the ship is estimated at moo tons.
On the main deck, aft, the officers' cabins and the wardroom will be situated; in the middle part, the central citadel, in which the 6-inch gun positions will be separated by 2-inch splinter bulkheads, and forward, a portion of the crew will be accommodated, the remainder being located on the upper deck in the forecastle.
The ship will have two masts and four funnels. She will be lighted throughout with electricity and ventilated by electrically driven fans, distributing air through a system of pipes.—United Service Institution.
Much interest has been aroused by the decision to add to the gun power of armored cruisers on the stocks. In the Devonshire and her sisters the four forward 6-inch guns will be replaced by a pair of 7.5-inch Q. F. carried on the upper deck. In the four later ships of the Black Prince class, viz., the Warrior and her sisters, the ten 6-inch Q. F. will be replaced by four 7.5-inch Q. F. on the upper deck. All these guns will be protected. The Black Prince and Duke of Edinburgh are so far advanced that the cost of the change has become prohibitive.
The standard for the reserve of guns has been placed at one 9.2-inch per ship armed with that piece, one 7.5-inch per four guns in service, and one 6-inch per five guns in service.
At the end of the financial year an unusually extensive renaming of old ships took place, with the laudable object of making some of the old names available for new ships. Names thus set free include Adventure, Black Prince, Espiegle, Hibernia, Mutine, Perseus, Swiftsure, Triumph, and Warrior, all of which had been conferred by anticipation on modern ships. Agincourt, Audacious, Bellerophon, Invincible, Marlborough, Minotaur, Monarch, Northumberland, Temeraire, all of which names bulk largely in our naval history, are available for ships still to be built.—Royal Navy List.
From a reply by Mr. Pretyman to Sir Charles Dilke in the House of Commons it appears that in the boiler committee experiments the coal consumption with Babcock and Belleville boilers was equal, averaging 2 lbs. per indicated horse power. With Yarrow boilers the average was a lb. more. This works out to about a ton an hour in a ship of the County class, doing full speed, or 168 tons a week, supposing the ship able to steam at full power for so long. Fortunately perhaps eight hours or so is as much full speed as is likely to be demanded from any ship except in the stress of war.—Engineer.
The trials of the Commonwealth in the Clyde have now been completed, and the published results are very satisfactory. On June 21 she began her thirty hours' one-fifth power trial, and completed it on the afternoon of the 22d. She made a speed of 11 knots, with engines developing 3644 horse power and 70.6 revolutions per minute. The consumption of coal averaged 1.74 lbs. per horse power per hour. The thirty hours' threefourths power trial was begun the same evening, and resulted as follows: Speed, 17.9 knots; I. H. P., 12,769; revolutions, 107.4; the coal consumption working out at 1.68 lbs. per horse power per hour. The full power trial took place on June 25, and on six runs on the measured mile the vessel attained a speed of ig.ot knots, the indicated horse power totalling 18,358, and the revolutions 120. The Commonwealth was built to attain a speed of 18.5 knots with 18,000 horse power, and the results attained, therefore, reflect great credit on the builders. The auxiliary machinery trials, anchor, circle-turning and steering trials were all carried out in one afternoon, and the whole of the trials of the vessel were therefore completed in a week, a remarkably good record.—Army and Navy Gazette.
The new floating coal depot arrived at Portsmouth on Monday from the Tyne. It is a huge steel-built hull, capable of holding 12,000 tons of coal, but as all the upper works have yet to be built it will be some months before the vessel will be ready for service. Moorings for this floating depot are being prepared well up the harbor, and battleships and cruisers will be easily able to lie alongside for coaling. There will be eight towers on the depot, each having its own Temperley transporters for lifting coal bags on to the decks of warships. The depot will supply a long-felt want.—United Service Gazette.
THE NAVAL ENGINEERING COLLEGE.—We have already said a good deal about the new system of education introduced by the Admiralty and the Training College at Devonport. It appears now that more accommodation has been provided than is for the time being necessary, and the Admiralty have very wisely determined to utilize it by taking students who will not necessarily enter the navy. A circular has just been issued by the Admiralty, from which we learn that arrangements have been made for the entry of a limited number of supplementary cadets as private students over and above the number of cadets entered for the service. Students so admitted will have the same advantages as the ordinary engineer and constructor cadets in respect both of the college residence and training and of practical work in the dock-yard, without being under any obligation to enter his Majesty's service at the end of their period of training. The course of training taken by the students will be the same as that laid down for engineer cadets or cadets of naval construction, and will last for the same period, but it will be open to them to withdraw at any time. It must be understood that the Admiralty have nothing to do with the subsequent career of these cadets, but, should vacancies occur, exceptional facilities will be given them for competition. The annual cost to parents and guardians will be £75 per annum, to cover board and residence, tuition and Practical instruction in the dock-yard. Application should be made before the 7th instant for admission. Detailed information can be obtained from the Secretary to the Admiralty, Whitehall.—Engineer.
The following maneuvers and exercises will be carried out in home waters:
Torpedo Craft Maneuvers.—"A," Blue Side.—The commander-in-chief of the Home fleet, Vice-Admiral Sir A. Wilson, will be in chief command, the torpedo craft being under the immediate command of Captain E. F. B. Charlton, the officer in charge of the Home fleet destroyers. The composition of the force will be six torpedo gunboats, 48 destroyers, three torpedo depot ships. Territory: north, east and south coast of Ireland, with Carrickfergus, Waterford and Queenstown as bases.
"B," Red Side (Rear-Admiral C. G. Robinson in chief command, with the cruiser Highflyer as his flagship).—The composition of the force will be 11 torpedo gunboats, 27 destroyers (17 acting as torpedo boats with reduced speed), 38 torpedo boats, all submarines, three torpedo depot ships, two submarine depot ships. Territory: west coast of Great Britain, with Loch Ryan, Milford Haven and Falmouth as bases. Chief umpire, Rear-Admiral H. T. Grenfell, C. M. G.; umpires: 12 captains and commanders, including five officers from the Naval Intelligence Department.
The above named vessels were either specially commissioned or completed to full complements on Wednesday, and after preliminary exercises will carry out maneuvers in the Irish Channel between August 8 and 15. During the latter period certain battleships and cruisers will take part.
Fleet Exercises.—The Home fleet and Channel fleet will each have its normal battleship strength of eight brought up to twelve by the addition of battleships in reserve, which will be specially commissioned on Monday. An additional rear-admiral will also be appointed to each fleet. The six sea-going Royal Naval Reserve drill ships will join the Home fleet, and the Cruiser squadron will join the Channel fleet on the same day. This total force of twenty-four battleships and twenty cruisers will carry out a series of fleet exercises until August 15.—Army and Navy Gazette.
It is evident from the official statement in connection with the torpedo craft maneuvers that they will not differ exceedingly from those of last year, which were carried out in the same waters. The composition of the flotillas does not show a striking difference, save in one respect, the addition of all the submarines with their depot ships. It may be permitted to us to doubt, however, whether there can be any resemblance to actual warfare in such maneuvers as are permitted to submarines. For purposes of comparison the figures are appended:
BLUE SIDE.
1903. 1904.
Torpedo gunboats 5 6
Destroyers 37 48
Depot ships 4 3
Cruisers 2 0
Gun vessels 2 0
RED SIDE.
1903. 1904.
Torpedo gunboats 10 11
Destroyers 0 10
Destroyers acting as torpedo boats 24 17
Torpedo boats 37 38
Submarines 0 6
Depot ships 4 5
The area of hostilities is the same as in 5903, but the bases differ slightly. Then there were four bases on the Blue side, now only three—Carrickfergus, Waterford and Queenstown—while the north, east and south coast of Ireland is the territory of this force, and Lundy Island is omitted. On the Red side the territory comprises the west coast of Great Britain, with Loch Ryan, Milford Haven and Falmouth as bases. It will be noted that Holyhead has disappeared on this side, as Kingstown has on the other, and that Falmouth takes the place of the Scilly Isles. The strength of the umpire staff has been increased from one rear-admiral, two captains and one commander, to one rear-admiral and twelve captains and commanders, including five officers from the Naval Intelligence Department.—Army and Navy Gazette.
The torpedo craft maneuvers, as they are somewhat quaintly entitled by the authorities, began on August 8, to extend over a period of seven days. The area of operations and the composition of the forces on either side have already been described in these columns. No official program was issued, but the correspondents at the headquarters were informed that the purpose of the maneuvers is "to ascertain as far as possible the extent of the dangers which threaten a fleet compelled by strategic exigencies to move within the radius of action of strong hostile torpedo craft flotillas, but having the advantage of a superiority of force over the enemy in battleships and cruisers, and the support of equally strong torpedo craft flotillas of its own." In order to test the matter, the Blue side was provided with a squadron composed of four battleships and two cruisers, which put to sea from Mount's Bay on August 6, and kept out of sight of land until eight o'clock on the morning of the 8th, when war was declared. Then the squadron approached the English coast until it could be seen by the red signallers, when it shaped course for Milford Haven. South of the port it was met by a flotilla of Blue destroyers, and guarded past the hostile base. Then, proceeding northwards, it reached Carrickfergus, in Belfast Lough, at noon on August 9. At a late hour the same night the squadron weighed, and, again escorted by another destroyer flotilla, it passed safely through the narrow channel opposite Loch Ryan, and arrived at its northernmost base on August so, thus having achieved the passage in safety.
Practically this result was due to the tactics of the Blue side in setting up a blockade of the principal Red port. The Blue destroyers from Queenstown, as soon as they had communicated with the battle squadron, ranged themselves in front of the entrance to the haven at Milford, in order to intercept any of the enemy's vessels that might emerge. In order to raise this blockade some of the Red gunboats which had been sent into the Bristol Channel were summoned back, and at the same time a flotilla was dispatched from the port. A battle ensued, in which the Blues were driven off, losing three destroyers, the Thorn, Ostrich and Quail, while the Reds lost a gunboat, the Seagull, and a submarine of the Holland type. Two other Blue boats were placed hors de combat, the Tiger and the Contest, but this was due to a collision, and not to the efforts of the enemy. Another engagement took place in the North Channel, where the Carrickfergus Blue flotilla and the Loch Ryan Red flotilla came into contact, with the result that the Blues suffered the loss of three destroyers, the Havock, the Salmon and the Usk. Here also, owing to a collision, two Red boats were put out of action, Nos. 82 and 86. On the whole, therefore, the first phase of the operations must be said to have been decided in favor of the Blues, who, with the loss of six destroyers, were able to protect their battle squadron during its transit of the area of hostilities. With the second half of the maneuvers we must deal next week.—Army and Navy Gazette.
JAPAN.
Through the courtesy of Sir W. G. Armstrong, Whitworth & Co., Limited, and the Japanese naval authorities, we are enabled to give our readers the following particulars of the vessel now building at the Elswick ship-yard for the Imperial Japanese navy. Her length on the water-line is 455 feet; her breadth, 78 feet 2 inches; her draft, 26 feet 7 1/2 inches; and her displacement, in tons, 16,400; and she will carry for her armament four 12-inch guns, twin mounted in barbettes; four to-inch guns, mounted singly 11.1 barbettes; twelve 6-inch guns in the citadel, twelve 12-pounder guns, six Maxim guns, three 3-pounder guns, and five torpedo tubes. The diagram below shows the disposition of the above named armament, the arrangement of which has been most carefully considered, so that there is no interference with one another in the firing of the different guns, which, however, are all capable of being trained through large arcs. The 12-inch guns are 26 feet and the to-inch 22 feet above the water-line. The 6-inch guns in the battery are from 13 feet to 14 feet above the water-line.
The general disposition of the armor protection is that adopted in the latest and most powerful battleships, the armor amidships being carried from below the water-line right up to the upper deck. Above the level of the upper deck additional protection has been adopted, a 4-inch screen being worked to a height of 7 feet 6 inches above the upper deck, and extending between the to-inch gun positions. The main armor belt, which extends the whole length of the vessel, has a thickness of 9 inches for more than half its length, tapering to rather less at the extremities. The depth of this belt is from 5 feet below water to 2 feet 6 inches above water. Immediately above this is a belt of 6-inch armor, extending in length from the after 12-inch barbette right forward to the stem. Above this again is the 6-inch citadel armor carried to the height of the upper deck, and enclosing the two 12-inch barbettes. In this citadel are placed ten of the 6-inch guns, divided from one another by screens of 80-lb. armor plating, and firing through ports similar to those adopted in casemates. This citadel arrangement, which is one of the most important features of this and other recent battleships, is really a revival or development of the old box battery arrangement adopted in some of our battleships built in the seventies, such as the Shannon and Alexandra. This arrangement fell into disuse when the great improvement made in ordnance—which for a time kept so far ahead of the improvements in armor—made it necessary to increase the thickness of the armor to make it efficient, and, therefore, it was only possible to cover a comparatively small area of the vessel's side. However, the recent improvements in armor have been such that again comparatively thin armor is efficient in keeping out projectiles, which has once more made it possible to protect a greater area of side. In more recent years the same system with protective divisions between the guns in the battery was adopted in the Nile and Trafalgar, but as the 4-inch armor protecting the battery of each of these vessels was not of a quality to keep out even the smaller armor-piercing shell, the system was not repeated until the latest and most improved armor was adopted in six vessels as our King Edward VII class, and in the much talked of Swiftsure and Triumph. The remaining two 6-inch guns fire through similar ports in the 4-inch screen armor on the upper deck amidships. The barbette armor of the 12-inch guns is 9 inches thick on the upper portions where exposed, and 5 inches thick where protection is afforded by the citadel armor. The barbette armor of the 10-inch guns has a thickness of 6 inches, the conning tower armor is 9 inches thick, and the observer tower 5 inches thick. In addition to these two armored positions for commanding officers, three officers' shelters are to be built of 3-inch armor, one above the conning tower and one on each side. Besides the armor described above, a steel protective deck runs throughout the entire length of the vessel, the whole of the machinery, magazines, etc., being kept below. This protective deck has a thickness of 2 inches on the flat portions amidships, and 3 inches on the sloping sides, which are carried down to meet the bottom of the main armor belt. At the ends where the armor protection is reduced, this deck has a thickness of 2 1/2 inches all over. Thick protective plating is also worked on the top of the screen armor at the boat deck level.
Special attention has been paid to the arrangement and disposition of the magazines, so that the ammunition can be got to all the guns with the greatest speed and minimum of trouble. There are independent magazines for each pair of 12-inch guns and for each 10-inch gun, and an ammunition passage is provided running right around the machinery spaces below the protective deck for the supply of ammunition to the various 6-inch and smaller quick-firing guns. The torpedo tubes are situated in water-tight chambers—two tubes forward and two aft firing on the broadsides, and one tube firing right astern, also under water. Special means are provided for rapidly clearing water from these submerged torpedo rooms in case of emergency.
The general particulars of the main propelling machinery and boilers are as follows: There are twenty Niclausse boilers disposed in three separate boiler rooms. These boilers will have a working pressure of 230 lbs., and a grate surface of 1300 square feet and a heating surface of 43,000 square feet. The twin engines will have four cylinders each, of 36 inches, 56 inches and 63 inches, with a stroke of 48 inches, and the horse power will be sufficient to give a speed of at least 18 ½ knots. The coal bunkers are so arranged as to reinforce the protection given by the armor and protective deck to the engines and boilers, whilst their disposition is such as to require very little trimming to get the coal to the furnaces. The bulk of the coal can also be got to the stoke-holds without opening any of the doors in the main water-tight bulkheads—a point of very great importance when the vessel is in action. In addition to the coal bunkers below the protective deck, reserve bunkers are arranged on the slopes of the protective deck up to the height of the main deck over the length of the machinery spaces amidships, the total capacity being approximately 2000 tons, which is sufficient to give the vessel a very large radius of action.
A very complete outfit is being provided for the vessel, including the following boats: Two 56-foot vedette torpedo boats of high speed, one 36-foot steam pinnace, one 40-foot launch, one 32-foot pinnace, three 30-foot cutters, two 30-foot gigs. For lifting these boats two powerful electrically worked derricks are provided—one on each side of the vessel.
There is also a powerful electrical equipment, both for providing energy for the numerous machines on board and also for lighting. The latter will include provision for six searchlights and some 1250 incandescent lamps.
