Chapter XVI: Part 2: of 2

+---------+----------+-------------+----------+----------+-----------+
| | | Penetration | Muzzle | | |
| | Muzzle | in | Energy | Weight | Weight of |
| GUN. | Energy. |Wrought-iron.| per Ton | of Gun. | Carriage. |
| | | | of Gun. | | |
+---------+----------+-------------+----------+----------+-----------+
| | Ft.-Tons.| Inches. | Ft.-Tons.| Pounds. | Pounds. |
| 5-inch | 1,525 | 10.7 | 552 | 6,187 | 4,200 |
| 6-inch | 2,542 | 13.2 | 521 | 11,000 | 6,400 |
| 8-inch | 7,285 | 18.2 | 560 | 28,000 | 14,000 |
| 10-inch | 15,285 | 23.7 | 588 | 58,240 | 32,482 |
| 12-inch | 25,985 | 27.6 | 591 | 44 tons | .... |
| 14-inch | 41,270 | 32.2 | 550 | 75 tons | .... |
| 16-inch | 61,114 | 36.8 | 571 | 107 tons | .... |
+---------+----------+-------------+----------+----------+-----------+

This _energy_, total energy, expresses the work that the gun can perform. It is expressed in foot-tons, and signifies that the energy developed is sufficient to raise the weight in tons to a height of one foot. Thus the projectile from the small 5-inch gun, weighing sixty pounds, fired with a charge of thirty pounds of powder, leaves the gun with an energy capable of lifting 1525 tons to the height of one foot! Comparing this with the energy developed by the 100-ton hammer at the forge of Le Creuzot in France, the energy of which is 1640 foot-tons, we have a most striking illustration of the power of gunpowder, and the testimony in the table as to the energy developed per ton of gun more forcibly exhibits the perfection of a manufacture which, with so little weight of gun, can develop such gigantic power.

It is this power, united with a moderate weight of gun, which will enable our unarmored cruisers to hold their own with vessels moderately armored. The power of the battery is greater than is required to contend with unarmored ships, there is a great surplus of power of offence, and the effort is very properly made to sustain this at the highest practicable point. The table shows that the 5-inch gun can perforate 10.7 inches of wrought-iron at the muzzle; but the results given in tables are based on deliberate firing made on a practice-ground, with the position of the target normal to the line of fire. Such conditions cannot obtain during an action at sea, for, besides the modified effect caused by increased distance of target, it must be borne in mind that the side of an enemy’s ship will be presented at varying angles, which introduces the element of deflection, than which no cause is more detrimental to penetration. Though the table states a fact, the practical effect of the projectile will be far less than is stated, hence the wisdom of providing a large surplus of power to compensate for the resistance to its operation.

It will readily be conceded that the artillerist has a very responsible duty to perform in so designing his gun that the parts shall lock and interlock to guard against chance of dislocation in the structure. A study of the illustration of the 6-inch built-up gun as constructed at the Washington navy-yard will show the system there adopted.

In the list of guns each calibre is represented by one gun. We have not, as of old, several guns of the same calibre differing in weight; multiplicity of classes will be avoided; but this will apply only to the main battery, for history is singularly repeating itself at this time in the restoration of the “murdering pieces” which have been cited as forming part of naval armaments in the seventeenth century. The needfulness of machine guns for operating against men on open decks, for effecting entrance through port-holes, for repelling attacks in boats, and for resisting the approach of torpedo-boats, is so widely recognized that no vessel of war is considered properly equipped without a secondary battery of these “murdering pieces.” They are mounted on the rail, on platforms projecting from the sides and in the tops. The types adopted in the United States navy are the Hotchkiss revolving cannon and rapid-firing single-shot guns, and the smaller calibre machine guns of Gatling. The heavier pieces, throwing shells of six pounds weight, are very effective against vessels of ordinary scantling.

In contemplating the present condition of our new naval armament we have the consolation of knowing that, so far as concerns the study of the subject generally and in detail, the designs, and the initial manufacture, all has been done that could have been done with the resources available. What has been achieved has been without the facilities that are provided in modern gun-factories; but notwithstanding all the drawbacks, it is probably safe to assert that no guns in the world to-day are superior to those that have been fabricated at the Washington navy-yard of steel on the new adopted pattern. The work at this ordnance yard is carried on without ostentation; there is no flourish of trumpets accompanying its operations; it is not advertised, and the people do not yet know how much they owe to the ordnance officers of the navy for the initiation of this new industry, which enables us to assert our ability to advance in this manufacture through the incontrovertible proof of work accomplished. The results are meagre in quantity, and at the present rate of manufacture it will require many years to equip our fleet with modern artillery; this should be remedied, as there is now no doubt as to the success of the productions of this establishment. The plant should be enlarged on a liberal and well-matured plan, and the work should be encouraged by generous appropriations.

It may not be generally known that the steel forgings required for the few 8-inch and the two 10-inch guns now in hand were imported from abroad, for the reason that they could not be furnished of domestic manufacture, from the want of casting and forging facilities in the United States for work of such magnitude. This was a deficiency in our resources that required prompt attention to secure us a position of independence in this important matter. The method of achieving the object was carefully studied out by a mixed board of army and navy officers, and presented in a document known as the “Gun Foundery Board Report,” and the subject received the attention of committees from both Houses of Congress. All of these reports virtually agreed as to the method, but there was a useless delay in action; large expenditures of money were required, and there was hesitancy in assuming the responsibility of recommending it. The object was of national importance, however, and public opinion demanded its accomplishment. The officers of the navy have proved their ability to carry on the work successfully; and if the opportunity be given they will establish the artillery of the United States navy in a position of which the country may again be proud.

NOTES.

GUNS.

