A FLEET IN BEING.

Otago Witness, Issue 2840, 19 August 1908, Page 37

A FLEET IN BEING.

DESCRIPTION OF THE SHIPS

A writer in the Navy League Journal gives some interesting facts and figures concerning the vessels of the American, fleet. Dealing with the battleships, ho divides them into six classes, as follows (note — "q" means "quick-firing guns"): — (a) Vermont, Kansas, Connecticut, Lousia na: Theso are vessels of 16,000 tons displacement, 16,500 indicated horse-power, and have a designed 6peed of 18 knots. They are protected along the water-line by a 9-in (last two llin) Krupp steel belt, thinning to 4in at the ends, and having

a width of 9ft 6in. Above this, for nearly l 300 ft, the eido is protected by 7in plates of Harvey nickel, or ILrupp nickel, steel. Their main armament includes four 12in, paired fore and aft; eight Bin, paired in turrets on the upper deck at the four corners of the battery; and 12 7in q. guns in the armoured battery on the main deck. In addition, there are 50 anti-torpedo-crafL weapons and four submerged torpedo tubes. On trial the speeds of these ships have varied between 18.096 and 18.86 knots. They were launched in 1904-5, and cost over £1,600,000 each to complete. (b) Georgia, Virginia, Rhode Island, New Jersey . Displacing 14-,9^8 tons, and steaming 19 knots, with a designed horse-power of 19,000, these four ships are similar in many respects to the Vermonts. Theii* main armament is the same, but that 6ini q. arc mounted in the battery in place of the 7in q. The Bin g*ns are somewhat differently disposed : paired in turrets, one turret superimposes each of th# 12in barbettes, the remaining two being on either beam abreast tho forward funnel. There are four submerged torpedo tubes. On trial the speeds wore from 19.011 in the Rhode Island to 19.48 in the New Jersey. They were all nut afloat in 1904, and cost nearly one million and a-half each. Both the above classes of ships have been severely criticised on account of their narrow water-line belts fore and aft of the main barbettes. This is practically submerged at load draught, and represents merely superfluous weight. Bo that as it may. the above eight ships form the backbone of the Pacific fleet, and with their several faults taken into full consideration, they make a homogeneous, speedy, and ■well-armed squadron.

(c) Ohio, Missouri, Maine ■ Th« three ships here mentioned are of but 12,300 tons displacement, and with an indicated horsepower of 15,000 shotild steam 18 knots. In tho case of tho Ohio, though 16,498 l.h.p. was registered, the maximum attained did not exceed 17.82 knots. The Maine, on the other hand, has steamed 18.9 knots as a maximum, and maintained a mean of 18.3 for some hours. The protection of these vessels, based on an armoured deck 4in to 2£in thick, rest* mainly in the 4in to llin water-line belt, which extends 300 ft from the bows, leaving the 88ft of stern ■unarmoured. This water-line belt is little over 7ft wide, and is entirely submerged at the full draught of 13,500 tons. The armament is four 12in, paired in barbettes fore and aft, and 16 oin q., 10 in the central main-deck battery, four in a p.mall upper battery between the centre and after funnels, and the last two in casemates on the main dack, forward of the bow 12in barbette. In addition, there are 28 small quick-firers and two submerged torpedo tubes These three ships took the water in 1901.

(d) Illinois, Alabama. Wisconvsin: Similar to tho above, but rather older, these vessels mount four 13in weapons in place of 12in, and two 6in q. less in the main-deck battery. The belt-armour js Harvey nickel, the thickness being 16£ in in the centre for 180 ft of the water-line length of 368 ft; forward of this is a narrow 3in to 4in ebrake, but aft of it the only protection lies in an armoured deck. Above tho thick belt is a s^in battery, containing the eight 6in q. guns, and resting on this is the double battery of casemates of 6in armour, containing four more 6in q. weapons. The remaining two 6in q. are in casemates forward as "in the Ohio. The Illinois has no torpedo tub-ce, the other two have four each above water. Tho trial speeds of the&o three ships over a short course was 17.17, 16.2, and 17.45 knots respectively ; with i.h.p. 10.500 the ctefcign-oc! velocity was 16 knots, so they may be considered fairly successful eteam^rfi. They displace 11,565 tons, and were all launched in 1898. Their cost approximated £980,000.

(c) Kentucky and Keafsa.ge : These two vessels are, perhaps, the heaviest armed battleships for their size in the world. Ti.-ey have a displacement of bait 11.540 lona, and vet carry four 13in guns, paired in turrets fore and aft. four Bin guns paired 1 in turret* superimposed above those carrying tho 13in weapons, 14 sin q. in a long main-dock battery protected by sin armour, and 35 fimaller weapons a^ a protection against torpedo attack. There are no torpndo lubes. Tho belt, painfully narrow, is 16jin Harvey nickel in tho centre, and 4in fojward; it docs not extend beyond tho after turiet. Though launched only in I£9B, they would be no match for our Majesties, and TJniled States naval officers aro not at all in love with the type themf^elves. The writer ha«? been on board both shi)}=, and in his humble opinion the pair of them are not worth a single vo«ol of the or Ohio classes. Thoir eneods on trial, run light, were for tho Kentucky 16.89 ki'ofs. for the Kearsagp 16.84 knots. At a displacement of 12,996 tons, the forme- =t earned for four hours at a moan of 16.33 knote. They coet £900.000 cacti.