The equipment of anchors and cables includes three stockless bower anchors of 120 cwt. each, and other smaller anchors. There are also three main cables of 150 fathoms each of 2 5/8-inch stud chain.
The vessel being of such an immense weight—over 17,000 tons with her full equipment of coal, stores, etc.—special arrangements have been provided for docking her with safety, and, in addition to showing ribbands for giving special support to the armor in dock, two docking keels are provided on the flat portions of the bottom under the bilge amidships. These keels will rest on separate lines of blocks in the dock, as well as the usual blocks along the middle line of the vessel. Bilge keels are also provided to reduce rolling in a sea-way.
The water-tight subdivision of the vessel is of a most thorough description; the inner bottom extends over the whole length of the vessel, and is minutely subdivided, and above this the number of transverse and longitudinal water-tight bulkheads is too numerous to mention.
An elaborate system of pumping and draining has been worked out, and in addition to the main pumps in the engine rooms, which can be used in case of emergency for dealing with a large inrush of water, are two 9-inch pumps, two 52-inch and one 4 1/2-inch, besides pumps for fresh and salt water services.
In a vessel of this description the ventilation arrangements are not the least important of the many items which have to be thought out, and every precaution has been taken for efficiently ventilating spaces both above and below the protective deck. In addition to the natural ventilation, artificial means have to be largely adopted, even in the upper portions of the vessel where she is entirely enclosed in with armor and protective plating, and here, as well as below the protective deck, numerous electrical fans, with air trunks, branches, pipes, etc., are being provided for.
Two complete sets of steering engines, independent of one another and in separate water-tight compartments, are fitted, with steering positions both forward and aft. Hand gear is also provided, and appliances for changing as quickly as possible from hand to steam gear, and vice versa. Tiller indicators are fitted in all the steering and conning tower positions. Helm signals are provided for the purpose of communicating the position of the helm to other vessels in the neighborhood. Voice pipes, telegraphs and telephones are fitted throughout the vessel to communicate between all the important positions. The vessel is also to be supplied with a wire less telegraphy installation. Torpedo net defense is to be fitted around the greater part of the vessel, which, in view of recent experience, appears to be not an unnecessary precaution.
With the exception of the main propelling machinery and boilers, which are being supplied by Messrs. Humphrys, Tennant & Co., the whole of the ship, with armor, armament, fittings, etc., will be supplied by Sir W. G. Armstrong, Whitworth & Co., Limited.
The 12-inch guns will weigh approximately 59 tons each. The length is 46 feet 9 1/2 inches (46.7 calibers). The weight of the projectile is 85o lbs. The charge will be cordite, probably of the modified type. The exact weight of the charge is not yet fixed, and neither can the velocity be given, but these guns will be the most powerful 12-inch guns which have yet been constructed. No armor which any ship can carry can hope to cope with their penerating powers at 3000 yards. The breech screw is arranged for a parallel motion, which obviates the necessity of having a steep cone at the seating of the obturating pad. It is yet early to speak of the rapidity of fire to be obtained with these guns, but it is anticipated that, in conjunction with the mounting described, that the hitherto obtained rate of approximately two rounds per minute from each gun will be exceeded.
The 10-inch guns will weigh approximately 34 tons each. The length is 39 feet (46.76 calibers). The weight of the projectile is 500 lbs. The charge will be cordite, probably of the modified type. As in the 12-inch guns, the exact weight of the charge has yet to be fixed, but here again this will be the most powerful gun of its caliber in existence. As a gauge of the power of these guns, it may be noticed that their penetrating power is equal to the penetrating power at 3000 yards of any of the 12-inch guns at present afloat in any navy. The breech mechanism will be somewhat similar in design to that of the 12-inch, and will embody all the essential advantages of that design. The rapidity of fire of these guns on the Elswick mounting, it is anticipated, will at least be at the rate of three rounds per minute with a well drilled gun's crew.
The 6-inch guns will weigh approximately 8% tons. The length is 23 feet 6 inches, approximately (47 calibers). The weight of the projectile is mo lbs. The charge will be probably M. D. cordite, but here again this is not definitely fixed, but these guns will be the most powerful guns of their description made, having a penetrating power at 3000 yards equal to, if not exceeding, any 6-inch guns hitherto built. The breech mechanism will be of the Elswick modified coned type, actuated by the single motion of the lever, and, as in the other gun, the necessity for the steep-coned obturator is obviated. The exact type of the smaller guns is not yet settled, but they will also follow the general advances in power and efficiency noted in the case of the heavier armaments.
12-inch gun mountings.—The 12-inch guns are mounted forward and aft on the midship line, as shown in the sketch of the ship. Owing to the powerful nature of the guns, these mountings are necessarily stronger than any hitherto manufactured in .this or any other country. The design is arranged with a view to occupying the least possible space in the ship, and at the same time to give ample room for working the machinery. The general features of the design are the turntable proper, containing the mountings for the gun, the working chamber underneath into which the ammunition is received from the magazine and shell rooms in preparation for sending up into the secondary or loading hoist, the trunk connecting the working chamber with the magazines and shell rooms, and the hoist connecting the working chamber and the gun. This latter hoist is so arranged that a gun can be loaded at any angle of elevation or training. The charge for each gun, consisting of the projectile and the cordite charge, the latter in two halves, is brought up at one time in a loading cage, which is automatically stopped in its proper position in line with the breech opening of the gun. It is then rammed home by means of a chain rammer actuated by a hydraulic motor. The breech-block of the gun is opened or closed by a hydraulic motor, thus enabling this operation to be performed with great rapidity. In the working chamber, by an ingenious arrangement, the projectile and the two halves of the cordite charge are simultaneously transferred from the cage which works in the trunk connecting the shell rooms and magazines with the working chamber, to the cage working in the hoist connecting the working chamber with the gun position. The ammunition trunk is of a new design, which enables the ammunition cage always to come to the same position in the magazines and shell rooms; but when it is brought up to the top of the trunk the cage is in its proper position with respect to the ammunition loading hoist, although the turret may be revolving at a quick rate; or, in other words, the ammunition trunk does not revolve at the bottom, but revolves with the turntable at the top. The guns are protected by io-inch hard armor in the front, and 8-inch at the sides and back. The feature of the turret is that it is quite balanced, thus enabling it to be readily trained by hand, although the ship may have a heel at the time.
There are three systems for performing the operation of training, primarily by hydraulic power, and should this fail through any of the piping being shot away, electric training gear can be quickly put into operation; and finally, should this be disabled, the turret can be trained by hand. Similarly the operation of elevating and depressing the gun can be performed by working primarily by hydraulic power, and then either by electric or hand. The operations of loading can also be performed by hand should the hydraulic system be disabled. To safeguard against accident by freezing in the intense cold which is found in the China seas during the winter months, heating apparatus is fitted throughout the turret installation. The gun mountings are so arranged as to give the gun 18 degrees elevation and 3 degrees depression, a greater range of elevation than has hitherto been provided for mountings of this description. The training angle is arranged for 270 degrees, that is to say, from right ahead or right astern to 45 degrees before or abaft the beam. The turret can be trained at the rate of one complete revolution (viz., 360 degrees) per minute. In the shell room, suitable overhead hydraulic lifting and traversing arrangements are made for lifting the shell out of the bays and placing them in the cage, but this operation can also be done by hand should necessity require it.
The sighting of the guns is provided for by a central sighting station and two side sighting stations, one on the left and the other on the right. By an ingenious arrangement the captain of the turret is enabled by working one lever to train or elevate the gun or to perform both these motions at the same time. Voice pipes and other apparatus are fitted to enable the officer in charge of the turret to communicate his orders to the magazines and shell rooms. A complete system of electric circuits enables the guns to be fired from any one of the eight positions either simultaneously or independently. Percussion firing arrangements are also provided.
10-inch gun mountings.—Each 10-inch gun is placed in an armored revolving gun-house or turret. The ammunition is sent up in a lifting cage from the magazine and shell room direct to the gun platform, each cage containing a projectile and cordite charge in two parts. On reaching the gun platform the projectile is quickly transferred to a hinged loading tray fixed on the gun cradle by means of an intermediate resting tray, the cordite being transferred by hand to the loading tray. By this arrangement three projectiles are always in waiting for loading, insuring rapidity of fire. The projectile and charges can then be rammed into the gun by a telescopic hydraulic rammer. This rammer is arranged to follow the gun in elevation or depression so that it always remains in line with the gun axis, enabling the operation of loading to take place at any angle within the usual fighting limits. The training of the gun-house is performed as in the case of the 12-inch, primarily by hydraulic power; then by electric, and finally, if necessity occasions it, by hand, and like the larger mounting, it is balanced so that the operation of training by hand can be readily performed although the ship may have a heel. The breechpedestal. This pedestal is bolted to the ship's structure, the elevating arrangements are attached to the cradle, thus enabling the elevating gun number to work the gear even during the firing of the gun without injury to himself. Telescopic sights are fitted in a convenient position. Electric circuits are fitted to enable the guns to be fired by the simple operation of pressing the trigger of a pistol. Arrangements for percussion firing are also provided. A circular shield is attached to the revolving Y piece so as to keep the port opening in the ship's side blocked up at any angle of training. This port opening allows for the guns to be trained through a range of 120 degrees, viz., 60 degrees before the beam and 60 degrees abaft.
12-pounder gun mountings.—The 12-pounder mountings are similar in principle to the 6-inch above described, but, of course, arranged to suit the smaller size of the gun. They are protected by revolving shields attached to the Y pieces by elastic stays.
Torpedo tubes.—The vessel carries four 18-inch torpedo tubes on the Armstrong-Whitworth principle, which has been fitted to all the Japanese warships built either in this country or abroad since the date of the Fuji and the Yashima, which were the two first ships to have this apparatus. The vessel will be fitted with a torpedo tube for firing 18-inch torpedoes in the line of keel astern. This also will be a special design by the builders.
The ammunition supply to the 12-inch and 10-inch guns has been described under the heading of mountings for these guns. The ammunition supply for the 6-inch and 12-pounder guns is arranged for by supplying to each 6-inch gun an electrically driven ammunition hoist of the improved Elswick design. These hoists will bring up the projectile and the cordite charge, and maintain a continuous supply. The operation of the hoist is extremely simple, and necessitates the minimum personal attendance. The seaman working the hoist has only to start it in motion and then keep it supplied with the necessary ammunition, which is automatically discharged in a position best situated for the working of the gun. The hoists for supplying the 12-pounder guns are of similar design; eight of them will be placed in suitable positions for supplying the 12-pounder guns.—Engineer.
The manner in which the machinery of the Japanese destroyers has apparently stood the strain of actual war without any material deterioration or defect is at once the admiration and astonishment of all students of the war. A writer in the Globe, commenting on this circumstance, says: "No instance, so far as I am aware, has been recorded of the failure either in guns or machinery of any vessel in the Japanese navy. Boilers do not appear to have caused any great amount of anxiety; no explosion of tubes has been heard of, and certainly no mention has been made in the papers of heated bearings or piston rods, of leaky condenser tubes or steam-pipe joints, and although we may concede that the Japanese engineers are the equals of any in the world, it requires something more than such excellence of personnel to account for the prolonged immunity from disablement which characterizes the history of the Japanese fleet in this war. And the question immediately faces us, 'To what particular cause, or combination of causes, is this immunity traceable?' I venture to suggest three: (1) The larger liberty given to the builders, permitting them to exercise greater discretionary powers in the selection both of scantling and material; (2) greater freedom of design, and less limitation as to weights; (3) superiority of materials, and larger bearing surfaces. When we have granted all these, there still remains the undeniable fact that the Japanese engineers deserve the greatest possible credit for the manner in which they have handled their machinery."—Army and Navy Gazette.
ITALY.
The new battleship Regina Elena was launched at Spezia on June 19, in the presence of the King of Italy. Preparations are also being made for the launching of the Vittorio Emanuele at Castellamare about the middle of August. The Roma should be ready to take the water about the middle of November, and the Napoli should leave the slips some time early in 1905.
The Italian naval estimates for 1904-05 amount to £5,087,643, which is £343 in excess of the estimates for the previous financial year. The amount apportioned to new construction is £1,533,469. This sum is to be devoted to the completion of the armored cruiser Francesco Ferruccio, the further construction of the battleships Regina Elena, Vittorio Emanuele, Roma and Napoli, and the commencement of a new armored cruiser at Castellamare, three submarines at Venice and fourteen torpedo boats. The two destroyers Teffiro and Espero are to be completed also.
The new armored cruiser is to be the first of a class of seven of 10,000 tons. It is also reported that the construction of fourteen torpedo-boat destroyers and forty torpedo boats is in contemplation, but that it has been deferred until next year.—Page's Magazine.
The Italia Militare e Marina states that at her machinery trials the Italian battleship Regina Margherita during a three hours' run under natural draft averaged a speed of 19.3 knots, her engines developing an average of 18,900 horse power. Under forced draft her engines developed an average of mow horse power, touching at times 23,000 horse power. This is 1000 horse power above the contract power. Her average speed was 20.2 knots. She is fitted with Niclausse boilers made by the firm of Ansaldo-Armstrong.—United Service Gazette.
RUSSIA.
Reports from various sources state the Russian naval program for 1905 includes the construction of eight new battleships of the Imperator Pavel I type and several armored cruisers of the Bayan class. This report comes from both German and Italian sources, but the German report states that some of the vessels are to be built in France, a rumor which is in direct contradiction of the Imperial ukase ordering all Russian war vessels to be built for the future in Russian yards. One of the armored cruisers, it is reported, will be paid for by public subscription, and named the Admiral Makharoff.
Three new torpedo-boat destroyers, the Totschnii, Twjordii and Trewoshnii, have been laid down at Creighton's Yard, and are to be completed with all dispatch.
The Holland Torpedo Boat Company, of New York, is stated to have received an order from the Russian Imperial Government to build and complete five submarines within eight months. Five others are believed to have been ordered from Vickers, Sons & Maxim, to be completed in the same space of time.—Page's Magazine.
The Imperator Alexander III. is the only one of the five remaining battleships of the 1898 programme which is as yet ready for sea. As far as present information goes, it is unlikely that any of the others can be completed for some time yet; the Kniaz Suvarov is probably the most advanced, but she has not yet commenced her trials; the Borodino was brought down from St. Petersburg to Cronstadt in the spring, but her armor had to be removed before she could pass through the Canal; the Orel severely strained herself when she went ashore, also while coming down from St. Petersburg; while the Slava, launched last autumn, cannot possibly be completed for another year.
The training squadron in the Black Sea began its instructional duties on the 14th June. The squadron consists of the battleships Georgei Pobiedonosets, Tri Sviatitelia, Rostislav, and Ekaterina II., with the torpedo-aviso Kasarski, the mining-steamer Dunai, and eight torpedo-boats.
The Libau dockyard has been very busy in fitting out as auxiliary cruisers the merchant-steamers Furst Bismarck, Columbia, Maria Theresia, Auguste Victoria, and Belgia, recently purchased in Germany; these vessels have been renamed the Don, Ural, Texel, Kuban, and Irtitsch; whilst the Franche Conte, purchased in France, has been called the Anadir.
The Naval Technical Committee has decided to replace the Russian Popoff wireless telegraphy system, at present in use in the Russian Navy, by the German Slaby-Arco-Braun system, which has been perfected by the Siemens-Halske firm, and has shown itself far superior to the Popoff, both in rapidity of working and in the distance to which messages can be transmitted by it. All the ships now fitting out for the Far East are to be fitted with it, and the German firm has also received instructions for the erection of two wireless telegraphy stations on the Lake Baikal, one at Baikal, and the other at Tanchoi, on the opposite side of the lake.
The want of naval officers is already beginning to show itself. From 1875 to 1900, an average of 58 cadets from the Naval Cadet Corps were advanced to sub-lieutenant, of whom some 40 rose to the higher grades. In the next three years, the numbers were increased to 75, Ho and 130, but at present there are not enough cadets to meet the requirements of the fleet. In order to obtain a sufficient number of candidates, the press is now agitating for a repeal of the old regulations, under which only youngsters of noble birth are eligible for admittance to the Cadet Corps, and the demand is made that the naval service should be thrown open to all Russian youths who can pass the necessary examinations.