The United States no longer depend upon foreigners for guns or armor, inasmuch as the circular issued in August, 1886, by the Navy Department inviting all domestic steel manufacturers to state the terms upon which they were willing to produce the steel plates and forgings required for ships and ordnance, has met with a prompt response. About 4500 tons were needed for armor, in plates varying from 20 feet by 8 feet by 12 inches thick, to 11.6 feet by 4.3 feet by 6 inches thick; and of the 1310 tons of steel forgings, 328 tons were intended for the 6-inch guns, 70 tons for the 8-inch, and 912 tons for the calibres between 10 and 12 inches, both inclusive. The rough-bored and turned forgings required by the contract were to weigh 3¼ tons for the 6-inch calibres, 5 tons for the 8-inch, 9½ tons for the 10-inch, 9¾ tons for the 10½-inch, and 12½ tons for the 12-inch. From the time of closing the contract twenty-eight 6-inch forgings were to be delivered in one year, and the remainder within eighteen months. All the 8-inch were to be ready within two years, and the 10-inch and larger calibres within two years and a half. The proposals opened on the 22d of last March showed that for the gun-forgings the Cambria Iron Company had bid $851,513, the Midvale Steel Company $1,397,240, and the Bethlehem Iron Company $902,230; and that for the armor-plates the Bethlehem Company had bid $3,610,707, and the Cleveland Rolling-mill Company $4,021,561. Subsequently the Navy Department awarded the contract to the Bethlehem Company, which agreed to furnish all the required steel at a total cost of $4,512,938.29.

The tests are so rigorous that a high quality of steel is sure to be produced. The specifications require the forgings to be of open-hearth steel of domestic manufacture, from the best quality of raw material, uniform in quality throughout the mass of each forging and throughout the whole order for forgings of the same calibre, and free from slag, seams, cracks, cavities, flaws, blow-holes, unsoundness, foreign substances, and all other defects affecting their resistance and value. While it is prescribed that the ingots shall be cast solid, latitude is given to the method of production; but no matter what method may be employed, the part to be delivered for test and acceptance must be equal in quality and in all other respects to a gun ingot cast solid in the usual way, from which at least 30 per cent. of the weight of the ingot has been discarded from the upper end and 5 per cent. from the lower end.

For breech-pieces each ingot must be reduced in diameter by forging at least 40 per cent.; in case tubes are forged upon a mandrel from bored ingots, the walls must be reduced in thickness by forging at least 50 per cent. Forgings are to be annealed, oil tempered under such conditions as will assure their resistance and again annealed, and no piece will be accepted unless the last process has been an annealing one. The forging must be left with a uniformly fine grain.

All these excellent results are the direct outcomes of the report made in 1884 by the Ordnance Board. 1st. That the army and navy should each have its own gun-factory; 2d. That the parts should be shipped by the steel-makers ready for finishing and assembling in guns; 3d. That the government should not undertake the production of steel of its own accord; 4th. That the Watervliet Arsenal, West Troy, N. Y., should be the site of the army gun-factory; and 5th. That the Washington navy-yard should be the site of the navy gun-factory. No action was taken upon the recommendation to establish gun-factories; but at the first session of the Forty-ninth Congress an appropriation of $1,000,000 was made for the armament of the navy, of which sum so much as the Secretary determined might be employed for the creation of a plant. Under this permission the gun-factory at the Washington navy-yard is now being established.

The construction of the breech-loading steel guns for the new cruisers has been energetically pushed. Slight modifications in the original designs were made necessary by the adoption of slower burning powder, which carried the pressure still farther forward in the bore, and, in the case of some foreign guns, caused their destruction. Though our guns have not suffered from any such accident, it has been deemed a wise precaution to give the 8-inch guns of the _Atlanta_ two additional chase hoops, and to hoop all other pieces of this calibre to the muzzle.

From a memorandum kindly furnished by Lieutenant Bradbury, United States navy, it is learned that the number and calibre of the new guns now finished, under construction, or projected, are as follows:

+------------------------+--------------------------------------------+
| NAME OF SHIP. | Calibre. |
+------------------------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+
| | 5-inch.| 6-inch.| 8-inch.|10-inch.|12-inch.|
| Dolphin | None. | 1 | None. | None. | None. |
| Atlanta[53] | ” | 6 | 2 | ” | ” |
| Boston[53] | ” | 6 | 2 | ” | ” |
| Chicago[54] | 2 | 8 | 4 | ” | ” |
| Gun-boat No. 1[54] | None. | 6 | None. | ” | ” |
| Gun-boat No. 2 | ” | 4 | ” | ” | ” |
| Newark | ” | 12 | ” | ” | ” |
| Baltimore | ” | 6 | 2 | ” | ” |
| Charleston | ” | 6 | None. | 2 | ” |
| Miantonomoh | ” | None. | ” | 4 | ” |
| Terror | ” | ” | ” | 4 | ” |
| Amphitrite | ” | ” | ” | 4 | ” |
| Monadnock | ” | ” | ” | 4 | ” |
| Puritan | ” | ” | ” | 4 | ” |
| Armored cruiser | ” | 6 | ” | 4 | ” |
| Armored battle-ship[55]| ” | 6 | ” | None. | 2 |
| 2 Gun-boats | ” | 12 | ” | ” | None. |
| 2 Cruisers | ” | 24[56]| ” | ” | ” |
| Floating batteries | ” | None. | ” | ” | 8[56]|
+------------------------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+

This gives a total of two 5-inch, one hundred and three 6-inch, ten 8-inch, twenty-six 10-inch, and ten 12-inch. In his last report, Captain Sicard, Chief of Ordnance, states that “for the new ships approaching completion we have eighteen 6-inch, three 8-inch, and two 5-inch guns finished, and three 6-inch and five 8-inch well advanced, together with all the carriages for the _Atlanta_ and _Boston_, and all for the _Chicago_, except the 8-inch.... With brown powder the following are the best results obtained in the 6-inch and 8-inch guns.

+-----------+--------------------+---------------+-----------+
| GUN. | Powder. | Muzzle | Pressure. |
| | | Velocity. | |
+-----------+--------------------+---------------+-----------+
| | | Foot seconds. | Tons. |
| 6-inch | American Brown. | 2,105 | 15.6 |
| 8-inch | Westphalian Brown. | 2,013 | 15.5 |
+-----------+--------------------+---------------+-----------+

“It will be observed,” he adds, “that the muzzle velocities are as high, while the chamber pressures are considerably below those which the guns were calculated to support in service.”

