H.M.S. RENOWN

Evening Post, Volume CXIII, Issue 55, 7 March 1927, Page 12

H.M.S. RENOWN

WARSHIP BESIEGED

PATIENT NAVAL HOSTS

Thrown open to the public yesterday afternoon, H.M.S. Benown was visited by dense crowds of people eager to see the Empire's second latest battleeruiser. She was open to inspection from 2 to 5.30 p.m., and between those hours men, women, and children of.a' number variously estimated as between 12,000 and 15,000 swarmed over, all parts of the vessel. Again to-day during the samehours the Benown will be open to the public, and even larger numbers are expected to go aboard. The whale that swallowed Jonah and felt no discomfort is. not 1 in it when it comes to the Benowa and her Capacity for swallowing human crowds. ,The publication of the fact that the giant battle-cruiser was to be open for inspection yesterday afternoon resulted in thousands forming queues on the Pipitea Wharf in eager anticipation of seeing the vessel that has ■ been entrusted with the carrying of the Duke and Duchess of.York and their suite half-way round the world.

Naval books of reference tell that the Benown'has a displacement of 26,500 tons. These' figures, however, conveylittle to the layman except that the Benown is far bigger than any vessel in the habit of utilising the advantages of 'Wellington as a port of. calL 3ut when one sees the ease with.-which the JRenown can absorb thousands 01! visitors at one time without' ,any outward and visible sign of cqqgeistfcn, then it is that her .spaciousness is realised. Her full eompleme^; is officially 1240 officers and men, but in her roomy interior and on her spacious decks—for she has a length of 750 feet and a beam of 90 feet—this comparatively: large number of human beings is almost lost in the immensity of their surroundings. That orderliness which . characterises Wellington crowds was in evidence yesterday afternoon. The gatekeepers and police may have had a busy time, but they were occupied rather with guiding than restraining the crowds awaiting their turn to ■ ascend the gangway. Modern battleships are no novelty to Wellington, for on several occasions during the last few years they have graced the harbour with' their presence, so that to many visitors an inspection, of the Benown was no new experience: but to many, especially to the rising generation, it-was a day of days.

A. PEEP ONLY.

Of course what everybody, wanted to see (and did not see) was jthe apartments occupied by Their Boyal High.* nesses, and their suite. Herein, layj' big disappointment, for these apartments came under the heading of "Strictly Private," and no amount of cajoling of one's guide, whether a Jack Tar or an officer resplendent in. gold braid, could produce mQre than a peep through a porthole, which was tantalising in the extreme. ; ;.

EXPLORING THE VESSEL.

TMs, however, was the only fly in the ointment: the battle-cruiser was explored under able guides from stem to stern. Questions innumerable were asked and answered; with becoming awe the shoreman gazed upon the halfdozen, massive 15in guns, and mutely, meditated upon the effect that a broadside from them would have upon, the shipping and fortifications of our harbour. The smaller guns, the two submerged torpedo, tubes, and the thousand-and-one "gadgets" which go to make up a modern battleship all had to be examined and explained,, and, by the small:boy, touched. The more, adventurous of the visitors wanted to go "right to the bottom," as one' of them expressed it, to see the engines whose 112,000 horse-power, can drive' this mighty ship through tho angry deep at 31.5 knots an hour. Others, who might be classified as '.'old dames," were content to stay on deck and- regain ,their breath. "Nothing will induce me to go down them stairs, Jane,'' loudly.declared one stout party to her flapper daughter: "I would never come' up alive." With obvious relief, considering the lady's portly bulk, the slim Jack Tar left her and went off—quite contend with Jane. ; ' :

After everything had been seen and explained, including the trophies,.,the outrigger . canoe from Fiji, and the Royal barge, the crowd moved off reluctantly. It was a well satisfied crowd who left their naval hosts, and regret at parting was on both sides.

THE SAILORS' POINT OF VIEW.

And what do the sailors think of their job as pilots of thousands of visitors? Enjoy it they certainly do, naturally taking a great pride in showing off their floating home. They say that they find most viaitors who'"come aboard only too anxious to hear and learn, the majority displaying a genuine interest. But occasionally a gentleman wanders abroad who knows everything—much more than Jellicoe and Beatty combined. "He will argue and try to teach us' our job, but.we have a short method of dealing with him, haven't we, Bill?" Bill was engaged in earnest conversation with a flapper, yet he found time to cease from his agreeable occupation, and ho nodded assent, winked a knowing wink, but "The 11 Post" representative , was left wondering what that method might' be. ' ''"'.■■'