THE VOLUNTEER FLEET.—Some details in regard to the Volunteer Fleet, a force which has recently come prominently under notice, owing to the performances of two of the ships of the Red Sea, may be of interest.
The ukase permitting the formation of the Volunteer Fleet was signed on the 30th May, 1878, and its constitution was based on a Prussian ordinance of the 24th July, 1870, calling into being a somewhat similar force during the Franco-German war. The principal articles of the ukase are as follows:
1. The Volunteer Fleet is created with the view of increasing, in time Of war, the naval forces of the country by ships having their commanders and crews already on board.
4. The volunteers or crews on board are to be placed at the disposal of the Minister of Marine.
5. The owners, who wish to place their ships at the disposal of the Minister of Marine for war purposes, must make a declaration stating the terms on which they wish to sell.
6. If the department finds the ships in good condition, and the terms proposed by the owners reasonable, the vessels will be inscribed as ships of war.
7. The men on board (the Militia of the Fleet) will, on entering active service, be inscribed on the rolls of the active personnel of the Fleet.
8. Their officers will be entitled to rank: the commanders as corvette-captains, their mates as lieutenants.
9. The period of service under the man-of-war flag will be counted as active service.
10. While thus serving, the officers and men will be subject to the rules and regulations in force for the Imperial Navy.
In case of wounds, they will enjoy the same rights as the seamen of the Active Fleet.
The first subscription, which was opened on the 2nd July, 1878, under the patronage of the then Tsarevitch, produced in a short time, four million roubles (1416,667), and three large steamers were bought from the Hamburg-American Company. Since that date, the fleet has been steadily increasing; in January, 1886, it numbered 8 steamers, with a combined displacement of 50,860 tons, and 33,308 I. H. P., and received a subsidy of 17,500 roubles (11823).
In January, 1895, the subsidy was increased to an annual grant of 600,000 roubles (162,500), for a term of 10 years, in order that the Company might replace their old materiel, and four new ships of at least 8000 tons displacement, and with a speed of not less than 17 knots, were to be constructed, with two cargo steamers for the transport of materiel. In 1898 the fleet was composed of 14 large steamers, the oldest dating from 1888. Their total displacement amounted to 128,000 tons, with an I. H. P. of 84,000. The ships forming the fleet, at the beginning of the war, were the following:
1. Kostroma, Tamboff, Nigi-Novgorod, Orel, Saratov, and Yaroslav, 1888 to 1893. These vessels were from 7900 to 8200 tons displacement, with a speed varying from 14 to 18 knots.
2. Petersbourg, Kasan, Kherson, 1893 to 1896, of from 9000 to 10,500 tons displacement, 12,000 I. H. P., with a speed of 19 knots.
3. Smolensk, Moskwa, Bogatyr, Ouragan, Poltava, 1898-1901, of from 11,000 to 12,000 tons, with engines developing from 13,000 to 16,000 I. H. P., giving a speed of 20 knots. With the exception of the Kostroma, all these vessels are twin-screwed, and they were all built in English yards. There are, in addition, four transport ships, of 10,500 tons displacement, 3000 I. H. P., and 13 knots speed; the Ekaterinoslav, Kief, Voroney, and Vladimir, 1895-1896. Nearly the whole fleet were constructed by Messrs. Hawthorn and Leslie, on the Tyne.
UNITED STATES.
PROGRESS ON THE NAVAL PROGRAM.
WASHINGTON, D. C., August 16, 1904.-The plans of the Navy Department for the letting of contracts for the vessels authorized at the last session of Congress have been materially modified. The program includes eight vessels which, as recently named by the Secretary of the Navy, are as follows: The battleship New Hampshire, the armored cruisers North Carolina and Montana, the scout ships Chester, Birmingham and Salem, and the colliers Erie and Ontario. The two colliers are to be built in government yards.
The decision of the Department not to hasten the advertising and letting of contracts is based upon two considerations: First, the importance of the early delivery of vessels now in course of construction, which it is believed would be delayed if other contracts should be at once awarded; and second, the desire of the Department to secure as much competition as possible for the new contracts, which can only be obtained when several of the yards have completed at least a part of the Government work now on hand. A survey of conditions in the leading yards, based upon the current monthly reports, supplemented by special inquiries, shows that little or no progress on new contracts could be made by these yards during the coming five or six months, as each establishment is now carrying along as much naval work as can be handled to advantage.
WARSHIPS NOW BUILDING.
The Cramp Shipbuilding & Engine Company, for example, is now at work upon the battleships Mississippi and Idaho, which are only about 65 per cent completed, and upon the armored cruisers Pennsylvania, 84.2 per cent; Colorado, 89.2 per cent; and Tennessee, 42.45 per cent. The Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company has on hand the battleships Virginia, 63.7 per cent; Louisiana, 52.59 per cent; and Minnesota, 37.56 per cent; and armored cruisers West Virginia, 89.32 per cent; and Maryland, 86.87 per cent; and the protected cruiser Charleston, 79.5 per cent. The Fore River Ship & Engine Building Company is building the battleships New Jersey, 63.8 per cent; Rhode Island, 66.1 per cent; and Vermont, 13.4 per cent. The New York Shipbuilding Company is constructing the battleship Kansas, 17.7 per cent, and the armored cruiser Washington, 38 per cent. The Union Iron Works is completing the battleship Ohio, 97 per cent; the armored cruisers California, 62 per cent; and South Dakota, 59 per cent; and the protected cruiser Milwaukee, 54 per cent. The Moran Brothers Company is building the battleship Nebraska, 54.3 per cent, and the Bath Iron Works is constructing the battleship Georgia, 59.3 per cent. Lewis Nixon has under construction the protected cruiser Chattanooga, 91.9 per cent and the torpedo boats Nicholson, 99 per cent, and O'Brien, 98 per cent. The protected cruiser Galveston, 87 per cent, is under contract to the Wm. R. Trigg Company, and the St. Louis, of the same class, 44.6 per cent, to the Neafie & Levy Company. The Gas Engine & Power Company is building the gunboats Dubuque, 52.7 per cent, and Paducah, 45.2 per cent. Three more torpedo boats are under construction, as follows: By the Harlan & Hollingsworth Company, the Stringham, 99 per cent; by Wolff & Zwicker, the Goldsborough, 99 per cent; and by George Lawley & Son, the Blakely, 99 per cent.
With the facilities of the leading yards for naval construction thus heavily taxed, and with the relatively large number of vessels rapidly nearing completion, the Navy Department officials believe it to be advisable to permit the contractors to concentrate their efforts upon the finishing up of as many vessels as possible in the next few months, and that no time will really be lost in the. progress of the general naval program if the letting of new contracts is postponed until the end of the current calendar year.
PLANS FOR NEW VESSELS.
The plans for the battleship New Hampshire are practically completed, but she will probably not be advertised before October I. This vessel belongs to the Connecticut-Louisiana class, and the Government hopes to secure a very low price for her construction, in view of the fact that the Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company is constructing the battleships Louisiana and Minnesota, and has all the necessary plans and patterns on hand. The armored cruisers North Carolina and Minnesota will follow the general lines of the Pennsylvania class, but will be equipped with submerged torpedo tubes. The plans for these vessels have been somewhat delayed, owing to questions that have arisen concerning the armament, but the Department will probably be ready to advertise for bids for their construction some time in October.
Very slow progress is being made with the designs for the three scout ships, the Department experts finding themselves heavily handicapped by the specifications of the appropriation bill regarding tonnage and speed, taken in connection with the desire to give these vessels unusually high superstructure. The latter feature of the original design is likely to be modified somewhat, and the final plans of these three vessels will approximate those of a torpedo-boat destroyer much more closely than was at first anticipated. In spite of rumors to the contrary, it can be stated positively that the Department has not abandoned the intention to equip two of these cruisers with turbine engines. The ordinary reciprocating marine engines will be installed in the other vessel.
No work will be done on the two colliers, authorized by the naval appropriation bill to be built in Government yards, until Congress has been given an opportunity to reconsider its action. As heretofore stated in these dispatches, one of these vessels will be built at the Brooklyn yard, but, inasmuch as the law requires that the other shall be built on the Pacific Coast, where at present there is no yard equipped for the work, it has been decided to advise Congress of the situation and to request a special appropriation to build a slip and provide the necessary tools and machinery. Recently the question has been raised as to the advisability of equipping one of the Pacific Coast yards for this purpose, and it may be suggested to Congress that this provision of the law be amended, so that, if a special appropriation is made, it will be available for use at one of the Atlantic yards, in the discretion of the Secretary of the Navy.
THE LOUISIANA-CONNECTICUT CONTEST.
Much interest attaches to the competition between the Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company, which is building the battleship Louisiana, and the New York Navy Yard, where her sister ship, the Connecticut, is being constructed by the Government. The two vessels are about abreast of each other, the Louisiana being 52.59 per cent completed, while the Connecticut stands at 47.3 per cent. The former will be launched on August 27 and the latter on September 29. Under the act of Congress authorizing the construction of these two vessels, the Department was directed to keep an accurate account of all expenditures, with a view to determining the relative cost of Government and private work. Every effort is being exerted by the Bureau of Construction and Repair to make a creditable showing, and it is doubtful whether the results obtained will fairly represent the work of Government establishments under ordinary conditions—Iron Age.
ORDNANCE AND GUNNERY.
BATTLESHIP ARMOR AND GUN ATTACK.—In three years, says Engineering, in the course of an article on the above subject, the velocity of the latest type of naval guns has gone up about 150 feet per second, and the factor of penetration of the armor-piercing projectile has improved by 10 to 15 per cent. Moreover, the "cap" has now been universally adopted; in this country the Vickers Company have consistently worked to establish its superiority. From these considerations it results that a 12-inch gun—which in 1901, under certain conditions of range and obliquity of impact, might be considered as fairly matched by 12-inch plate—can now deal with 15-inch or 16-inch plates on much the same terms as its prototypes did with the thinner armor. Making allowance for the effect of protective sloping deck and of the coal behind the armor in the region of the machinery space, it is shown that the total resistance in the King Edward class is equal to 12 1/2 inches of Krupp steel. This, however, can be pierced with the greatest ease by an old type 12-inch shot at over 5000 yards range, while the 9.2-inch or the German 9.4-inch would, if it hit exactly normal, send a capped shell into the engine room or barbette at between 3000 and 4000 yards range. Thus the King Edward class, it is said, will barely keep out capped shot from the 9.2-inch gun at moderate range. An examination of the situation shows that the range of piercing by a 12-inch gun using even uncapped shot would be, in the case of the King Edward class, 5500 yards; in the French Republique, 3700 yards; in the United States Connecticut. 4000 to 4500; in the German Braunschweig, 4000 to 5000 yards; and, according to particulars given, in the new Japanese battleships now building in this country by the Vickers Company, over 5000 yards. While the German and British ships named have at no part on the broadside armor of greater thickness than 9-inch, the two other ships are partly clad with ri-inch Krupp steel, and the assumption made by some writers on armor is that any future design should have a belt 11 inches to 12 inches thick in the center, tapering to 9 inches below the water-line, and to not more than 7 inches from, say, 4 feet above the water-level to the top. This tapering under the water-line is already applied to the French and American ships. It is not approved, however, by Sir William White, because, as pointed out in our contemporary, a ship which rolls through 9 degrees to 10 degrees is apt to expose the hull under the armor; while, as Sir William further points out, wave formation at high speeds may bring about similar exposure. Some authorities on armor, on the other hand, prefer to take the chance of a blow under the normal water-line, as this part cannot be hit unless the shot has traversed some water. In nearly all the battleships the broadside is now tapered in thickness from some distance above the water-line to the upper deck; but it is contended that in the British ships the maximum thickness need not be carried quite so far above the water-line. In order to increase the thickness of the belt and the armored sloping deck behind the belt where necessary, weight must be taken, in the case of the King Edward class, at all events, from the armor forward, from the upper protective deck, or from the main deck before the fore barbette, which is some 12 feet above water and 2 inches to 1 1/2 inches thick; even then he admits that an increase in displacement would be necessary.
The lack of progress of the Admiralty in reference to guns, continues Engineering, is certainly not reassuring. There are twenty-eight British ships, now ranked amongst the most important in our fleet, which have short, old-type guns, as compared with sixteen in the navies of the four other principal sea Powers—France, the United States. Russia and Germany. Again, France, Russia and the United States are all manufacturing now 45-caliber 12-inch guns for the latest ships, while we are content with 40-caliber 12-inch guns. There are, however, rumors of a new 45-caliber gun. In addition to the greater length, enormously increasing the striking energy and flattening the trajectory, whereby the danger zone is lengthened, there is the further advantage that the long gun carries the blast clear of the ship's side when firing the forward guns abaft the beam or the aft guns before the beam. The new type of capped projectile is from 25 per cent to 33 per cent more powerful, so far as direct impact is concerned, than when the whole type of uncapped shot is used; while it is further pointed out that there is a considerable extension of the practice of using a powder with a low percentage of nitroglycerine in preference to cordite. In view of the development in both directions, it seems, adds Engineering, surprising that uncapped armorpiercing projectiles are still used in the British service for the proof of armor plates, because there can be no doubt that in actual service the armor on our ships will be called upon to withstand the attack made by such shot; and, as a writer on armor points out, the time cannot be far distant when plates will be proved by the same type of projectile that they will have to face in action.—United Service Gazette.
The disaster in the Missouri of the United States navy some little time back was very nearly repeated in British ships the other day, if reports from usually trustworthy sources are to be credited in this instance. It appears that some ten or twelve seconds after a fresh projectile had been rammed home to its seating in one of the zo-inch guns of the Swiftsure, a large volume of back flame was observed to issue from the gun, similar to that which caused the Missouri explosion. The dangers attendant upon this egress of back flame will be readily understood, especially when it occurs after the projectile has been rammed home, as then the new charges are exposed in the rear of the gun. To counteract this danger it has been proposed that the chamber of the gun should be washed out after the projectile has been rammed home instead of before, as is at present done. This would mean an extra pause between the plugging of the breech end of the bore with the projectile and the exposure of the charges in the rear. The remedy is a simple one, and there is no apparent reason why it should not be tried. In view of the disastrous experience of the Americans, no reasonable precautions to safeguard the lives of our men can be neglected.—Army and Navy Gazette.
It is stated that the Good Hope, flagship of the Cruiser squadron, whilst at target practice off the coast of Morocco, made 42 hits out of 120 rounds at a distance of 6000 yards.—United Service Gazette.
The sighting arrangements for the 7.5-inch guns of the Triumph, which has been fitted by the firm of Messrs. Vickers Sons and Maxim, is reported as being far ahead of anything yet introduced into our navy in ships designed at the Admiralty and completed in our Royal or private dockyards. It is also considered to be in advance of anything yet adopted by our gunnery experts at the Gunnery School. The Triumph's sights have a cross connection, which, it has long been felt, was a great desideratum with guns on transferable mountings, and where the sights are fitted to the mountings, rather than shipped in holes in the guns, as was the old plan with all our heavier guns, and still obtains with quick-firing guns of a lighter nature than 12-pounders. The sighting of the 14-pounders of the Triumph is also an advance on our 12-pounders. Among other advantages, this system of a cross connection allows the sight-setter to work more freely on the opposite side of the gun to that on which the gun-layer is performing his functions of laying and firing the guns, and he is thus given more room and freedom for this work. At many of our guns in the secondary armament It will, in future, be arranged that the gun-layer shall use the left sight for keeping the gun laid for elevation, and pressing the trigger when the Sight comes on, while the gun-trainer, who will be an equally important gun number, will, by means of the right sight, follow the object and keep the gun constantly bearing on it so far as the training is concerned. The sight-setter will likewise be on the right of the gun, and with a cross connection between the right and left sight. The two men concerned with keeping the gun laid for elevation and training—the gun-layer and guntrainer—will both be doing their part with their sights adjusted simultaneously, and without affecting other operations. This is a very important matter nowadays. With this combination—if the sights are not faulty—and smart gun-loading numbers, there should be further developments in rapid hitting.—Engineering.
The Canadian Government is negotiating with the Armstrong Company to establish a cartridge and cordite factory at Ottawa.—United Service Gazette.