During the preliminary trials afloat of the _Atlanta’s_ battery in July, a few minor faults were unfairly given an importance by the newspapers which led the country to believe that the ship and her armament were useless. Unfriendly critics vented their spite and aired their ignorance in condemnations which included all who had had anything to do, even in the remotest degree, with the design and construction of vessel and gun. Indeed, so bitter and persistent were they that for a time it seemed almost hopeless to expect any further good could come out of the Nazareth of public opinion. It was not a question of politics, for the journalists of every political faith ran amuck riotously upon the subject; nor was it a matter of morals, where, through intelligent discussion, better things could be attained, for with brilliant misinformation and dogmatic dulness each scribe stuck his pin-feathered goose-quill into the navy’s midriff—it being such an easy, such a safe thing to do—and then thanked Heaven he was a virtuous citizen. Finally, a board was appointed to inspect the ship and battery, and after a thorough examination it made the following report:

“In obedience to the Department’s order of the 22d instant, the Board convened on board the _Atlanta_, Newport, Rhode Island, on the 25th instant (July, 1887), and made a careful examination of the ship, guns, carriages, and fittings, and of the damage sustained during the recent target practice, as reported by the board of officers ordered by the commanding officer of the _Atlanta_. The Board proceeded to sea on the morning of the 25th instant, but were prevented from firing the guns by a heavy fog which prevailed throughout the day. The ship was again taken to sea on the morning of the 27th instant, and the guns were fired. No deficiencies were noted in the guns themselves other than a slight sticking of the breech-plug in 6-inch breech-loading rifle No. 5 (this disappeared during the firing), some difficulty in the management of the lock of 6-inch breech-loading rifle No. 4, caused by slight upsetting of the firing-pin, and the bending of the extractor in 6-pounder rapid-fire No. 5.

“The recoil and counter-recoil of the 8 and 6 inch guns were easy and satisfactory, except at the second fire of the 8-inch breech-loading rifle No. 1, when the gun remained in. (This was readily run out with a tackle.) The action of the carriage of 8-inch breech-loading rifle No. 1 at the first fire was due to want of strength in the clips and clip circles, and at the second fire to want of sufficient bearing and securing of the deck socket. It is believed that had the deck socket held, the carriage would not have been disabled by the giving way of the clips. The training gear, steam and hand, was uninjured; the gun was readily trained when run out to place. The action of the after 6-inch shifting gun No. 4 was satisfactory, notwithstanding that the front clips had a play of half an inch. The action of the broadside carriages of 6-inch guns Nos. 5 and 18 was satisfactory, except the breaking of clips, the starting of the copper rivets in the clip circles, and the wood screws in the training circles.

“It is believed from the action of the carriage of 6-inch breech-loading rifle No. 5, when the clips were removed, that the carriages can be safety used without clips. The clips, however, give additional security and steadiness to the carriage, and assist the pivot and socket in bearing the shock of the discharge. The firing of the 6-pounder rapid-fire guns developed a weakness in one leg of the cage mount of No. 4, due to imperfect workmanship, and showed also the necessity of locking nuts on the bolts that secure the mounts to the ports. The tower mounts of the 3-pounder rapid-fire guns are unsatisfactory. They cannot be moved with facility; the line of sight of the gun is obstructed at ranges beyond 1600 yards, and the guns cannot be safely used as now fitted. For this reason 3-pounder rapid-fire No. 3 was not fired. The tripod mounts of the 1-pounder rapid-fire guns need stronger holding-down arrangements. The tower mounts of the 47-millimetre revolving cannon are like those of the 3-pounder rapid-fire guns, and have the same defects. The mounts of the 37-millimetre in the tops are satisfactory.

“Careful observation of the effect of the firing upon the hull of the vessel failed to develop any damage other than the breaking of the cast-steel port-sills and the starting of some light wood-work. The shock of discharge was slight on the berth-deck, and observers there were unable to observe which 6-inch gun had been fired. The deck, hull, and fittings, with the exception of the port-sills, hinges to superstructure doors and vegetable lockers, and some of the light wood-work, have every appearance of strength and ability to endure the strain of continuous firing of the guns. The blast of the forward 8-inch gun, when fired abaft the starboard beam, will not permit the crews of the starboard 3-pounder rapid fire and 1-pounder rapid fire to remain at their guns. When the after 8-inch gun is fired forward of the port beam, the crews of the after 47-millimetre revolving cannon and of the port after 1-pounder rapid fire cannot remain at their guns. When the forward 6-inch shifting gun is fired on the port bow or directly ahead, the crew of forward 8-inch gun cannot remain at their places. When the after 6-inch shifting gun is fired on the starboard quarter or directly aft, the crew of the after 8-inch gun cannot remain at their gun. The inability to fire parts of the secondary battery under certain conditions is due to the great arc of fire given to the 8-inch guns. This can hardly be called a defect. It is thought that a screen can be placed between the 8 and 6 inch guns which will enable them to be worked together forward or aft.

“The pivot socket of the 8-inch carriage should have a broader bearing surface, and should be rigidly bolted to the steel deck and to the framework of the ship in such manner as to distribute the strain over a larger area. The clips and clip circles of the 8-inch and 6-inch carriage should be made of steel. The clips should have larger bearing surfaces, and should be shaped to fit the circle. The circle should have double flanges, and be bolted (not riveted) on each flange to the steel deck. There should be no appreciable play between the clips and the circles. All bolts used in the battery fittings should have the nuts locked.

“The clip rail of the tower mount should be altered to fit the mount. This change will make the compressors effective, and allow the guns to be used with safety. The port-sills should be replaced by heavier sills, made of the best quality of malleable cast-steel. The plan of testing the hull, guns, and fittings of the _Atlanta_ arranged by the Board contemplated a more extended use of the main battery, but the weakness developed in the port-sills and in the sockets of the 8-inch carriages rendered further firing inadvisable.”

Whatever conclusion may be drawn from this report, there is one fact which may serve as an important corollary. In the latest drills of the ships on the North Atlantic station, the _Atlanta_ won the champion pennant for the best gunnery practice, and this with guns and carriages which were said to be completely disabled.

The safe employment of high explosives for war purposes is looked upon by many as a solution of certain vexed problems, and much time and money have been given to the subject. From the nitro-glycerine products there has been a loudly heralded advance to melinite and roborite, of which the great things expected have not yet been realized. Among the most promising attempts to use dynamite in a projectile is that made with the pneumatic gun, perfected by Lieutenant Zalinski, of the U. S. Artillery, who has courteously furnished the following description of the system:

“The pneumatic dynamite torpedo gun is a weapon which has been evolved for the purpose of projecting with safety and accuracy very large charges of the high explosives. While a gun in name and form, it is practically a torpedo-projecting machine, the propelling force used being compressed air. The use of the compressed air gives uniformity and complete control of pressures and total absence of heat. This insures entire absence of violent initial shocks from the propelling force; it also eliminates danger of increasing the normal sensitiveness of the high explosives by heating while resting in the bore of the gun. The ability to reproduce, time after time, absolutely the same pressure necessarily carries with it great accuracy of fire. The torpedo shell thrown by the gun is essentially arrow-like, and is very light and compact compared to the weight of charge thrown. This is a matter of no little importance on shipboard, as a very much larger number can therefore be carried for a given weight and storage room. The torpedoes projected by this machine have a twofold field of action when acting against ships: first, the over-water hull, second, the under-water hull.

