GERMAN NAVY LEAGUE.

Evening Post, Volume LXXIX, Issue 81, 7 April 1910, Page 7

GERMAN NAVY LEAGUE.

TOTAL MEMBERSHIP. By Teletraph.— rress Association.— Copyright. BERLIN, 6th April. The German Navy League has a total membership of 1.031,339. The funds increased during 1909 by £219,940, and now total £1,679,190. During 1909 (says Tho Times) three armoured ships w ere completed and com-mibsionc-d in Germany, four were launched, and the saino number of now t-hips begun. Of the three ships completed for Hervu c, two were of the Dreadnought type ; the third was the preDreaduought armoured cruiser Blucher. On trial all these ships did well in the way of Bpeed, exceeding that foi which they were designed. The Nassau and her thren sibters carry the llin. gun in their main batteries, but tho three battleships launched during this year will, it is reported, be armed with the new 12in. 'Ihree small cruisers were completed in 1909, the Emden, Colberg, and Mainz, the first being fitted with reciprocating engines, and the last two with turbines of German manufacture. The Mainz attained on trial speeds of 27.5 and 28 knots. Two other cruisers of thiß type wore launched, the Koln (Erßatz-Schwalbo) on 6th June, now making her trials, and the Augsburg (Ersaiz-Sperber) on 11th July, whilo two more of the 1909 programme were given out to contract, making four in hand. Germany has now five turbinedriven cruisers cornploted, and one of them formed part of the German squadron which went to New York for the Hudson-Falton celebrations, being the first turbined vessel of the German Navy to cross the Atlantic. There are now, exclusive of the Taku, 84 destroyers in the German Navy less than 12 years old. Of this number, 12 were added in 1909, Nos. 162 to 173. These boats are turbine-driven, and in October No. 164, built at the Vulcan works and fitted with A.E.G. turbines, made a speed on trial of 34.45 knote. This was exceeded, however, in December by No. 171, a Germania boat, with turbines of the Parsons type, which attained a speed of 34.72 knots. This "record" has again been beaten in January by No. 166, built by Schichau, and with turbines of the Melms and Pfenuinger type, which is reported to have made an average on all her runs of 35.93 knots ana a maximum speed of 36.3. All these destroyers arc of the 1908 programme, and the designed speed was only 30 knots. The 12 boats of the 1909 programme, according to the Berliner Tageblatt, were contracted for in July last, two in the Germania yard at Kiel, four in the Sr hichau yard* at Elbmg, and «x in the Vulcan yard at Stettin. As reported in The limes of 16th Decembei last, the Kiel correspondent of the Kolnischo Zeitung had stated that the first of the 12 destroyers of the 1909 programme had already been completed at Stettin, and that the construction of the others destroyers of tho same programme wus already far advanced. . . . We should expect, unless there is acceleration, to find the 1909 destroyers completed- early in 1911. No new torpedo-boats have been laid down for the last 12 years. Two submaiiues, "U. 3" and "U. 4," were completed in 1909, and the construction was advanced of lour olhort,"U.6" to "U.Bi" all of which will go iut« tmyirA in 1910.