THE SHORT LEE-ENFIELD RIFLE MARK I.
Communicated by the Director of Artillery.
Prior to the South African war, the question of the modification of the service rifle for infantry had been considered, and a small committee had been appointed to devise such a rifle. The committee's labors were suspended owing to the outbreak of the war.
The experiences of the South African war brought into prominence the great importance of accurate and rapid snap-shooting at ranges such as 600 yards and under, and during the war Lord Roberts telegraphed home pressing for the short rifle to be proceeded with. It was therefore decided to carry out trials with a rifle which would be capable of using the existing service .303-inch ammunition, and which would be more suitable for the above mentioned class of shooting than the existing rifle, and would be at least equal to the latter in other respects.
The South African war also showed that greatly increased importance must be attached to the fire action of cavalry and other mounted troops, and that the firearm, and not the arme blanche, must be regarded as the Principal weapon of the cavalry. There was ample evidence that the cavalry considered themselves placed at a disadvantage by having carbines, and in consequence these were withdrawn from, and long rifles given to, them. These conclusions necessitated the provision of the best weapon possible for mounted troops, and it was held that a rifle about five inches shorter than the Lee-Enfield was the longest which could be conveniently carried by cavalry.
Prolonged trials were therefore carried out to seen if a shortened rifle could be produced which would be at least as accurate and effective as the long rifle, and would meet modern conditions more satisfactorily in such respects as rapidity and ease of loading, handling and aiming, accuracy and convenience of sighting arrangements, lightness, etc., and would be suitable for all arms of the service.
As preliminary trials showed promise that these conditions could be met, one thousand shortened rifles were issued in 1902 to the Royal navy, Royal marines, and the first three army corps. One hundred of these rifles were subsequently sent to Somaliland. The rifles were not all of the same pattern, but embodied variations in sights, etc.—e. g., wind-gauges, bead fore-sight, etc.
After a full consideration of the reports received from the above sources, the new pattern short Lee-Enfield rifle was adopted, as it was considered to meet the requirements of modern fighting, both for mounted troops and infantry, better than a rifle of greater length.
The Russian cavalry has for a long time been armed with a rifle which is practically an universal weapon, the same as their infantry weapon. It is 51 1/4 inches long.
DESCRIPTION.
The new rifle is five inches shorter and, 1 lb. to 1 1/4 lbs. lighter than the present Lee-Enfield Mark I rifle.
The magazine holds ten rounds, and is filled by cartridges carried in chargers holding five rounds each in a manner similar to the Mauser rifle. Guides to hold the charger are fitted on the bolt-head and body, and the five cartridges can be pressed out of it into the magazine by the thumb, and to facilitate this the body is cut away somewhat on the left side. There is no cut-off, except in rifles made for the navy. There is a safety catch on the left of the body which locks the bolt and cocking-piece in either the full cock or fired position. The catch is also made so as to obviate the possibility of the bolt being lost by mounted troops.
The barrel is rather smaller in external diameter and five inches shorter than that of the existing rifle—i. e.. 25.2 inches long instead of 30.2 inches. The fore-sight block carries a barley-corn, which is adjusted before issue, so as to suit the shooting of the rifle. Hitherto the sighting of all rifles of one pattern has been determined by trials of a number of that pattern, whereby the best average position of the fore-sight has been ascertained, and then all rifles of that pattern have had their fore-sights (which were not adjustable) accurately manufactured in that position; this has been insured by careful gauging, but the correctness of the sighting of each rifle has not been tested by shooting. As, however, the shooting of every rifle of one pattern is not identical, it has been decided that in future each rifle before issue is to have its sight tested by firing, and adjusted by the use of suitable barley-corns. High and low barley-corns differ from the normal by .015 inch.
The back-sight (which is very similar to that of the Krag-Jorgensen rifle) consists of a leaf pivoted to the front end of the bed; it is raised by moving the slide which rests on curved ramps, and which is held in position by catches which engage in a toothed rack on each side of the leaf; the rack allows of the sight being set for every 50 yards from 100 to 2000. The catches are released by studs made of bone, so that they can be handled however hot the rifle may be. The V is a small one, as that was generally preferred after trials of different shape. A pair of ears, or lugs, is provided, so as to protect the cap of the back-sight. This cap is capable of a fine adjustment, by means of which any elevation intermediate between the 50-yard intervals can be given; the graduations of the fine adjustment fitting are equivalent to six inches on a vertical target at too yards range. There is a wind-gauge with similar graduations. A dial sight is provided, ranging from 1600 to 2800 yards.
The bolt and body are generally similar to those of the Lee-Enfield rifle, except for the fittings for charger loading alluded to above, the abolition of the bolt cover and of the extension for the safety catch. The bolt handle is set closer to the body than formerly. A slot cut in the bolt-head acts as a key when stripping and assembling the striker and cocking-piece, and the bolt can thus be stripped without the aid of tools.
The trigger is so constructed as to give a double or drag pull-off, the total pull being 5 to 6 lbs., of which the first pull is from 3 to 4 lbs.
The butt plate is of steel, and there is no butt trap. The cleaning material is carried on the man's equipment.
A nose-cap is attached to the fore end and carries two high wings to protect the fore-sight, and an extension on which the bayonet fixes; this latter is, therefore, not attached directly to the barrel.
The stock is divided into butt and fore end. Butts of three lengths (half an inch difference between each size) are used; they are secured by a stock bolt which is prevented from unscrewing by a keeper plate on the fore end. The fore end and a long hand-guard completely cover the barrel, except where the sights are attached, so that it can be easily handled when hot.
Special care has been taken to keep the barrel free in the fore end, and not to allow it to be gripped tightly by the stock or bands, as, if gripped, the shooting may be seriously affected.
Except for the above points and a few minor details, the fittings are similar to those of the Lee-Enfield rifle Mark L.
The following are some of the chief particulars:
Length of barrel. 25,3/16 inches.
Caliber .303 inch.
Rifling Enfield.
Grooves, number 5.
Width of lands .0986 inch.
Twist, left-handed 1 turn in 10 inches.
Distance between barleycorn and back sight V 1 foot 7/32 inches.
Length of rifle 3 feet 8 9/16, inches.
Length of rifle with sword bayonet 4 feet 8 11/16 inches.
Weight of rifle, magazine empty 8 lbs. 2 1/2 ozs.
The sword bayonet differs from the existing pattern in the fittings for attachment to the rifle; it weighs 1 lb. 1/2 oz., and its blade is 12 1/2 inches long.
The charger is made of steel, and is larger than that for the rimless Mauser cartridges.
BALLISTIC AND OTHER TRIALS OF SHORT RIFLE.
The mean muzzle velocity of the shortened rifle is 2025 foot-seconds, or about 30 foot-seconds greater than that of the other rifle. Prolonged accuracy trials have shown that when fired from the shoulder there is very little to choose in point of accuracy between the shortened rifle and the Lee-Enfield. The following were some of the figures of merit obtained:
Figure of Merit (in feet).
Mean of 12 Rifles.
500 yards. 600 yards. 1000 yards. 1500 yards. 1700 yards.
Short Rifles .67 .65 1.89 3.75 5.79
Lee-Enfield Mark .62 .74 1.72 4.43 5.88
On a different occasion mean figures of merit of .59 foot and .67 foot respectively were obtained at 600 yards in a covered range with six specially selected .256-inch Mannlichers and six specially selected .276-inch.
In. another series of trials, the following figures of merit have been obtained, all the rifles being fired under the same conditions:
Figure of Merit | ||||
Rifle | Caliber (inches) | At 500 yards (feet) | At 1000 yards (feet) | At 1500 yards (feet) |
Lee-Enfield | .303 | .32 | 1.39 | 2.22 |
German service Mauser 1898 Model | .311 | .77 | 1.52 | 4.02 |
Belgian Mauser Rifle | .276 | .59 | 2.48 | 5.89 |
French Lobel | .315 | .58 | 1.29 | 5.42 |
Italian Mannlicher | .256 | .73 | 2.04 | 3.04 |
U.S.A. Krag-Jorgensen | .3 | .41 |
|
|
After firing 10,000 rounds from one of the short barrels it gave a figure of merit at 600 yards only slightly inferior to that of a new barrel. There was, of course, a fall of velocity.
The following is an abstract of some of the results obtained by (a) two highly trained men, (b) two ordinarily trained men, when using single loading and charger loading; one minute was allowed for each series; ammunition in bandoliers in each case.
I. Distance, 100 yards; Position, standing; Target 3rd class. | ||||||
| Single loading | Charger loading | ||||
| Average numbers of | |||||
Firers | Rounds fired | Hits obtained | Points obtained | Rounds fired | Hits obtained | Points obtained |
Highly trained | 11.5 | 10 | 228 | 23 | 21.5 | 55 |
Ordinarily trained | 10.5 | 9.5 | 26 | 19 | 14.5 | 35.5 |
II. Distance, 200 yards; Position, kneeling; Target 3rd class. | ||||||
Highly trained | 14 | 12 | 28.5 | 22 | 18 | 44 |
Ordinarily trained | 10.5 | 6.5 | 14.0 | 17 | 12.5 | 31.5 |
III. Distance, 500 yards; Position, lying; Target 2nd class. | ||||||
Highly trained | 11 | 9.5 | 28 | 16 | 14.5 | 40 |
Ordinarily trained | 9.5 | 7 | 17 | 15 | 10.5 | 29 |
The recoils of the new and old rifles have been measured by the Gunmakers' Association, London, as 13.4 foot-lbs. and 11.9 foot-lbs. respectively. (That of a shot-gun weighing 7 lbs. is about 2.4 lbs.)
As regards strength, every rifle with its action assembled has to stand a proof charge giving a pressure of between 20 and 2114 tons per square inch; the maximum pressure which the ammunition is allowed to give at proof is 17 tons. The rifle has besides been found to stand repeated pressures of 22 tons, and the body and bolt have not been damaged by repeated pressures of 29 tons.
The action of the new rifle has passed successfully through severe dust and rust trials, and its general serviceability is perhaps best attested by the fact that, besides its trials in Somaliland, it is practically the same as that of the service rifle which was introduced in 1888, and which, besides minor operations, has passed successfully through Indian Northwest frontier operations of 1895 and 1897, the Atbara-Omdurman campaign of 1898, and the South African war.—United Service Institution.
JAPANESE NAVAL GUNs.—Japanese guns, at least nearly all those of modern pattern, are British in design. Till lately they were imported, but pieces up to 8-inch are now made in Japan, on British models.
The standard battleship gun is the 12-inch Elswick of 40 calibers. It has an initial velocity of 2423 foot-seconds, an energy of 34,600 foot-tons at the muzzle, and fires an 850-lb. shot. Weight, 49 tons. All the first and second-class battleships have this gun.
The 8-inch is a rapid firer, Elswick pattern, 40 calibers long, maximum velocity 2242 foot-seconds with a 210-lb. projectile, and 2068 foot-seconds with a 250-lb. one. Energies, 7219 and 7413 foot-tons respectively. The gun weighs 15 1/2 tons, and is mounted in all the armored cruisers—a similar piece, Italian-built on Elswick lines, being on the Nisshin and Kasuga. It is also on three of the Takasago class.
The standard 6-inch is the 40-caliber Elswick with 2500 foot-seconds velocity, weighing 6 1/2 tons; though some of the older ships have a 6-ton gun of 2250 foot-seconds only.
Protected cruisers carry an Elswick 4.7 of 40 calibers and 2150 foot seconds. Old cruisers like the Matsushima have a 32-caliber 4.7 of 1938 foot-seconds. It weighs I 2-3 tons, the later piece weighing 2 tons. The 4.7 is now discarded for new ships.
The new cruisers Nutaka and Tsushima carry a Vickers model 6-inch of 50 calibers. Its velocity with nitro-cellulose is 3000, its energy 6240, and it weighs 8 tons. The nominal penetrations of these pieces, firing capped A. P. shot against K. C. armor at 3000 yards, are:
Capped. Uncapped.
12-inch 15 1/2 12 1/2
8-inch 7 1/2 6
6-inch 50 calibers 61/2 5
6-inch 40 calibers 4 1/2 4
There are also in the Japanese service an old but very powerful 12.6 Canet gun, equal to 16 inches K. C. at 3000 yards. This is carried by the Matsushima class. The only better gun in the United States navy is the piece carried by the Maine class, but the 13-inch of the Alabama is nearly equal to it.
The Kasuga carried a powerful to-inch of 45 calibers, with a velocity of 2710 foot-seconds and 25,000 foot-tons odd muzzle energy. It is equal to the 35-caliber 12-inch gun of the Russian battleships. It is of Elswick pattern.
There are four old 12-inch Krupps in the Chen Yuen, but these are weak pieces, no better than the 8-inch in penetrative power. Some old Krupp 10-inch also exist, but they cannot penetrate more than a 6-inch plate of modern make.
Japanese ships have electric hoists and the Barr and Stroud range finders and transmitters.
The normal Japanese shooting is not very good, but of late immense pains have been taken with it, and considerable improvements have resulted.
The 3-inch rapid-fire gun, which enters so largely into the armament of Japanese ships, is shown in one of our illustrations. It is an Elswick gun, and the pattern that is at present in their navy is a 40-caliber piece, firing a 12-pound shell with a velocity of 2200 foot-seconds, and an initial energy of 420 foot-tons. This gun, however, is made in 45 and 50-caliber lengths, and it is one of these that is shown in our illustration, mounted on a pedestal and protected by a shield.
The 3-inch rapid-fire field gun of the Vickers-Maxim make is a compact and efficient piece, which is used for landing purposes. The gun slides in a cradle provided with trunnions, which rest in trunnion bearings in the top part of the trail: The cradle is provided with two hydraulic buffers, in which work pistons attached to a projection on the under side of the breech of the gun. Inside the cylinders are strong springs, which cause the gun, after firing, to return to battery without any blow or rebound, and without causing any alteration to the elevation or training. It is this feature, coupled with the rapid action and simplified breech mechanism, that gives to this piece its .rapid-fire qualities. The trail is fitted with a shoe and an eye for limbering up; and track shoes, shown in the illustrations, are attached by steel-wire ropes to the sides of the trail. The shoes, acting with the spade piece, at the rear end of the trail, which is driven into the ground, serve to prevent the recoil of the cartridge itself. At the extreme end of the trail is an eye for coupling up the gun at the limber.
An important element among the smaller naval guns is the Maxim rifle-caliber gun, which is mounted on the bridges and in the fighting tops, and is also provided with a combined carriage and tripod for landing purposes: The gun, as shown in our illustration, consists of two portions, the recoiling and the non-recoiling. The recoiling portion includes the barrel and the firing mechanism, which move to and fro upon guides attached to the frame, the energy of the recoil being taken up and regulated by means of a spring. The non-recoiling portion consists of the frame and the water-jacket, which latter serves to cool off the barrel during firing. The gun is entirely automatic in its action, being fed with cartridges from a belt, and the firing is controlled at will by pressure applied to the trigger lever in the rear. The gun will fire at the rate of 600 shots a minute as long as any cartridges are left in the belt.
It will be seen that while the ballistics, as given above, of the Japanese guns at present mounted in their navy, are about up to the average, compared with the naval guns of other nations at present in service, they are below the ballistics of the latest types that are being mounted in the new ships of our own and other navies. As a matter of fact, the Japanese have suffered somewhat, in respect of the energy of their gunfire, from their intimate connection with the British gun makers, whose pieces, particularly those mounted during the past decade, in the British navy, have fallen sensibly behind the Krupp and Creusot artillery in velocities and energies.
The piece that will form the principal batteries in the new 56.400-ton battleships just ordered from Vickers-Maxim and Armstrong will be considerably more powerful than the present Japanese guns. Thus, the Elswick 52-inch piece of 50 calibers length weighs 65.2 tons, fires an 850-lb. projectile with a muzzle velocity of 2880 foot-seconds and muzzle energy of 48,000 foot-tons; and their 50-caliber zo-inch piece fires a 500-lb. projectile with a muzzle velocity of 2850 foot-seconds, and a muzzle energy of 28,161 foot-tons. The ballistics of the new Vickers-Maxim guns are about the same as these. It is probable that the 50-caliber 10-inch piece will be mounted in the two new battleships; but it is scarecly likely that the 50-caliber 52-inch gun will be used, the 45-caliber 12-inch being a more handy gun, although not so powerful. The latter piece weighs 58.5 tons, and fires an 850-lb. projectile, with a velocity of 2730 foot-seconds and an energy of 43,900 foot-tons.—Scientific American.