“The shell is exploded by an electrical fuse. This is brought into action if striking the over-water hull an instant _before_ full impact. If the shell misses the over-water hull and enters the water, explosion is produced _after_ the shell is thoroughly buried, thus obtaining the fullest tamping effect of the water. The delayed action of the fuse can be controlled so as to cause the shell to go to the bottom before explosion ensues. This is needed at times when the torpedo shell is used for counter-mining a system of submerged stationary torpedo defences.

“Experiments against iron plates have shown that it is essential to have the initial point of explosion at the rear of the shell. When explosion takes place by simple impact from the front end, the injury to the plates is actually less than when a blank shell is used.

“For these reasons the fuse has been arranged so that the initial point of explosion is at the _rear_ of the shell. No attempt has been made to make a shell which can perforate armor before explosion. To do so would involve thickening the walls to such an extent as to materially reduce the weight of the charge carried. Besides that, it is very doubtful whether a shell fully charged with gunpowder can perforate any considerable thickness of armor without previously exploding its bursting charge. Much more will this be the case where the bursting charge is one of the more sensitive high explosives.

“The pneumatic torpedo-gun system has various fields of usefulness as an auxiliary war appliance. Among these are the following:

“1st. On swift-moving torpedo-boats; 2d. On larger war-vessels, for general use and for defence against surface and submarine torpedo-boats; 3d. In land defences; 4th. For use in the approaches during land sieges.

“Torpedo-boats carrying the pneumatic guns can commence effective operations at the range of at least one mile, as compared to not more than three hundred yards of the boats carrying the Whitehead torpedoes. Their torpedo shell cannot be stopped by netting, as is the case with the latter. The charges which can be thrown are also much greater. The guns to be carried on the pneumatic dynamite-gun cruiser now building for the United States government will throw shell charged with 200 and 400 pounds of explosive gelatine. These guns can be fired at the rate of one in two minutes, and indeed even more rapidly if required.

“In the defence of a man-of-war no other means can as effectually stop the advance either of submarine boats or submerged movable torpedoes. This is due to the ability to explode the large charges when the shells are well submerged. Their radius of action will be so great as to avoid the necessity of making absolute hits. The chances of stopping the attack are thereby very much increased.

“A tube of large calibre can be fixed in the bow, so as to be of use when advancing to the attack with the ram. An 18-inch shell, containing 1000 pounds of explosive gelatine, can be thrown 500 yards in advance of the ship, and that, too, without danger of running into the explosion of its own petard, as would be the case in ejecting directly ahead ordinary torpedoes. This will be made more clear by the statement of the relative speed of the two classes. The pneumatic-gun torpedo has a mean velocity of 400 knots for a range of one mile, as compared to 25 knots for a range of 200 yards of the Whitehead torpedo. Furthermore, there is no danger of the shell turning back, as is sometimes the case with the latter.

“The opportunities of making an effective hit will be much greater with the torpedo shell than with the ram; it will be easier to point the vessel fairly at the enemy’s broadside when at the range of five hundred yards than to bring the ram in absolute contact with the enemy’s side. The gun-tubes used are very thin (not exceeding three-quarters of an inch in thickness), and may be of sections of any convenient length. The other portions of the supporting truss, reservoirs, etc., are also of comparatively light weight. They could be of large calibres, and the destructive effects producible by large charges of high explosives will doubtless have a demoralizing effect upon the defence.”

Upon September 20th of this year a public trial was successfully made with the gun, the target being the condemned coast survey schooner _Silliman_. After firing two shots to verify the range, the gun was loaded with a projectile which was five and a half feet in length, contained fifty-five pounds of explosive gelatine, and was fired under an air pressure of 607 pounds. The torpedo rushed from the muzzle of the tube with a loud report; in thirteen seconds it plunged into the water close under the starboard quarter of the _Silliman_, and exploding almost instantly, threw a great volume of water one hundred and fifty feet into the air.

For a moment the schooner was hidden from view, but when the mist cleared away it was found that her main-mast had toppled over the side. At a distance this seemed to be all the damage inflicted, but a closer inspection showed that all the wood-ends on deck had been loosened, that the cabin fittings had been thoroughly shaken up, and that water was running into the hold.

Soon afterwards a fourth shot was fired. This landed very close to the starboard side of the vessel, and on explosion seemed to lift the _Silliman_ out of the water.

The hull was very badly shattered; the water-tank, which had been firmly fastened to the schooner’s bottom, was blown up through the deck and floated on the wreckage, and the stump of the main-mast was capsized. The bow was held above water by barrel buoys, and the fore-mast, which had heeled over to an angle of forty-five degrees, was sustained by the steel rigging that had become entangled in the pieces of wood floating to windward.

MACHINE AND RAPID-FIRE GUNS.

Of the machine guns, the Gatling, Gardner, Nordenfeldt, and Maxim systems are the best known. The adoption of the Accles feed in the Gatling eliminates largely the liability of cartridge jams, and increases the rapidity of fire at all angles to twelve hundred shots per minute; when this rapid delivery of fire is not needed, Bruce’s slower feed may be substituted. The Gardner gun is an effective weapon, but it has less rapidity of fire and smaller range of vertical train than the Gatling. The Nordenfeldt rifle-calibre gun has not obtained the prominence of the others, and the Maxim, in which the energy of recoil is ingeniously applied to the work of loading and firing, is growing in favor. The Hotchkiss revolving cannon was a wonderful step—the 37, 47, and 53 millimetre calibres firing 1 pound, 2½ pound, and 3½ pound explosive projectiles, with muzzle velocities of about 1400 feet per second. “The heavier nature of revolving cannon,” declares Commander Folger, United States Navy, “proved somewhat unwieldy, and the change to the single barrel of increased length, and using a heavier powder charge, was a natural one, and in keeping with the growing ballistic power of large guns. Though no longer denominated machine guns, the term now being generally applied to a cluster of barrels, the rapid-fire guns are a direct outgrowth of the larger calibres of machine guns, and are classed with them as secondary battery arms. There are now in the service of all the great military powers rapid-firing guns of 47 and 57 millimetre calibre, firing respectively explosive shells of 3 pounds and 6 pounds weight, at muzzle velocity of about 1900 feet per second. This will give with the 6-pound gun a range of about 2½ miles at 10 degrees elevation. These guns will deliver, under favorable circumstances, perhaps ten aimed rounds per minute, and the shells perforating the sides of an unarmored vessel, and bursting, after passing through into, say, twenty-five fragments, each with energy sufficient to kill a man, we have here a weapon of unequalled destructive capacity. It is beyond question that the conditions of combat between ships and forts are definitely changed by the advent of these guns. Even armored vessels with covered batteries are at a disadvantage, as a hail of missiles will seek the gun-ports and conning-towers wherever an enemy, from the nature of circumstances, takes close quarters. Experiment abroad has also demonstrated that the projecting chase (forward body) of a large gun is extremely vulnerable, and liable to injury from the fire of the larger rapid-firing pieces.