MISCELLANEOUS.
THE TENDENCY OF BATTLESHIP DESIGN.—The introduction in the late eighties of quick-firing guns of medium caliber and of high explosive shell sealed the doom of the old soft-ended type of battleship, unprotected save as to the boilers, machinery and heavy guns. The fact that stability and maneuvering power were endangered by the storm of high explosive shell which would inevitably wreck the defenseless water-line fore and abaft the belt, and the certain destruction which awaited the unfortunate crews of .the secondary guns, necessitated an extension of the armored area. This was first effected by increasing the displacement; but the enormous development of resisting power in armor which resulted partly from improvements in the composition of the steel of which plates were made, and partly from improved processes of manufacture, notably those introduced by Tresidder and Harvey, followed shortly by that due to the late Herr Krupp, contributed still further in this direction. Between the two main types which had hitherto existed, the short-belted English type with well protected heavy gun bases and transverse bulkheads, and the French type with all-round but narrower belts and weakly supported gun positions, a compromise was arrived at, and, generally speaking, the latter-day battleship has had an all-round, or nearly all-round, belt—in the latter case an after bulkhead has been retained—well protected primary guns and gun bases, and medium armor over the secondary guns; the bases of these being usually protected by armored hoists, or, in the case of main deck guns, by an upper belt of medium thickness. Thicknesses of armor range from 6-inch to 12-inch of Krupp, or other steel of like quality, on the belt, reinforced by an armored deck from 2-inch to 3-inch on the slopes, 8-inch to 12-inch on the primary gun position and bases, and 4-inch to 6-inch on the upper belt and over the secondary guns.
Various methods of disposing the guns have obtained. Opinion has finally favored the English disposition of four heavy guns in pairs in fore and aft barbettes in the center line of the ship, the guns themselves being protected by thick steel hoods. In the United States, in a few cases, secondary guns have been superimposed on the heavy gun turrets, an arrangement of doubtful value which has not found imitators. In England the secondary guns have mostly been disposed in casemates, two-thirds on the main deck and one-third on the upper. Very recently—in the King Edward class and in the Mikasa—the main deck secondary guns have been enclosed in a central citadel with traverses between the guns. In France, and elsewhere, however, the tendency has been rather to place these guns in turrets on the upper deck, a few guns only being in casemates on the main deck. Greater protection to the gun bases is undoubtedly to be had where they are mounted on the main deck, and a greater rate of fire is also probably attainable from guns mounted in battery or casemates than from those in turrets. On the other hand, turreted upper deck guns are better protected than casemated guns; and upper deck guns, however protected, can be fought in all weathers, and make very much better shooting than main deck guns, owing to their greater height above the water-line. From the statement made recently by Mr. Pretyman, with reference to alterations in the Warrior and Devonshire classes, it seems clear that the Admiralty have at last come round to the French way of thinking, and have decided to mount secondary guns as high as possible, and in gun houses or small turrets. Where guns of this nature are protected by 6 inches of Krupp armor they may be considered invulnerable even by capped 6-inch projectiles at a range of 3000 yards, and this for direct impact. At an angle they are practically invulnerable at 1500 yards against their own caliber of shot and shell. With direct impact a capped 7.5-inch armor-piercing shell of good quality might be effective up to 5000 yards, but not at an angle. For a gun whose shell at fighting ranges of 4000 to 6000 yards will perforate 6-inch K. C. at an angle up to 30 degrees, we must turn to the 9.2-inch or similar gun of recent design. The only value of the 6-inch is as a shell gun, and as such even it is ineffective against as little as 3 inches of Krupp steel, and nowadays armor of this or greater thickness covers all essential parts of the target.
It is obvious that to cope with the conditions now prevailing, we must turn to a heavier secondary gun. The 7.5-inch is advocated by many, and, it is rumored, may find a place in the new Lord Nelson class. For ourselves, we would rather see a bold advance to the 9.2-inch, which is now, in all except in name, a quick-firing gun, and either as a shell gun or for perforation, is much in advance of the 7.5-inch. Eight 9.2-inch guns, all mounted singly in turrets on the upper deck, should prove a very efficient secondary armament, and should be more than equal to fourteen 7.5-inch, which would be of approximately the same weight. In view of the fact that destruction of personnel is more likely to put a ship out of action than damage to materiel, and that discriminating fire is difficult at long ranges, it might even be contended that every 12-inch gun could be advantageously replaced by two 9.2-inch guns. Still, bearing in mind the fact that 12-inch common shell are likely to get through any secondary armor afloat at fighting ranges, and that the destructive effect of a heavy shell of this kind is enormously great, while no belt armor could keep out 12-inch armor-piercing shell at 2000 yards, and in many cases not at 6000 yards, it seems hardly wise to make so drastic an innovation. The tremendous penetrative power of the 12-inch A. P. projectile, indeed, makes it probable that belt armor in future battleships will not be less than at least 12 inches in thickness over the vitals, tapering to 3 inches or 4 inches at bow and stern, reinforced by a protective deck of from 2 inches to 4 inches on the slopes. An upper belt, which need not be more than 5 inches in thickness, is needed amidships, to prevent high explosive shell from being burst immediately over the engine-room gratings, and to protect the bases of the funnels as much as possible, and it should also be continued forward, tapering to 3 inches at the bow. All secondary gun positions should be on the upper deck, and as twin mountings are, for the present at any rate, to be avoided, a satisfactory one having yet to be designed, these should be in single turrets of not less than 7-inch K. C., with armored tubes of the same thickness. For the anti-torpedo boat armament a clear field of view and fire is essential; this should therefore be carried as high as possible and clear of all gear likely to burst a shell. It is open to question whether the 12-pounder is a sufficiently powerful gun to disable an attacking torpedo-boat destroyer. The French employ a 3.9-inch quick-firing gun, with a projectile 30.8 lbs. for this purpose. Probably a high velocity 4-inch would be the best gun for the purpose. The 3-pounder quick-firer is also a most valuable piece of ordnance, both against torpedo attack and for clearing the upper works of a hostile ships, and these guns are of especial value in the fighting tops, where they are well above the smoke from the main and upper deck guns and have a good field of view.
The fighting top is also useful as an observing station, and the wisdom of its abolition, as in the King Edward class, is open to question. It is true that in all recent experience masts have gone early in an action. Still, this points rather to strengthening and stiffening the masts than to reducing them to a mere pole. The main conning tower should have armor 12 inches thick, and should not be encumbered as at present with a bridge, which would probably, as pointed out by Lieutenant A. C. Dewar, R. N., in his recent R. U. S. I. gold medal prize essay, carry away and foul in action. A secondary conning position with 7-inch K. C. is also needed. A sea speed of not less than 16 knots is essential, and sufficient coal must be carried to give an 8000 miles radius of action.
A battleship designed on the lines here advocated should be possible on a displacement of 16,000 tons, which would appear to be the limit of size at present.
To sum up, our proposed battleship would have the following characteristics:
Displacement 16,000 tons.
Speed (sea) 16 knots.
Radius of action at 10 knots 8000 nautical miles.
Armament Four 12 in. in two hooded barbettes.
Eight 9.2 in. in single turrets on upper deck.
20-30 small quick-firing guns (3 in. or 4 in. and 3-pounder).
Four torpedo tubes (submerged).
Armor—
Main belt 12 in. K. C., tapering to 3 in. at ends, depth 12 ft. (5 ft. above water-line).
Armored deck . 2 in. to 3 in. on slopes, 1 in. on flat.
Splinter deck at top of belt 1 in. on flat.
Upper belt Sin. 6 in. K. C., tapering to 3 in. forward, depth about 7 ft.
12 in. gun bases and barbettes 12 in. K. C.
12 in. hoods 8 in. front (sloped) to 4 in. at back.
9.2 in. gun turrets 7 in. K. C.
Ammunition hoists to same 7 in. K. C.
Conning towers 12 in. K. C. and 7 in. K. C.
—Engineer.
"SCOUTS" AND THEIR Ciuncs.—Within a few days of the recent launch of the Sentinel, which is the first of the eight " scouts " to take the water, a vigorous denunciation of this new type of vessel appeared in the Times. This article was evidently penned by a capable expert, but it is somewhat unfortunate that its publication should have been postponed until the eleventh hour. New types are always liable to fail in one or more important attributes, and it would be as premature to claim success for the Sentinel class as it is, in our judgment, to condemn them at this stage. The Times has certainly indicated some reasons for apprehending that the type may prove unsatisfactory and needlessly costly, and many will agree that it would have been cheaper to have experimented with two or four vessels of the class, instead of eight. It may prove, however, that the courage of Lord Selborne's board in this matter was justified, and we certainly consider that judgment should be suspended until the vessels have undergone some amount of trial with the fleets.
The general characteristics of this new type have previously been described in our columns. The eight units are not identical in structure, some discretion having been left to the architects of the distinguished private firms to which the building has been entrusted. Speaking generally, they are unprotected cruisers of 2800 tons, designed for a maximum speed of 25 knots. At load draft they must be able to stow ISO tons of coal. Among other conditions imposed by the Admiralty upon the builders were that they should be capable of maintaing their full speed for eight hours, and should have a radius of 3000 sea miles at the speed of ten knots. The armament is to consist of ten 12-pounders and eight 3-pounder Q. F. guns, and this, of course, is vastly inferior to the average armament of a gunboat. Upon this weakness—if weakness it should be considered—the Times has laid stress, and it must be admitted that the "scouts" are not designed to fight any vessel larger than a destroyer. Their avowed function is scouting, and, when they fall in with cruisers, even of the smallest class, they will have to run. The cost slightly varies, but the average will be £275,000 for each of these "scouts." The Times indictment is largely based upon estimates of coal consumption, which may, or may not, prove accurate. It is admitted that the "scouts" will be able to carry far more than the official load draft minimum of 150 tons, although by so doing their speed will necessarily be reduced. It seems hardly possible to work out accurately the effect of an additional too tons of coal upon the speed. If obliged to steam at full speed for eight hours, the load draft minimum would be exhausted. But this simple fact must have been clearly foreseen at the Admiralty, and we may, therefore, assume with some confidence that the question of coal endurance was carefully settled before the designs were put to contract.
The writer in the Times admits that there is one operation of warfare—viz., blockade—for which these "scouts" of limited radius may be found valuable. There is much in Lieutenant Dewar's prize essay to support this view. He argues that close blockade will rarely be possible, and that the blockading fleet of battleships should lie at a secondary base, when possible, distant about 120 miles from the port to be watched. The point is. discussed with great force, and if the gold medallist be correct in this view, it follows that a special class of swift "scout" is likely to prove of great service to the admiral conducting this form of blockade. Given four or more of these sea gallopers, the admiral could depend upon obtaining information with far greater rapidity than would often be possible by the use of destroyers or ordinary cruisers. Destroyers are used for scouting, but it is not their function. In bad weather their speed is much reduced, and they become liable to capture by larger craft. The "scouts" will be entirely exempt from this risk if able to maintain their superior speed in all weathers. It is, no doubt, a debatable point whether special "scouts" are indispensable or not, and the critic essays to show that ocean liners would do equally well, and could be more strongly armed. What, however, is the cost of an ocean liner able to steam twenty-five knots? Two such vessels have recently been subsidized for Admiralty purposes, and are practically being built at the expense of the country. Even six "scouts" of the mail-steamer type would be a very costly luxury.
The "scout" class, a trenchant criticism of which appeared in the Times recently, have formed the subject of some questions in Parliament by Sir J. Colomb. The questions were in one way useful, as they enabled Mr. Pretyman to correct an inaccuracy in a previous reply of his on the same subject. It seems that the full bunker capacity of these vessels is 485 tons, but on the contractors' trial they are only required to carry 105 tons. The writer of the Times article, in a further communication to that paper, points out very pertinently that if any one in the public press were to state that a vessel steaming at 25 knots with 150 tons of coal on board could maintain that speed with three times that amount of fuel in her bunkers, he would be open to the charge of making a very bad mistake. The whole secret of the confusion lies apparently with the navy estimates, which, under the heading of "Coal Capacity at Load Draft," gives 150 tons, and further states that the "estimated speed at load draft, smooth water, clean bottoms," is to be 25 knots. These figures are given for all the eight vessels which are already in hand. According to Mr. Pretyman's latest reply, however, when carrying their full load of coal, the "scouts" are only expected to make 24.6 knots.—Army and Navy Gazette.
There is a strong opinion that one result of the naval war in the Far East is likely to be a reconsideration of the armament of our battleships. Practically all the engagements by the Russian and Japanese ships have been at long range, and thus guns of high caliber have been more effective than moderate sized weapons capable of attaining high rates of fire. These latter must, of course, be always desirable, because occasions arise when it is of the highest importance to get in as many shots within a given time as possible. But the primary consideration, it would seem, must be the maximum muzzle energy from the greatest number of guns consistent with as high a rate of fire as possible. The 6-inch quick-firer, which has hitherto been regarded with so much favor for the secondary armament of our battleships, can no longer be accepted as satisfactory. For many of the engagements the 6-inch gun proved deficient in range, and could not be used, so that the ships had to depend entirely upon their 12-inch breech-loaders.
It is rather noteworthy that in the two Chilean ships which were bought by our Admiralty, and have since become the Triumph and Swiftsure, this point was anticipated, and the secondary guns are of 7.5-inch caliber, and therefore have about double the striking energy of the 6-inch weapons. In the King Edward class there are four 9.2-inch as well as four 12-inch weapons; in addition there are mounted on the broadside ten 6-inch quick-firers, and it is a subject for serious consideration whether these 6-inch guns should not be discarded, and the weight thus saved be utilized for mounting a fewer number of guns of greater power. To increase the number of 9.2-inch weapons would involve extensive structural alterations, as their mountings are of considerable weight, and might necessitate barbettes or turrets, but were 7.5-inch guns to be fitted within the existing central battery, as in the Triumph and Swiftsure, there would be a material improvement in the gun power with very little change in the structural arrangements of the ships, several of which are in an advanced state. The work in connection with the new design of this year's battleships is proceeding on such lines, and although it is still too early to learn definite details, it may be accepted that what may be termed the primary battery will predominate over the secondary battery to a greater extent than in preceding ships.—United Service Gazette.
NAVAL EXPENDITURE—The following return [129] of naval expenditure of this country in the years 1880, 1890, 1901, 1902 and 1903, and of the naval expenditure of France, Russia, Germany and America in the same years, was issued on May 12 as a Parliamentary paper.
The figures for France, Russia, Germany and America are taken from the estimates of the respective countries, information as to actual expenditure not being available. The estimated expenditure for Great Britain is, therefore, given to enable a comparison to be made.—United Service Institution.
TORPEDO ATTACK.—It appeared last week as if we were at last to have that "object lesson" in modern naval warfare which experts and amateurs were so sure about when war was, for the first time, commenced between two powers with modern well equipped fleets. The ill-fortune which has attended the Russian arms from the beginning has not left them yet; and though the Muscovite squadron of three battleships and four cruisers accomplished on June 23 what had been considered the impossible feat of getting out of Port Arthur, they were denied the satisfaction of even striking a blow at their opponents. It is a curious fact that the war between China and Japan of ten years ago—when the latter power had not a battleship to oppose to her enemy—should have been more fruitful in instruction for the naval tactician than the present war, when both sides are possessed of powerful ships. This is to be attributed to the prompt way in which the ever-practical Japanese took the initiative, and, before the Russians were ready, struck a blow which at once made the balance of naval power so unequal that the Russians were more than justified in avoiding battle.
Whatever one's political leanings may be, one cannot but sympathize with the .Russian officers and men in the humiliation to which they have been subjected; the more bitter because it has come from the hands of a foe previously despised. If it be true, as stated, that the ships which came out of Port Arthur, only to be driven back ingloriously, were simply trying to escape, being unable even to defend themselves through having landed a large part of their armament for the purpose of land defense, the situation must have been even more trying. Though the Japanese fleet possessed a decided superiority, such as could hardly have left the issue in doubt, one can understand the disappointment and vexation of a courageous people at being driven helplessly without the ability to strike a blow in defense, and ultimately to be attacked with such disastrous results by the exasperating torpedo craft.
Although this Russo-Japanese conflict, like the Spanish-American war, has yielded no lessons of a comprehensive nature in regard to fleet tactics, yet it is not without its suggestiveness. The great feature has been the efficiency of the torpedo, both in its stationary form as a mine, or when projected from craft in its locomotive character. It has always been recognized that it was a weapon of immense possibilities, and we see now under what conditions these possibilities may be translated into fact. The first attack of last February, when two Russian battleships and a cruiser were put out of action, brought home to us a fact always recognized— the need for vigilance. But, although this was a matter never in doubt, the lesson may be well taken to heart by a people, like ourselves, somewhat over-given to undervalue our foe, and to trust to the valor of our sailors and soldiers, or our own good fortune, to prevent disaster. Although the Russians must have known that war was imminent, they had no idea that the attack would come so soon. The moral is that anything physically possible should be provided against; and that diplomacy may give place to arms at very short notice. Japan displayed exemplary patience up to a certain point; but when she struck she struck suddenly. The example thus set, and its advantages manifested, may be improved upon in the future.
The operations of last week are more fruitful in instruction than those of the opening of the war. Here we have two torpedo-boat attacks carried out under very different conditions. An attempt was made by the Japanese destroyers to attack the Russian squadron as it came out of Port Arthur in broad daylight. This led to an engagement between the Russian and Japanese destroyers, the cruiser Novik assisting the former. As might have been expected, the attack was repulsed; but even had the Japanese destroyers overcome those of their enemy, it is difficult to imagine they could have done much damage to the Russian cruisers and battleships, supposing, of course, the latter to have their proper secondary armament for use. Nevertheless, one Russian ship was hit and took fire, having to retreat into the harbor. What was the description of the "ship" thus put out of action we are not informed. Probably it was one of the destroyers, as a Japanese telegram says a Russian destroyer was disabled, though at what period is not stated.
The way being thus cleared, the Russian squadron proceeded to sea, to be soon driven back to its port. In view of the operations it is difficult to imagine what object the Russian admiral had in putting to sea at all, except for the purpose of escape, so that the fleet might still be available in the case of Port Arthur falling. The superior speed of the Japanese vessels prevented this. The second torpedo attack was of a more instructive nature, although no very certain conclusions can be drawn until we have fuller details than are contained in the telegrams up to now received.
It was 8 o'clock in the evening when the Russian admiral turned back for Port Arthur, and it was shortly after this that Admiral Togo signaled to his destroyers to go in and attack. Their onslaught threw the Russian line out of alignment, but the ships continued on their course towards Port Arthur. Owing to the obstructions which the Japanese had succeeded from time to time in placing in the entrance to the harbor, the Russian ships had difficulty in entering, and they therefore anchored outside. This may have been a necessity, but it was a direct inducement to the Japanese destroyers to renew the attack, which they did throughout the night. "In spite of searchlights, in spite of mines," the Times telegram states, "the destroyers threw themselves upon the Russians, and succeeded in sinking the Peresviet and in damaging the Diana and Sevastopol." The former is a battleship of 12,674 tons displacement, built at St. Petersburg in Ickm. The Sevastopol is also a battleship, built at St. Petersburg, of nearly 11,000 tons displacement. The Diana is a cruiser of 6630 tons, also built at St. Petersburg.
That a torpedo-boat attack made during a moonlight night on a fleet thoroughly on the alert should prove so successful is an event that few gunnery officers would have anticipated; and even now there probably will not be many British officers who would acknowledge that such an event would be at all probable if the attack should be against ships of the Royal navy. This conviction might, however, be due to that overconfidence in their own particular weapon which gunnery officers sometimes display; but unless it can be shown that there was something radically wrong with the Russian ships, we shall have to modify our views as to the torpedo being so exclusively a weapon of surprise as has been hitherto generally thought. The impetuosity and persistence of the Japanese attack accounts for its success. Admiral Togo's reports states that the torpedo craft went in eight times. In spite of this they appear to have had few casualties. Admiral Togo's report says: "On our side destroyer Shirakumo's ward room damaged, three men killed, one surgeon and two men wounded. Torpedo boat Chidori received one shot aft engine room, but no casualties. Torpedo boats 64 and 66 slightly damaged." A later telegram states that "a third Japanese torpedo boat, No. 53, was damaged."
That so little damage was done to the Japanese vessels after eight attacks on a prepared fleet argues that the conditions were not what could be described as normal, and we must not take the result of this engagement to be a measure of the efficiency of the torpedo. No doubt in the fullness of time, when we get a detailed account of this action, naval officers will find many points of interest and instruction, both from the point of view of attack and defense but until such information arrives it is not possible to arrive at any definite conclusion.
There is one other matter of interest connected with this sortie of the Russian fleet. It was only a day before the news arrived that the ships had put to sea that an account appeared in the papers, from what was described as a trustworthy source, that it was impossible for the ships which were torpedoed in February to have been repaired at Port Arthur, owing to the extensive nature of the damage and the lack of facilities at the port; yet we see these vessels issuing forth capable of making a comparatively long run on their own steam. The fact must reflect great credit on the perseverance and resources of Russian engineers, for there is little doubt the ships were badly damaged. When the full account of the war comes to be written, no chapter will be more interesting and instructive than that giving the extent to which the vessels were injured by torpedo explosions, and the manner in which repairs were executed. Whether such information will modify to any considerable extent the design and construction of war vessels, is a doubtful problem. At any rate, all suggestions that have been made up to the present for protecting ships against torpedo attack have been of a nature that the majority of experts have considered impracticable. The torpedo-net has fallen into disfavor as being ineffective, and an armored bottom is considered of doubtful utility, even if it were advisable to devote sufficient displacement to such a means of defense. The extensive damage due to torpedo explosion renders cellular structure a difficult problem; though if such a means were adopted, care should be taken to make the connections as flexible as possible. The grounding of the Apollo some years ago gave a valuable object lesson in this direction.—Engineering.
ELECTRICITY AT THE WASHINGTON NAVY YARD.
BY J. E. PRICE.
The biggest job of its kind in the world is now on foot at the Washington navy yard. This is the work of equipping the gun lathes in the big gun shop with electric drives, and making other improvements with electric outfits, thus supplanting the wilderness of shafting, belting, wheels and other connections of the steam machinery used.
In connection with completing the electric outfitting of the various shops of the navy yard a new power plant is being built. This will furnish power for all the work-shops, excepting the model-making shop, which has a plant of its own, that also furnishes current for operating the towing carriage of the model-testing tank.
The new power-house is 165 feet long by 100 feet wide; it has two brick chimneys, each 204 feet high, and when in use will have a boiler capacity of 6000 horse power. The engine equipment will consist of four 500-kilowatt, 244-volt, direct-current generators, at 120 revolutions per minute, direct-connected to vertical cross-compound engines. One of the improved features of the new power-house will be its method of obtaining water. This will be brought over a distance of 600 feet from the eastern branch of the Potomac River, by gravity through a 36-inch conduit which will lead to a well. The system will be economical, as it will do away with the necessity for suction pipes; and an abundance of water can be had at all times.
The electric plant now in use in the yard is entirely capable for present work, but when the steam-operated machinery gives place to electric movement, the power afforded will not be sufficient. The plant consists of four engines with a combined output of 1325 horse power, two of 300 horse power, cross-compound, Ball & Wood, at 250 revolutions; one tandem-compound, 125 horse power, at 300 revolutions, and one McIntosh & Seymour of 600 horse power, at 130 revolutions. The smaller ones are direct connected to two generators on the Edison three-wire system. The boiler service is equal to about 2500 horse power.
The present electric plant supplies light and power, the number of lights consisting of 6000 incandescent and 450 arc lamps. There are seventeen electrically operated traveling cranes in the shops and 152 motors. The largest crane is of no tons capacity; the smallest, to tons. Some of the motors are mounted in the galleries and connected to shafting; others, especially in the shops where small fixings are finished, are mounted on or connected at the floor with machines.
Under direction of Mr. C. E. Reid, chief electrician of the navy yard, the work of installing the new apparatus for operating the big gun lathes is being carried on as fast as such a large undertaking could be expected. There are eight of these lathes distributed over the moo feet of length of the main gun building shop, and each takes up about fifty feet in distance across the eighty feet of width of the building. These lathes are ponderous and require for movement an aggregate of 850 horse power. By the new arrangement of a multi-voltage system, each lathe will receive current for 56 horse power. The armature of the main driving motor will be mounted on a bronze sleeve which will run on the present cone shaft. A 10-horse power motor will also be employed on each lathe for moving the tool carriages which hold the tools used in gun trimming and polishing.
When the gun shops get their full electrical equipment there will be only three shops in the Washington navy yard not completely outfitted in this respect; but these now have electric cranes and some other electrical features. All shafting will be done away with. The use of belting as still continued, in a number of the shops, has its marked disadvantages. It takes up room that could be otherwise employed; it is in this way causing delay in the movements of men and material; and a particularly objectionable feature of this method of drive is in the fact that when a main belt breaks the whole machine work of the shop must be stopped until repairs are made.
The work of this navy yard has increased to such an extent that now there is not room enough in which to carry all of it under cover. At present work on ammunition hoists is being done out-doors. There is, since the addition to the acreage of the yard, plenty of space for much needed buildings and Congress would hasten the effectiveness of the navy by appropriating for such.
This navy yard is a most important factor in the making of a great navy for this country; from it are sent guns of various sizes (the largest being of 12-inch caliber, 45 feet long), gun carriages, projectiles, ammunition hoists and other finished material.
The Washington navy yard has grown as the navy has grown; and it began almost with the beginning of the navy. Congress on February 25, 1799, appropriated $1,000,000 for building six of the largest ships of war. That the object of this appropriation should be more speedily and economically accomplished, together with the design of creating a permanent navy, the Navy Department in the latter part of the year moo proceeded to apply a portion of this amount to the purchase and improvement of selected ground for six navy yards—one each at New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Portsmouth, Norfolk and Washington. The ground for the latter, originally consisting of forty acres, was bought for $4000. A little over a hundred years later, the addition to this land, recently purchased, about forty-five acres, cost $100,000. As early as October, 1801, the Government had expended $54,863 on the yard, and by January 20 of the following year, timber for a 74-gun ship and other material for this yard had been purchased to the amount of $158,685.
So it will be seen that the Washington navy yard began progressing early. But, about this time, the advocates of a good, effective navy for the United States were surprised and angered by the action of Congress and the President. The legislative body passed the Peace Establishment act, among other provisions of which the President was directed to discharge all the naval officers of the United States, except nine captains, thirty-six lieutenants and 150 midshipmen. The number of captains on the active list was twenty-eight. The act also authorized the sale of all ships and vessels belonging to the navy, except thirteen frigates, only six of these to be kept in commission, the remainder to be dismantled and laid up.
When this curious act was passed, Thomas Jefferson was President, and he had a theory that war was unnecessary, and that a powerful navy was a continual challenge to war. Later on, however, the navy and the navy yards began to grow, and to-day, in point of armament and execution, we have the best navy and the best ordnance factory in the world.—Electrical Review.
STEAMING POWERS OF THE RUSSIAN AND JAPANESE FLEETS.-At the outbreak of the war we gave some data as to the steaming capacity of the rival warships. Since then the vessels have gone through several months of active service and some particulars as to how they have fared may be of interest. For obvious reasons very exact data are not procurable, and such as are available refer to some six weeks ago. Most interest centers in the Japanese ships, which have been submitted to a very severe test indeed. As might be expected, not a single ship is now able to steam at its original speed, but in the majority of cases that seems due to absence of docking rather than to machinery and boiler troubles.
Up to the time of her loss the most efficient steamer in the Japanese fleet was the Hatsuse. An officer of hers, writing only a few days before that event, mentioned that no defects of any kind had appeared in her boilers or machinery, and her speed loss from foul bottom was very little—about half a knot. The lame ducks were the Asama, Yoshino, Chitose, Niitaka, Fuji and Yashima. All these except the Niitaka had had boiler troubles, mostly of the "bird-nesting type." Of these all save the Niitaka have cylindrical boilers, in most cases nearing the end of their span of existence. The Niitaka has water-tube boilers of the Niclausse type, and these appear to have worked well. The ship had either been aground or badly hit, and it was not deemed well to press her upon that account. There is some mystery about her.
Loss of water was experienced in the Iwate after an extensive hit during the battle of February 9. Her boilers are of the Belleville type. She would seem to have been hit in the region of the boiler rooms, but her steaming capacity was not affected to any extent, and her own people tightened up the joints that had been sprung. This ship is at present good for 21 knots. The speed of the Asama has sunk to 18 knots or thereabouts; the other cruisers mentioned are somewhere about the same. The two old battleships were down to something like 14 knots, it being considered unsafe to press their antique boilers. The Mikasa, Asahi, Yakumo, Azuma, Idzumo, were, at the time of our advices, steaming fast and well; their Bellevilles had given no trouble at all, and machinery defects had been of a very mild nature. The Shikishima had had no boiler troubles, but some small injury had been suffered by the machinery—probably from Russian projectiles.
As was only to be expected, the destroyers had one and all fallen off in speed under the tremendous strain put upon them. Data of the speed losses are not procurable, nor is it possible to ascertain how far hostile projectiles are responsible. The general feeling on destroyer performances was not one of dissatisfaction, bearing the circumstances in mind. The best steamers of the lot are the Shiakumo and Asashio.
Only one Russian ship has done much hard steaming—the cruiser Bayan. It was the Bayan which, when she reached Port Arthur a little before the war, came up at full speed, exceeding her contract rate at the end of a long voyage. She was therefore in the pink of condition, and from all accounts has so remained right through the war—an all-round credit to her designer, her builder, her machinery, her boilers and her crew.
The Gromoboi and Rossia are both in good steaming condition, and so is the Askold. This ship has Thornycroft boilers; the others have Belleville.
The Novik has been several times injured, and, having been also hard pressed once or twice, her machinery has been shaken up a good deal. It is doubtful whether she can do 20 knots at present; possibly not more than 18. Her boilers are said to be in a very passable condition.
The Retvizan had her engines thrown out of alignment when she was torpedoed, and her steaming powers are very poor, despite repairs. The shock developed leaky tubes, but the repairs were not very lengthy. One tube is said to have burst.
The Czarevitch suffered no hurt at all to machinery or boilers when torpedoed, and her propellers were untouched, though the torpedo hit her rudder. She is still able to steam .at a good speed, the steering gear being the only part of her machinery injured.
The Pallada was hit amidships by a torpedo that came through the side, and exploded partly in a coal bunker and partly right inside one of her group of Belleville generators. The tubes were torn out and bent S shape. They were taken out, straightened and replaced, mostly by her own engineers.
A not very dissimilar hit was received by the Pobieda, which was hit by a mine in the port boiler room. The boilers run the length of the ship instead of athwartships, and this probably did much to save the men in the room concerned. A great deal of water came in and the fires were quenched, but no one was injured, no tubes burst and the ship returned to harbor without assistance under her own steam. In harbor the water was pumped out. No repairs were needed save a patch in the side where the hole was. The main engines were quite uninjured.
The three Poltavas had well-worn boilers when the war began, and none of them seem to have done more than about 52 knots speed. Lying mostly in harbor, the war has put no strain upon them.
In the early days of the war, Russian destroyers were hopelessly outmatched in speed by the Japanese; but the harder service to which the latter have been put has done much to equalize this, and there is little to choose between them now. If anything, the Russians have got better speeds out of their destroyers recently than when the war began, which would seem to indicate that past slackness had much to do with their early failures to steam well with these craft. The fastest Russian destroyer is the Schichau-built Lieutenant Bourakoff.
Speaking generally, the engine room lessons of the war have been as follows:
(1) The impact of heavy projectiles has a strong tendency to affect the alignment of machinery by shock, but less effect than might be expected upon boilers, whether water-tube or cylindrical. Only direct hits seem to have effected the generators.
(2) All small ships, especially torpedo craft, wear out quickly, and lose heavily in speed as the result of hard work.