“This system, which is just now so important an adjunct to the main battery of ships of war, is of but recent development. The first order received for a weapon of this kind by the Hotchkiss firm came from the United States, and the guns now mounted in the new ships _Boston_, _Atlanta_, and _Dolphin_ were delivered under it. Three calibres were obtained, _viz._, the 6, 3, and 1 pounder, as they are known in the United States navy, their usual names in other countries being the 57, 47, and 37 millimetre guns. Since their introduction the demand for larger calibres by most of the prominent naval powers has been so pressing that the Hotchkiss Company has produced a 9-pounder and has a 33-pounder in course of manufacture. It is believed that this last calibre represents about the limit of utility of the Hotchkiss system, though the gain in time by the use of ammunition carrying the charge projectile and fulminate in one case will recommend it for use with much larger calibres, even where two men may be required to handle the cartridge.”

The most important trials of rapid-fire guns during the past two years are thus described by Lieutenant Driggs, United States navy:

“The various systems now in use, or being developed, are the Albini, Armstrong, Driggs-Schroeder, Gruson, Hotchkiss, Krupp, Maxim, Nordenfeldt. Of these the Armstrong has not been favorably received on account of the cumbersome breech-closing arrangement. This consists in two side levers attached to and turning about the trunnions; a cross-head connects the two levers, and by an eccentric motion one of them is pressed against or removed from the breech of the gun, thus closing or opening it. The _Bausan_ has two of those guns, but with that known exception few, if any, have been put in service.

“The Gruson gun is said to be very similar to the Hotchkiss in its mechanism, though not as good. The Maxim and Hotchkiss are both well known. The Nordenfeldt, which in Europe is the greatest rival of the Hotchkiss, is entirely different from the guns heretofore made under this name. In the single-shot rapid-fire gun the breech is closed with a double breech-plug, which is revolved in the breech recess by a cam motion. The plug is divided transversely; the front half carries the firing-pin, and has only a circular motion in closing and opening; the rear half acts as a wedge, the first motion being downward and the second circular, the front half then moving with it.

“One of the most complete tests to which guns of this class have been subjected was that conducted by the Italian government in February of last year (1885). The trials were made at Spezia, the following being offered for test: Hotchkiss rapid-fire; improved Nordenfeldt rapid-fire on recoil-carriage; Armstrong rapid-fire; and a rapid-fire gun made at the Government Works at Venice. The Armstrong gun was not fired; the others were fired in the following order: Nordenfeldt, Hotchkiss, and Italian.

“The guns were mounted on board a small ship (the _Vulcano_) for firing at sea. A large target was fixed on the breakwater in the middle of the harbor of Spezia, and two smaller targets of triangular shape had been anchored, one 550 yards inside, and the other 550 yards outside, the breakwater. The _Vulcano_ was then placed 1300 to 1400 yards inside the breakwater, and fire begun against the large target with the Nordenfeldt 6-pounder gun, which was worked by Italian sailors. A first series of eighteen shots were fired in forty-seven seconds, for rapidity of fire with rough aiming. A second series of sixteen shots were fired in thirty-four seconds. The rapidity of fire with rough aiming and untried men was thus respectively at the rate of twenty-three and twenty-eight shots per minute. Afterwards, ten case-shots were fired with the gun almost level, in order to see how the lead bullets were spread over the range. Some of them were seen to touch the water 700 or 800 yards from the muzzle, and the whole range was well covered by the 150 lead bullets contained in each of the Nordenfeldt case-shots.

“The second part of the programme consisted of the firing at three targets, respectively at 600, 1200, and 1800 yards, the ranges being only approximately known, changing the aim at every third shot, and firing under difficulty, owing to the movement of the ship. Twenty-one common shells were fired, seven at each target, with good accuracy, and the shells on striking the water burst better at the shorter than at the longer ranges.

“The firing at sea was closed with one more series of ten rounds, fired rapidly in twenty-six seconds, in order to see if the gun would act well after being heated by the eighty-five rounds which had already been fired. Four of the last series were ring-shells, and burst on striking the water at the first impact, breaking into a larger number of pieces than the common shells. The Nordenfeldt gun was then mounted on shore for tests of penetration. The plates used were: (1) a 5¼-inch solid wrought-iron; (2) a 4-inch solid (Cammell) steel plate; (3) one ⅞-inch steel plate, at an angle of fifteen degrees to line of fire. The two thick plates were backed by ten inches of oak, and at right angles to line of fire and one hundred yards from the gun. The perforation was in every case complete, both with solid steel shot and chilled-point shells, these latter bursting in the wood behind. The thin plate was then put at more acute angle to the line of fire, and only when this angle was seven degrees or eight degrees did the projectile fail to penetrate. The indicated muzzle velocity of this gun is 2130 feet, with a 6-pound projectile and charge of two pounds fifteen ounces.

“A few days afterwards the Hotchkiss gun went through the same trials and programme. For rapidity forty rounds were fired with rough aiming in three minutes, the rate being 13.3 per minute. The shooting was good, but the men serving the gun complained of being fatigued by the shocks from the shoulder-piece. The muzzle velocity was about 1085 feet, or about 300 feet below that of the Nordenfeldt. Last of all, the Italian gun was fired, but as it was designed for 1480 feet velocity, it was not brought in direct competition with the other two guns in power. The rapidity of fire obtained, however, was about twenty rounds per minute, and both the mechanism and recoil-carriage worked well.[57]

“The Hotchkiss and Nordenfeldt guns were tried in competition at Ochta, near St. Petersburg, in September last (1886). The reports that have reached this country are very meagre, but are unanimous in favor of the Nordenfeldt gun. From what can be learned, the fire was first for rapidity, in which the Nordenfeldt discharged thirty rounds in one minute, and the Hotchkiss twenty rounds in the same time, the initial velocity of the former being 624 metres (2047 feet) per second, while that of the latter was 548 metres (1797 feet) per second.