(3) The deterioration of big ships is considerably less; and in the case of ships which, like the Idzumo and Bayan, were well cared for in the days of peace, very little indeed.
(4) Disablement of machinery by gun fire is quite improbable; partial injury is all that is to be feared.
(5) Cylindrical boilers have proved inferior to water-tubes, or, at any rate, to the Belleville variety, with which most of the water-tube combatants are fitted. The tubes have been easily swept at sea, whereas the cylindrical ships have had to go into harbor continually for cleaning.
(6) It has not been possible to maintain full speed for any length of time in either fleet, though the Bayan is said to have once steamed nine hours at top speed. One cause of failure has been the physical difficulty of getting the coal from the bunkers quickly enough. It is deduced from this that coal economy is even more important tactically than strategically. A fractional difference in consumption per indicated horse power means a good deal of difference in three hours' coal shoveling, where large horse powers are involved. The Bayan in her nine hours' run would certainly have been captured or destroyed had she been unable to keep up the supply of steam. In the majority of the ships engaged, the tendency when full power was wanted was to shovel on coal recklessly. This meant that the boilers were given more coal than they needed, and accelerated physical exhaustion resulted. In the Bayan, firing was done by system and regularly, with the result that less coal was burned, more efficiency per pound secured from it, and the physical exhaustion problem of stoking not felt. The ship has always been remarkable for a low consumption, but the firing signalling system employed undoubtedly bore its share in the paradox that "she steamed away from the enemy by burning less coal than they did!" The most pregnant lesson of the war would seem to be that the all-important qualification for a naval boiler is the giving of the maximum result from every pound of coal. The endurance of the stoker is the rock that lies in the way of keeping up continuous full speed.
We are indebted for the above particulars to officers in the Far East who are in a position to glean the views of the combatants.—Engineer.
A series of interesting experiments with the new war kite for utilization with a newly discovered system of wireless telegraphy were recently carried out with great secrecy before Kaiser Wilhelm. The inventor is a German-American professor, at present residing at Havre. The operations were carried out about a mile from the shore. No spectators whatever, beyond the naval officials and the Emperor and his suite, were allowed to witness the experiments. Seven kites were flown on copper wires to a height of from 10,000 to 12,000 feet. The experiments were partly made from the Kaiser's dispatch boat Sleipner, traveling at the rate of thirty knots an hour, and several languages were employed. The features of the invention is the possibility of transmission over the greatest distances without affecting any other wireless telegraphy station. The form of the kites used is that of two cubes side by side, similar to the Cody box kites.—Scientific American.
LARGEST SAILING VESSEL AFLOAT.—The trip of the sailing vessel Preussen, which left its German home a year ago, attracts the liveliest attention. Generally speaking, the opinion prevails that, on account of the progress made with steamers, sailing ships are doomed. For this reason the results of recent efforts to utilize large sailing vessels in trans-oceanic traffic deserve special mention.
The Preussen has storage room for over 5000 tons of freight. According to reports it has fully justified expectations and furnished prof that sailing vessels are not yet to be left out of the consideration.
The trip from the canal to the Chilean port Iquique, a distance of 12,000 nautical miles, was made in fifty-seven days, a new record for sailing vessels being thereby established. It must be borne in mind that the weather was not always favorable, and that the trip around Cape Horn was extremely tempestuous.
The Paris Cosmos remarks, with reference to the voyage of the Preussen, that "if one considers the expenses of this vessel on such a trip, compared with those of a steamer, it becomes evident that sailing vessels will never disappear."
Only two obstacles are met, say German papers, in the employment of big sailing vessels; first, it is hard to secure assurance of a sufficient cargo; and second, it is difficult to secure a crew of sufficient skill. These obstacles are important, because sailing vessels, in order to be able to compete with steam, must be much larger than heretofore.—Nautical Gazette.
RECORD FOR HANDLING CARGO.—The advantage of a steamer of modern construction, as compared with some of the older vessels, was thoroughly demonstrated at South Chicago, last Thursday, when the huge steel freighter Augustus B. Wolvin, with her thirty-three hatches, unloaded her cargo of 10,731 gross, or 12,289 net, tons of iron ore in a little more than ten hours. With this immense cargo the Wolvin, which is the largest craft afloat on fresh water, registered less than 20 feet draft. The load of ore was discharged at the docks in the north slip of the Illinois Steel Company, where the Hoover & Mason clamshell hoisting rigs are located. Promptly at 7 a. m. the dock gangs set to work removing the great cargo, and, after allowing half an hour for dinner at noon, the job was completed at 5.30 p. m.
The Wolvin's cargo of ore is the largest ever handled by a single boat on the lakes and would have proved a record breaking load of anything else on other waters up to a few years ago. The record for iron ore cargoes previous to the advent of the Wolvin was held by the steamer William Edenborn, which delivered a cargo of 8807 gross, or 9864 net, tons of ore at South Chicago last year.—Nautical Gazette.
Aerial telegraphy is now making considerable progress in France. The Secretary of Posts and Telegraphs decided not long ago to erect two aerial telegraph stations in the neighborhood of Paris. These stations have now been built and equipped with the most recent apparatus, and they have already commenced to operate. One of the stations is placed at Villejuif, in the suburbs, and the other at Melun, at twenty miles from the city. These two posts are to be used mainly for experimental purposes, and are designed to train the technical staff and the operators which will be needed in the future for the stations to be erected along the coast of France, for the government has an extensive coast system in view. Different forms of apparatus and new inventions will be tested here before being finally adopted. At the Villejuif station the current is furnished by a dynamo driven by a gasoline motor and charging a set of accumulators. The Melun plant uses current from the central station mains. The apparatus of both stations has been designed by M. Rochefort and constructed by the Mors Company. As soon as the preliminary tests are made at the two trial stations, it is expected to install the different aerial telegraphy posts along the coast. These will be used to communicate with vessels, both for the marine department and for public use. Up to the present there have been no stations for the public messages, as those which now exist are used exclusively by the marine for signaling to the warships. An agreement was made last year, however, by which the Minister of War is to turn over these stations to the Postal and Telegraph Department, and the latter is to operate them in the future, as well as all the new stations which will be erected. The coast system which will be eventually established is to serve for the use of the War Department as well as for the public. In this way the government expects to gain a decided advantage by using a single system instead of two separate ones, which might conflict with each other, and besides would be more expensive to Operate. The first station to be opened to the public will no doubt be those of Ouessant, on the Channel coast, and a second at Porqueralles, and these are to be increased in capacity. The administration is now tudying a project of erecting several other stations on the coast in the immediate future. One will no doubt be placed at the Cape of La Hague on the north coast, a second at La Combre, and a third in Corsica, at Ajaccio. As to the apparatus which is now used on the warships considerable progress has now been made in the distance which can be covered, and according to reports the French vessels are breaking all the previous records for distance. The journals state that the foreign warships are not able to signal at greater distances than 115 miles, according to the statements of English and Italian officers. The French battleship Jena, of the Mediterranean squadron, and the cruisers Guichen, of the Atlantic fleet, are able to receive messages at a distance of 195 miles. This result has been considered a record in Europe, but according to the latest news the distance has been still further increased. Not long ago the battleship St. Louis while in the Mediterranean received telegrams sent from Port Vendres on the south coast at a distance of 273 miles. A few weeks before this, while lying in the harbor of Barcelona, the St. Louis took messages which were sent from the battleship Suffren while in the harbor of Toulon, covering a distance of 223 miles.
Another series of experiments is now being carried out in Paris, and the Eiffel Tower is to be used as the central point. This should make a specially good station owing to the great height of the tower. The metallic structure will not, however, be used to form the mast, but it will support a cable or copper wire 350 meters long. At the ground the wire passes into the cabin which is to contain the instruments. With the station thus equipped, and a heavy current which can be taken directly from the city mains, it is expected to signal over the country to distances of two or three hundred miles. The experiments are being carried out by Captain Ferries, of the city engineering corps, aided by the telegraph personnel.
Five of the seven wireless telegraphy stations of Italy will shortly be opened for public messages. Up to the present these have been used exclusively by the government, but the Minister of the Marine recently made an agreement with Marconi. regarding the above change, and the public will now have an opportunity to make use of the stations. Two stations have been reserved exclusively for the government; one of these is the Monte Mario station of Rome and the other is in Sardinia. As many as eight new stations will be soon completed, and it is expected that they will be in operation in the latter part of the year. One of these lies near Venice and another is located in Sardinia. They are expected to work over a radius of 200 miles. Besides these stations is the post in the Naval Academy at Leghorn, also the San Vito and the Varignano stations near Spezzia which are controlled by the Navy Department. It is stated that the tariff for the public messages which will be sent and received at the coast stations is 7.50 lire ($1.50) for a message of twelve words.—Electrical Review.
REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON NAVAL BOILERS.—The committee appointed by the Admiralty to consider the subject of the boilers adopted in navy ships have now completed their investigations, and their final report was issued officially by the Government printers on Wednesday night. We give appended the full text of the report, along with the covering letter by Admiral Sir Compton Domvile, which latter is of even more importance than the report itself:
H. M. S. BULWARK, at Rapallo, June 12, 1904.
SIR: I have the honor to submit herewith, to be laid before the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, the final report of the Boiler Committee of which I am the president. Although I have not been present at the experiments carried out during the last two years, I have received from time to time all the reports, and they show the great care and pains taken by the committee to obtain correct results.
2. With reference to our previous report, I am compelled to say that my experience with the Belleville boilers on the Mediterranean station has been very favorable to them as a steam generator, and it is clear to me that the earlier boilers of this description were badly constructed and badly used. We have had no serious boiler defects in any of the ships out here, and the fact that two ships are about to be commissioned with only the ordinary annual repairs being undertaken, shows that their life is not so short as I originally supposed. However, the second commission of these ships will be a very good test of the staying capabilities of their boilers.
3. In conclusion, I cannot express too highly my opinion of the work done by my colleagues on the committee.
I have the honor to be, sir,
Your obedient servant,
(Signed) COMPTON DOMVILE,
Admiral and Commander-in-Chief,
President of the Boiler Committee.
The Secretary to the Admiralty.
1. The Committee on Naval Boilers, appointed by the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty in September, 1900, having completed their investigations and experimental trials, and being in a position to recommend standard types of boiler for use in H. M. navy, as requested in their Lordships' letter of February 28, 1901, have the honor to submit their final report.
2. A statement of the work of the committee up to May, 5902, was given in paragraph 2 of their report of that date. Since then the reboilering of H. M. S. Medea with Yarrow large-tube boilers and of H. M. S. Medusa with Duirr boilers, together with the necessary machinery alterations, have been completed under the supervision of the committee, and the boilers of both ships have been thoroughly tested. The results obtained are recorded in a separate report. As requested by their Lordships in their letter S 16683/28331 of November 19, 1902, the committee have also carried out a series of trials of the Babcock and Wilcox boilers of H. M. S. Hermes, which extended from October 7, 1903 to May 16, 1904. These trials also form the subject of a separate report.
3. The committee have from time to time reported the results of their investigations, and they have also answered such questions as have been put to them by their Lordships. The reports and other documents which have already been forwarded include:
(a) The interim report forwarded on February 19, 1901.
(b) Minutes of the evidence given before the committee, together with the appendix thereto, forwarded April 26, 1901.
(c) Report on the trials of the Hyacinth, Minerva and Saxonia, together with a summary of conclusions, forwarded November 27, 1901.
(d) Progress report for the year 19o1, forwarded December 31, 1901.
(e) Report on the relative economy and efficiency of Belleville and cylindrical boilers in commissioned ships, forwarded April 29, 1902.
(f) Report of May, 1902, together with the appendix thereto.
(g) Report on the trials of the Seagull, Sheldrake, Espiegle and Fantome, forwarded August 5, 1932.
There are now submitted with this report:
(h) Report on the trials of the Medea and Medusall
(i) Report on the trials of the Hermes:
4. The report of May, 1902, was intended to be final as regards the Belleville boiler, and the committee have since seen no reason to modify the opinion expressed in paragraph 6 of that report—viz., that it is "undesirable to fit any more of this type in His Majesty's navy.
5. In paragraph 5 of their report of May, 1902, the committee stated that the experience obtained by them since the date of their report of February, 1901, had confirmed them in the opinion that "the advantages of water-tube boilers for naval purposes are so great, chiefly from a military point of view, that, provided a satisfactory type of water-tube boiler be adopted, it would be more suitable for use in His Majesty's navy than the cylindrical type of boiler."
In their reports of 1901 and 1902 the committee expressed the opinion that four different types of water-tube boiler, viz.:
(a) Babcock and Wilcox,
(b) Niclausse,
(c) Diirr, and
(d) Yarrow large-tube,
were sufficiently promising to justify their use in His Majesty's navy in combination with cylindrical boilers. Having concluded their experimental investigations, the committee are now satisfied that two of these four types—viz., the Babcock and Wilcox, similar to that tried in the Hermes, and the Yarrow large-tube, similar to that tried in Medea—are satisfactory, and are suitable for use in battleships and cruisers without cylindrical boilers. In the Babcock and Wilcox boiler the generating tubes are nearly horizontal; in the Yarrow boiler they are nearly vertical. Each type has its particular advantages, and only long experience on general service can show which is, on the whole, the better boiler. For the present the committee unanimously recommend both types as suitable for naval requirements.
In making these recommendations, the committee recognize that the upkeep of any water-tube boiler is likely to be heavier than that of the cylindrical boiler; but they are of opinion that the two types they now recommend will cost less for upkeep than the other types of large straight-tube boiler which they have had under trial.
6. The committee make these recommendations after investigations and trials carried out under their superintendence extending over a period of nearly four years.
The ships in which each type of boiler has been tried by the committee are:
Cylindrical—H. M. S. Minerva and R. M. S. Saxonia.
Belleville—H. M. S. Diadem and H. M. S. Hyacinth.
Babcock and Wilcox—H. M. S. Sheldrake, H. M. S. Espiegle and H. M. S. Hermes.
Niclausse—H. M. S. Seagull and H. M. S. Fantome.
Durr—H. M. S. Medusa.
Yarrow large-tube—H. M. S. Medea.
7. Although the committee have no knowledge of any type of water-tube boiler which is likely to prove more suitable for His Majesty's ships than the two recommended, there are other types which may be considered worthy of trial later on. If any type of boiler is considered, in future, to be of sufficient merit to justify its trial in the navy, it is recommended that it be fitted in a new vessel not smaller than a second-class cruiser.
8. As in their previous reports, the committee do not offer any remarks upon the most suitable type of boiler for small vessels of high speed. From the nature of the case, some form of "express" boiler, with small tubes closely pitched, is absolutely necessary, in order to obtain such a ratio of output to weight of boiler as is required in torpedo boats and destroyers. For small cruisers, however, which have to keep the sea and act with the fleet, it is probable that a boiler such as the Yarrow large-tube would, on the whole, give better results than the "express" types which have hitherto been fitted.
9. In reference to paragraph 3 (b) of their Lordships' letter of September 6, 1900, and to the committee's report of May, 1902, they desire to call attention to the breakdown of the Hyacinth's machinery on February 16, 1903, and to the trouble experienced with the bearings in the Hermes during the homeward run from Gibraltar, which strengthen the recommendation of the committee contained in paragraph 130 of the report of May, 1902—viz.: "They consider it desirable, where practicable, to increase the length of stroke and reduce the number of revolutions per minute as compared with the recent practice in His Majesty's service."
10. The principal comparative results on which the recommendations of the committee are based are set forth in the succeeding paragraphs. Full details are given in the separate reports of trials.
11. Thermal Efficiency of Boilers.—The full tables which are appended to the committee's reports give the efficiency of each type of boiler under very varied conditions. The results are here summarized:
The best obtained with the Babcock and Wilcox boilers of the Hermes were during the trials of furnace gas baffling, the boilers in the middle boiler room, with vertical baffles and a forced air supply over the fires, giving the high efficiency of 81 per cent on a 30 hours' trial, when 20 lbs. of coal were being burnt per square foot of fire-grate per hour, and an efficiency of 77.8 per cent on a 29 hours' trial when burning 27 lbs. per square foot, these rates of combustion corresponding to the ordinary rate of steaming and to the full power of the boilers respectively. The boilers of the Hermes with the restricted up-take baffling, and without any special air supply over the fires, had a maximum efficiency of 75.8 per cent on a 12.hours' trial when burning 20.5 lbs. per square foot per hour. On three trials of over 24 hours' duration each, and when 19 lbs. were being burnt per square foot per hour, the efficiency was in each case practically 71 per cent. When burning 29 lbs. per square foot per hour for seven. hours, the efficiency of these boilers was 66.3 per cent; but the weather during this test wa3 so bad that the trial, which was to have been of eight hours duration, had to be stopped on this account after the seventh hour. During the baffling trials, however, in good weather, an efficiency of 70.3 per cent was obtained on the 30 hours' trial, when burning 27 lbs. per square foot per hour, or practically the full output.
The maximum efficiency of the Yarrow boilers of the Medea—viz., 75.7 per cent—was obtained on a 26 hours' trial when burning 18 lbs. per square foot per hour; their efficiency when burning at the maximum rate of combustion—viz., 40 lbs. per square foot per hour for eight hours— was 69.5 per cent. On trials of over 24 hours' duration each, burning from 17 lbs. to 21 lbs. per square foot per hour, the efficiency remained at or over 75 per cent.
The Belleville boilers of the Hyacinth had a maximum efficiency of 77.2 per cent recorded on a 24 1/2 hours' trial, when 16 lbs. of coal were being burnt per square foot of fire-grate per hour. When burning 20 lbs. per square foot per hour for ii hours, the efficiency was 73.3 per cent, and burning 17.4 lbs. for 24 hours it was 71.8 per cent. The efficiency of these boilers on an eight hours' trial in fine weather, when burning 27 lbs. per square foot per hour, corresponding to the full output of the boiler, was 65 per cent.
The maximum efficiency of the Durr boilers of the Medusa was 64.8 per cent, obtained on an eight hours' trial, when burning 35 lbs. per square foot per hour, this being the maximum rate of combustion with these boilers; the efficiency when burning 16 lbs. per square foot per hour for 26 hours was 63.8 per cent. On trials of over 24 hours' duration each, and burning 18 lbs. and 21 lbs. per square foot, the efficiencies were 61.7 per cent and 60.3 per cent respectively.
Of the cylindrical boilers tried, those of the Saxonia on the only trial made, which was of 13 hours' duration, and on which 20 lbs. per square foot per hour was burnt, had the high efficiency of 82.3 per cent.
The maximum efficiency obtained with the cylindrical boilers of the Minerva was 69.7 per cent, which was recorded on a 25 hours' trial when burning 14 lbs. per square foot per hour; on a trial of 8 1/2 hours' duration, with retarders in the plain tubes, and burning 29 lbs. per square foot, the efficiency was 68.4 per cent.
In the smaller ships, the maximum efficiency of the Babcock and Wilcox boilers tried was 66 per cent on a 12 hours' trial, burning 18 lbs. per square foot per hour in the Sheldrake, and 73.2 per cent on a nine hours' trial, burning 13 lbs. per square foot, in the Espiegle. The maximum efficiency obtained by the Niclausse boilers of the Seagull was 66.9 per cent on an eight hours' trial, burning 13 lbs. per square foot, and by those of the Fantome 69.8 per cent on a nine hours' trial, burning 14 lbs. per square foot.
12. A noticeable feature in connection with the boiler efficiencies is the improvement in the results obtained with the later boilers of the Babcock and Wilcox type. The earliest of these, fitted in the Sheldrake in z898, showed efficiencies ranging from 66 per cent to 59.2 .per cent; the boilers fitted in the Espiegle in i9or showed improved efficiencies, ranging from 73.2 per cent to 63.1 per cent. Those of the Hermes, fitted in 1903, show a still further gain in economy, the efficiencies ranging from 75.8 per cent to 66.3 per cent, and the same boilers, after modification, showed on one occasion the high efficiency of 81 per cent. It is noticed in this connection that the three sets of Babcock and Wilcox boilers tried differ from each other in the arrangement of their heating surface and furnace gas baffling. The boilers of the Sheldrake were fitted throughout with tubes 1 13-16 inches in diameter, without any baffles for furnace gases; the boilers of the Espiegle were fitted throughout with tubes 3 3-16 inches in diameter, vertical baffles being placed among the tubes, and causing a zigzag flow of the gases; the boilers of the Hermes were fitted with two rows of 3 15-16 inch diameter tubes, immediately over the fire, the remainder of the tubes being 1 13-16 inches in diameter, and the baffling of the furnace gases was effected by a restriction of the space for the passage of the gases between the top row of tubes. Those boilers of the Hermes which showed the efficiency of 8i per cent were similar in construction to those last mentioned, but the baffling of the furnace gases was by a vertical system which caused a zigzag flow of the gases over the heating surface, and, in addition, a forced air supply was introduced above the fires. (See "Report on Trials of H. M. S. Hermes.")
The arrangement of the heating surface in both the earlier and later boilers of the Niclausse type was the same, and the thermal efficiencies of the two sets of boilers were very similar.
13. Wetness of Steam.—As explained in other reports, the wetness of the steam was taken throughout the committee's trials by means of a Carpenter's calorimeter. Experience in the Medusa satisfied the committee that the results registered by this instrument are trustworthy.
As regards the production of dry steam at all rates of combustion, the Yarrow large-tube and the later Babcock and Wilcox boilers have given the best results.
14. Loss of Water.—The loss of feed-water with each of the four types of boiler under consideration has been moderate throughout the committee's trials. In the runs to Gibraltar and back, carried out with the Medea and Medusa, the loss of water was small, being at the rate of and 1.8 tons per 100 horse power per day respectively. On the 140 hours' endurance trial of the Hermes the loss was 3.8 tons per moo horse power per day.
The loss of water may be expected to be greater in boilers fitted with many doors than in those fitted with but few, and to increase as the doors and joints become worn. In this respect the Yarrow boiler, having only three manhole doors, has an advantage.
15. Examination and Cleaning of Interiors of Tubes.—Of the boilers tried by the committee, the Yarrow boiler can be internally examined and cleaned in the shortest time and with the least amount of labor—to obtain access for such an examination and cleaning it is only necessary to remove three manhole doors. The Babcock and Wilcox type is less easily examined and cleaned—two small doors have to be removed for each tube, and these have to be rejointed after the examination and cleaning have been completed. In order.to carry out a thorough examination of the tubes of the Diirr boiler it is necessary to remove a hand-hole door at the front of each tube, the diaphragm washer of the internal tube, the internal tube itself and the cap-nut at the back end of the generating tube; but in order to carry out a thorough cleaning, it is also necessary to remove the generator tubes from the boiler; after the cleaning is complete, these have to be replaced, and this is a long and tedious process. The work connected with the examination and cleaning of the tubes of Niclausse boilers is very similar to that necessary with the Durr boiler. Further, the cap-nut at the back end of the Durr boiler tube permits of each tube being readily emptied, while owing to the back end of the Niclausse boilers being inaccessible, some process is necessary to empty the tubes when required, such as blowing the water out of the tube by a special pump and hose.
The necessity for being able to withdraw each of the tubes in a direct line with its axis renders the clear space required for the installation of Durr and Niclausse boilers considerably more than would be required for boilers of other types. For warships, where the stoke-hold space is very limited, this must necessarily cause considerable inconvenience in the arrangement of pipes and auxiliary machinery.
16. External Cleaning of Tubes.—In both the Medea and the Hermes it.is possible to partially clean the tubes externally, when the fires are alight, by means of air lances.
The tubes in the Medea can be thoroughly cleaned externally when the fires are not alight, as they can be swept in three directions—viz., from the furnace, from the smoke-box and from the front of the boiler. The tubes of the Dfirr and Niclausse boilers cannot be so thoroughly cleaned externally in place as those of the Medea, the number of rows being greater, and the overlapping of the baffles preventing portions of certain tubes being touched. In the Babcock and Wilcox boilers the tubes can be swept horizontally through side doors fitted to the casings; but as the boilers in the Hermes were originally fitted, the sweeping in a vertical direction was difficult. After the alterations of baffling, the sweeping vertically can be carried out, but this necessitates the removal of portions of the baffles. It is to be recognized that any system of baffling among the tubes, however it may improve the circulation of the gases, renders the cleaning of the tubes themselves more difficult.
17. Bending of Tubes.—After the Medusa had completed her preliminary runs, it was found that all the tubes of the bottom rows had curved upwards In the middle, the maximum bending being i 1-16 inches, and these tubes were removed and straightened before starting on the committee's trials. These tubes had to be straightened again in August, 1903, and again at the conclusion of the committee's trials in February, 1904. When the committee visited H. M. S. Berwick in April, 1904, it was noticed that the tubes of the bottom rows of the boilers (Niclausse type) were bent upwards, and the members were informed that the maximum bending on March 22, 1904, was Y8 inch. The ship was new in 1903, and only commissioned in December of that year. With the Niclausse, and also with the Durr boiler, considerable bending of the tubes of the bottom rows must be expected; and it will be necessary to straighten these tubes when the amount of bending exceeds g inch. This will entail a considerable amount of extra works with these types of boiler, and they will be off service for corresponding periods. The upward bend of the generator tube is often greater than the space between the inner and outer tubes; and as the inner tube, which is only supported at the two ends, remains straight, it is liable to touch the outer tube at some point, thus impeding the circulation of water between them. To prevent this it may be necessary to support the inner tube at the middle of its length as well as at the back end, so that it must bend with the outer tube.
In the case of the Yarrow boilers of the Medea, the committee experimented in six of the boilers with the fire rows of tubes purposely bent, as described in the report on the trials of the Medea and Medusa, with the object of overcoming some slight leakages of tube ends, which showed themselves when working under forced draft. In two boilers the tubes of the fire-rows were left straight. Although these bent slightly in use, no trouble was experienced with them; and, during the later trials, these boilers proved to be as satisfactory, as regards freedom from leakage, as those in which the fire rows had been put in bent. The committee have suggested in their letter of December 21, 1903, concerning the Yarrow boilers proposed for H. M. S. Warrior, that the .tubes of the fire rows should be bent x inch from the straight, and this recommendation they think should apply to future designs.
In the Babcock and Wilcox boilers of the Hermes, although some of the tubes of the bottom rows have bent, no leakage of tube ends has resulted, and it has not been necessary to remove any tubes for straightening or renewal.
18. Corrosion of Tubes and Wear of Casings and Up-takes.—In none of the four types of water-tube boiler which were recommended for trial by the committee has there been any considerable corrosive decay of tubes, and the ordinary wear has been very slight. On the conclusion of the committee's trials the tubes of the boilers of the Medea and Hermes had not deteriorated to any appreciable extent. This applies also to the Medusa, except that the internal tubes have shown signs of roughening.
In the Medusa (Durr boilers) there was some buckling of the side casings of the boilers, and some of the casing doors at the back of the boilers became warped and burnt.
No trouble was experienced in connection with the casings and up-takes of the Yarrow boilers of the Medea, and very little with those of the Babcock and Wilcox boilers of the Hermes. From the experience of the committee with the boilers of the steamship Martello, employed on the Atlantic trade for nearly four years, and also from their experience to date with the Hermes, it is considered that the durability of the casings and up-takes of Babcock and Wilcox boilers will prove to be satisfactory under the ordinary conditions of naval service.
In the Yarrow boiler, the temperature of the furnace gases is considerably reduced before they reach any part of the side casings; and, in consequence of this moderate temperature, the casing and up-takes of the Medea's boilers were uninjured on the conclusion of the committee's trials.
In this respect the Yarrow boiler is superior to the other types of water-tube boiler which have been tried by the committee.
19. Liability to Damage from Being Forced.—The makers of the Durr boilers stated that not more than 35 lbs. of coal should be burnt per square foot of fire-grate per hour in the Medusa. The committee consider that this limitation of the quantity of coal to be burnt was prudent, as the overheating and bending of tubes in one of the boilers during the full power homeward run from Gibraltar were, in the opinion of the committee, due to the fact that the safe limit had been exceeded. It is also considered that the limitation of the amount of coal to be burnt per square foot of grate applies with even greater force to the Niclausse boiler, as the supply of water to the tubes is freer in the case of the Dfirr boiler than in that of the Niclausse. As the result of their trials, the committee find that the Yarrow boiler can be severely forced without danger, and that the Babcock and Wilcox boiler can with safety be forced to the extent shown in the report.
20. Skilled Firing Required.—The satisfactory stoking of water-tube boilers requires a higher degree of skill than that of cylindrical boilers, and this is more necessary with the large grates of the Durr, Niclauses and Babcock and Wilcox boilers than with the smaller grates and better shape of combustion chamber of the Yarrow. The stoking in the Medea. Medusa and Hermes was good throughout the trials, and towards the end was excellent. Under ordinary service conditions, such good firing can hardly be expected, at least until a vessel has been some time in commission. Good results can, however, be obtained with Yarrow boilers with engine-room complements new to the ship, as shown by the trials to Malta and back, which have been made by the Medea since the completion of the committee's trials with that vessel.
21. Superheated Steant.—The Durr boiler was the only one tried by the committee which had any arrangements for superheating. It was fitted with complicated directing-plates in the steam-collector and with superheater tubes. The fittings in the steam-collector are undesirable, and they and the superheater tubes will probably require frequent renewal, while the amount of superheat obtained by their use was small, even when the temperature of the funnel gases was abnormally great. The results obtained were not sufficient to enable the committee to express any opinion as to the value of superheating as applied to naval boilers.
22. Feeding of the Boilers.—No trouble has been experienced with the feeding of any of the four types of boilers under consideration. In the Medea and Medusa the boilers were fitted with automatic feed regulators. It was found, however, that these were not sufficiently sensitive in opening and closing (allowing a variation of level of about 6 inches .in the gauge glass); the feed was, therefore, regulated throughout the trials by hand, no trouble being experienced in doing this. For a similar reason the feed was regulated by hand in the Hermes during the trials. . In the Medea the feed-regulators were inside the steam-collectors, and interfered with the examination and cleaning of the middle rows of tubes. The committee considers that the balance of advantages rests with the omission of the automatic feed-regulators in boilers—such as the Yarrow large-tube and the Babcock and Wilcox—where there is a large reserve of water in the boiler.
23. Salt Water.—The report on the trials of the Medea and Medusa contains a description of experiments made on the Yarrow and Durr boilers in regard to their behavior when working with brackish water. These experiments, so far as they went, indicated that neither type of boiler was likely to give trouble from this cause. In the case of the Yarrow boiler this result has been corroborated by the fact that on a recent voyage the Medea is reported to have had leaky condenser tubes, and a corresponding density in the boilers, without any bad effect.
24. Relative Weights.—In the case of the Hermes, the Medea and the Medusa, the new boilers were installed without any alterations being made in the stoke-hold floor spaces. A comparison of weight and maximum output of the boilers gave results tabulated on this page.
25. The committee are under great obligations to Mr. C. J. Wilson, F. C. S., who has, during the four years of their work, given his valuable personal attention to the analyses of funnel gases and of coal samples without any remuneration. They are also much indebted to Messrs. Thomas Wilson, Sons & Co., for permission to examine the boilers of the steamship Martello, and to Mr. W. S. Hide, the superintending engineer of that company, for affording the committee facilities for carrying out the inspections and giving information concerning the results obtained in the running of that vessel.
26. The committee desire, in conclusion, to place on record their appreciation of the assistance which they have received from their secretaries. Captain Browning, R. N., acted as joint secretary until his appointment to H. M. S. Ariadne, in 1902. Engineer-Lieutenant W. H. Wood, R. N:, has continued to act as secretary throughout their whole work. The diligence and energy which the latter officer has shown in carrying out his work, his knowledge of the scientific, as well as of the practical, side of marine engineering, and his capacity for dealing both with the details and with general organization, have been invaluable to the committee throughout, and especially in connection with the carrying out of their boiler trials at sea, a work of no little difficulty and complexity; and they desire to bring his services to the favorable notice of their Lordships.
(Signed) COMPTON DOMVILE,
(Admiral and Chairman).
JAS. BAIN.
JOHN INGLIS.
ALEX. B. W. KENNEDY.
JOHN LIST.
J. T. MILTON.
JOS. A. SMITH.
Wm. H. WOOD, Secretary.