“The fire of both guns was directed upon a target at 1800 metres (1969 yards) range. The Nordenfeldt scored nine hits, while the Hotchkiss made none. It is more than likely that this failure was due more to defective pointing than to any defect of construction.

“The trial closed with a very interesting and instructive experiment.

“Four targets were placed at 600, 800, 1000, and 1200 metres; each gun was to fire as rapidly as possible for thirty seconds, changing the range each fire, from the 600 up to the 1200 metre target and back. During this test the Nordenfeldt is said to have discharged fifteen shots in the thirty seconds, and to have made nine hits, while the Hotchkiss scored but two hits and only discharged eleven rounds in thirty-two seconds. Here again the element of inaccurate sighting may be largely responsible for the difference in the number of hits, but the great disparity in the number of rounds fired must be due to the mechanical defects in the Hotchkiss system by which the action of its breech-block is too slow. Notwithstanding the reported success of the Nordenfeldt gun in the trials, the Russian government ordered a number of Hotchkiss guns and no Nordenfeldts.”

The latest experiments with large calibred rapid-fire guns were those of the Armstrong 36 and 70 pounder. The first piece differs materially from the new 33-pounder Hotchkiss; it is 4.724 inches in calibre, 14 feet 2½ inches length, and weighs 34 hundred-weight. It was fired with seven and a half pounds of powder ten times in forty-seven seconds, or at a rate six times faster than that obtained with the service guns of like calibre. The 70-pounder was fired with both twenty-five-pound and thirty-pound charges, at a speed of from eight to ten rounds per minute. In the latest mount for the 36-pounder the gun is supported on a rocking slide which pivots on transverse bearings, so that the piece moves only forward and backward on the slide; elevation and depression are given by a shoulder-piece attached to the slide, and the gun is secured at any desired angle with a clamp attached to the side of the slide.

This development of rapid-fire pieces opens anew the discussion as to the comparative values of large and small calibre guns. At the present stage of the question it is safe to say that, however necessary the large calibre may be in armored battle-ships and coast-defence vessels, its usefulness in thin-skinned, high-powered cruisers is questionable. Abroad, the long-range guns which constitute the primary batteries are being reduced in calibre, while the secondary batteries of rapid-fire guns are increasing so much in size that before the next sea-war a nearly uniform calibre of four or five inches will probably be established.

The reasons for these changes are not difficult to understand. In all sea engagements hereafter type will fight with type; that is to say, apart from the rôle which auxiliary rams and torpedo-boats may play, armored ships will oppose armored ships, and unarmored cruisers and gun-boats will, when intelligently handled, seek action only with vessels of similar character. To-day every unarmored ship afloat or under construction can be penetrated at the average fighting distance by a musket-bullet impelled with a little more than the ordinary velocity; and as there is absolutely no protection, it seems a mistake to arm such vessels with the unnecessarily large calibres now in use. Especially is this true when their employment is based mainly upon the remote assumption that such ships may have to attack fortifications. Smaller guns will do the work equally as well, if not better; for the greater intensity of fire secured by the certain action of a large number of easily handled small-calibred guns is surely more valuable than any probable advantage which might be derived from heavier projectiles fired under conditions that make their effectiveness doubtful.

Whatever may be said to the contrary by mere theorists, the difficulty of handling ordnance increases enormously as the calibres grow; and sea-officers, who alone are the proper judges, insist that the monster pieces of the present day are so unmanageable as to be nearly useless. Of course, where armor penetration is vital to success, heavy armaments must and will be employed; but when this factor need not be considered, a great many light guns, easily worked by hand, are the demands of the hour. The problem, fortunately, is nearer solution owing to the development now in progress; and when this is coupled with the rapidly increasing popularity of the 5-inch breech-loading all-steel rifle, our country notably may congratulate itself that ordnance is reverting to a plane which other nations mistakenly and at great cost abandoned, and which the United States can readily attain.

SHIPS OF THE MINOR NAVIES.

Early in September of this year there sailed from England for the East five Chinese war-vessels of the latest types: the _Chih Yüan_ and _Ching Yüan_, fast cruisers; the _King Yüan_ and _Lai Yüan_, coast-defence ships; and a torpedo-boat as yet unnamed. Though the squadron was commanded by Admiral Lang, a captain in the Royal Navy temporarily serving under the Chinese government, the other officers were mainly, and the crews were wholly, natives who had passed through English cruising and training ships. The _Chih Yüan_ was commanded by Captain Tang, who had under him nine English and fifteen Chinese officers and one hundred and fifty men; the _Ching Yüan_ was in charge of Captain Yih, and eleven English and fourteen Chinese officers, with the same complement; while the other ships were officered and manned much the same way. There was, it is true, an English fleet surgeon, but each ship had its native medical officer and two chief engineers, one of whom was a Chinese. “On leaving Spithead,” stated the _Herald_ cable despatch, “the fleet will proceed direct to Gibraltar, thence to Port Said, where it will take in coal; it will stop at Suez, Aden, Colombo (where it will coal again), Singapore, Hong-Kong, Chefoo, and Taku, joining at this place the fleet already assembled under Admiral Ting, and replacing there many of the foreigners by native officers. The voyage is expected to occupy seventy-two days—fifty-two at sea and twenty in harbor—and during this time the crews will be thoroughly practised in torpedo, gun, and other drills. This, of course, will involve a deal of hard work, such as would try the endurance of English sailors, but the Chinamen will be allowed a plentiful supply of beef and beer.”

Modern cruisers and armed battle-ships requiring the highest intelligence to fight, torpedo-drills, beef and beer—and all for that outer barbarian whom our mobs murder just for a lark! Here is a lesson for Congressmen; here an example and a possible menace for this defenceless land.

The Chinese navy, though of recent growth, consists to-day of seven armored and ten unarmored ships of modern types, in addition to torpedo-boats, and to at least thirty other vessels which are not so obsolete as nine-tenths of the ships this country has in commission.

Nearly ten years ago the Chinese government realized that its wooden corvettes, gun-boats, and armed junks were no longer adapted to warfare, and ordered from the Vulcan Works at Stettin the two steel cruisers _Nan Shu_ and _Nan Shen_. These are of 2200 tons displacement, and with 2400 horse-power have developed 15 knots speed; their armament is composed of two 8-inch and eight 4½-inch Armstrongs, and of lighter secondary pieces. In 1881 these ships were followed by the armored battle-ships _Chen Yüan_ and _Ting Yüan_, and by the steel cruiser _Tchi Yüan_. The battle-ships are built of steel, and have the following dimensions: length 296.5 feet, beam 59 feet, mean draught 20 feet, displacement 7430 tons. Their compound armor extends throughout a central citadel 138 feet long, and around a nearly elliptical redoubt situated at its forward end; the side armor is five feet wide, and has a thickness of 14 inches at the water-line, of 8 inches at the lower and of 10 inches at the upper edge; the protection to the redoubt is 12, and to the conning-tower 8, inches thick. The armament consists of four 12-inch Krupps, echeloned in pairs within the redoubt; of two 5.9-inch Krupps mounted forward and aft inside of machine-gun proof turrets; of eleven Hotchkiss revolving cannons, and a supply of Whitehead torpedo-tubes. The engines are of the three-cylinder compound type, and develop 7300 horse-power and 15.5 knots. The ships have double bottoms, minutely subdivided, and in addition to a cork belt forward and abaft the citadel a steel protective deck two inches thick curves to the extremities. The twin-screw steel cruiser _Tchi Yüan_ is of 3200 tons displacement, and has two sets of two-cylinder horizontal compound engines, which develop 2800 horse-power and a speed of 15 knots; her dimensions are: length 236 feet 3 inches, beam 34 feet 5 inches, and draught 15 feet 9 inches. The entire under-water body is covered by a curved steel deck, which is 4 inches thick, and extends 4 feet 9 inches below the water-line; the space between this deck and the one above is used for coal-bunkers. “There are two machine-gun proof turrets on the fore and aft line, the base of the forward one being surmounted by a fixed tower armored with 15-inch steel, which extends to a height sufficient to protect the base of the turret, its machinery, and gun-carriages. The armament is composed of two 8.27-inch (21 centimetre) Krupps in the forward turret, of one 5.9-inch (15 centimetre) Krupp in the after turret, of two similar guns on the main deck aft, of five Hotchkiss revolving cannons, and of a supply of Whitehead torpedoes, discharged through four above-water tubes.”[58]

The swift protected cruisers _Chih Yüan_ and _Ching Yüan_ were built at Elswick; the unnamed torpedo-boat is of the _Yarrow_ type; and the coast-defence vessels _King Yüan_ and _Lai Yüan_ were constructed at Stettin. The displacement of the cruisers is 2300 tons, length 268 feet, beam 38 feet, depth 21 feet, and draught 14 feet forward and 16 feet aft. Each vessel has two pairs of triple-expansion engines. Both the engine and boiler rooms are divided into water-tight compartments by transverse and longitudinal bulkheads, and the machinery is so arranged that either boiler can work on one engine or on both, and the change necessary to effect this can be made while the vessel is in motion. The result of this intercommunication between each engine and each boiler is that the vessel can proceed so long as any single boiler and engine are uninjured.

In the four trial trips, two with and two against the tide, with all their weights, armament, and Chinese crews on board, they attained an average speed of 18.536 knots.

The vessels are built of steel, and have two decks, the lower one consisting of four-inch steel plates, rising in the middle above the water-line and inclined at the sides so as to dip below it. The engines, magazines, rudder-head, and steering gear lie below, and are protected by this deck. The openings in the deck are encircled by coffer-dams, armored with steel plates, inclined so as to deflect projectiles. The bows are formed and strengthened for ramming purposes. Additional protection is given to the vessel by a partition which is built on the protective deck parallel to the side of the ship; this encloses a space that is eight feet wide, and is subdivided into a great number of water-tight compartments for the stowage of four hundred and fifty tons of fuel. Both ships have double bottoms, minutely subdivided into water-tight compartments.

The armament consists of three 21-centimetre Krupp guns—two mounted forward and one aft—all on centre-pivot, shield-protected Vavasseur carriages; of two 6-inch Armstrongs on sponsons, also Vavasseur mounted; of eight 6-pounder rapid-fire Hotchkiss; and of six Gatling guns. There are four above-water torpedo-tubes—two fixed (one in the bow, firing ahead, and one aft, pointed astern) and two training, one in each broadside.

There are two electric search-lights for each vessel, with a nominal power of 25,000 candles, while the cabins and rest of the ship are lighted with incandescent lamps.

“It is humiliating,” writes the _Army and Navy Gazette_, “but nevertheless an actual fact, that two of the cruisers of the Chinese squadron under command of Admiral Lang are superior in certain novelties of construction to any of our own vessels of this class. In point of speed the two unarmored ships which have been turned out by the Elswick firm cannot be touched by our swiftest cruisers. They steam nearly nineteen knots an hour. The traversing and manipulation of their guns can be effected with such rapidity that when saluting the garrison at Portsmouth recently it appeared almost impossible that the guns could have been properly sponged between each discharge, the two bow guns especially keeping up a continuous roar. Only the two sponson 6-inch guns are from Armstrong’s; they are mounted on Vavasseur carriages, and fitted with singularly simple breech apparatus. The other three heavy guns are Krupp’s 21-centimetres (about 8¼-inch). These last are protected with a shield of entirely unique construction. It is of steel, and commencing from the trunnion ring spreads out into a wide shelter sufficient to accommodate the entire gun detachment. The sights are also under cover. The stern-chaser has a single shield; the two bow-chasers are included within one. The torpedo apparatus is most complete. In addition to the two tubes opening ahead and astern, which are well above the surface of the water, there are six others in connection with the torpedo-room.

“But the latest improvement which is observable on board is the steel armored conning-tower, fitted with Lord Armstrong’s patent telegraph and communications, for which a special royalty of four hundred pounds has to be paid. It is the most perfect scheme for conducting fighting operations that has ever come under our notice. A model for laying all the guns is prominently placed in front of the steering-wheel, which is under personal command of the officer in charge. On the left are tubes and telegraphs by which he can converse with the officer in command of the gun detachment, and correct any mistakes observable in the laying of the guns. Then he can fire simultaneously, if desirable, or singly, if preferred. All stations on board are also in communication with this conning-tower. Hence the entire fighting power of the vessel, torpedoes and all included, is at the disposal of the officer in command within the conning-tower. Another useful modification has been effected in these vessels. The conning-tower, which is at the foot of the foremost fighting mast, has close to it the signal station, also protected with steel armor, so that the signaller therein is absolutely secure, and close to the commanding officer, from whom he receives and to whom he communicates outside signals.”

The torpedo-boat built by Yarrow is said to be the fastest of its size that has ever been launched, as it has reached a speed of about twenty-eight knots an hour. It is armed with two fixed 14-inch torpedo-tubes in the bows, and one 14-inch training-tube on deck abaft the funnel. It is also supplied with a powerful armament of Hotchkiss and Gatling guns, and a strong electric search-light so arranged as to be worked either from the conning-tower or from the deck.

The _King Yüan_ and _Lai Yüan_, built by the Vulcan Company at Stettin, are powerful vessels, effective for either coast defence or distant sea service. Their principal dimensions are: length 269 feet, beam 39 feet 4 inches, depth 25 feet 6 inches, mean draught 16 feet 8 inches, and displacement 2900 tons. They are built entirely of steel, with double bottoms extending two-thirds of the length, and the under-water body is divided by bulkheads into sixty-six water-tight compartments. The armor protection is compound, and consists of a belt six feet wide extending the length of the machinery and boiler space, having a maximum thickness of 9.5 inches at and above the water-line, and a minimum thickness of 5.1 inches. This belt is terminated at either end by thwartship armored bulkheads, 5.1 inches thick. At the forward end of the belt is a circular revolving turret eight inches thick, on top of which is the conning-tower, with an armor protection of six inches. The under-water body is protected by a complete steel protective deck, 1.5 inches thick over the top of, and three inches thick forward and abaft, the belt. A partial cork belt above the protective deck gives additional stability. The engines consist of two sets of three-cylinder compound type, situated in two separate compartments, driving twin screws, and developing 3400 horse-power with forced draft. The boilers, four in number, are placed in two separate compartments. A speed of about sixteen knots was attained. The armament consists of two 21-centimetre (8.27-inch) Krupps mounted in the turret; of two 15-centimetre (5.91-inch) similar guns carried in recessed ports; of two 47-millimetre Hotchkiss rapid-fire guns; of five 37-millimetre revolving cannons; and of four torpedo-discharging tubes—three above-water and one in the bow below the water-line.[59]

As additions to the lightly armored gun-boat _Tiong Sing_, built in 1875, China ordered this year from the Vulcan Company two heavy coast-defence vessels of 7000 tons displacement and 6000 horse-power, and laid down at Foochow an armored gun-vessel. The _Tshao Yong_ and _Yang Wai_ are steel cruisers built at Elswick, of 1350 tons displacement and 2400 horse-power; they have developed sixteen knots, and are armed with two 10-inch and four 4½-inch Armstrongs, with a secondary battery of two lighter pieces and six machine guns. The _Fee-chen_, a small steel cruiser built at Sunderland, England, has triple-expansion engines, and is expected to develop thirteen knots. Her armament consists of two 6-inch Armstrongs and four lighter guns; she is also fitted to do cable work. Three cruisers of the _Nan Shu_ type are being constructed in Chinese dockyards, besides several of the _Kuang Chen_ class of gun-boats.

The Japanese navy consists of forty vessels, of which eight only are modern. The classified armored fleet includes five ships, among them the _Adsama Kan_, formerly known as the _Stonewall Jackson_; none of these is of any importance except the central battery ship _Fu Soo_, which was launched in 1877. In January of this year, however, the Japanese government ordered from the Société des Forges et Chantiers de la Méditerranée two coast-defence vessels, to be built on the plans of M. Bertin, constructing engineer of the Japanese navy. They are to be built entirely of steel, on the cellular plan, with two longitudinal and twelve transverse bulkheads. Their principal dimensions are: length 295 feet 2 inches, beam 50 feet 6 inches, depth 34 feet 9 inches, draught aft 21 feet 2 inches, displacement 4140 tons. The armament proposed is one 12.6-inch (32-centimetre) breech-loader, eleven 4.72-inch (12-centimetre) breech-loaders, six rapid-fire guns, twelve revolving cannons, and four torpedo-tubes—one in the bow, one in the stern, and one each broadside. Two independent triple-expansion engines, driving twin screws, and required to develop 5400 indicated horse-power with forced draft, and 3400 with natural draft, supplied with steam by six three-furnace boilers in two groups, furnish the motive power. The estimated maximum speed is sixteen knots. A heavy protective steel deck and a complete surrounding arrangement of coal-bunkers protect the engine and boiler space and magazines. The complement of officers and men will number four hundred. In March, 1887, a small armored gun-vessel, designed by the same official, was laid down at the Ishikawa-Shima dockyard, Japan. The displacement is 750 tons, length 150 feet, and beam 25 feet.[60]

Of the unarmored vessels, the sister ships _Naniwa-Kan_ (already described) and _Takatschio_ are at present the most important, though six modern cruisers now under construction in Japanese dockyards will soon be added to the fleet. The navy is manned and officered exclusively by natives, and the service is well administered and popular. Owing to possible complications with China, coast defence has become a live national question, and the wealthy Japanese are subscribing large sums for ships and forts. In addition to these voluntary contributions, the new tax which has been imposed will enable Japan to put herself in an excellent condition for attack or defence.

The other navies not described in these pages have afloat or under construction but few modern ships-of-war. Still, there are vessels in the minor services which ought to be briefly described. One of these, the _Almirante Brown_, of the Argentine navy, is a twin-screw, central-battery steel ship which was launched in 1880. Her dimensions are: length 240 feet, beam 50 feet, draught 20 feet 6 inches, and displacement 4200 tons. With 4500 horse-power she attained 13.75 knots, and her coal endurance is given as 4300 knots at 10 knots speed. Her armament is made up of eight 8-inch and six 4½-inch Armstrongs, and of four machine guns; the armor is compound, nine inches thick on the belt and eight inches on the battery. There is also building in England for this government a central casemate steel cruiser of 4400 tons displacement. The armor on the casemate is to be compound, ten inches thick, and the armament is to be composed of eight 8-inch breech-loading Armstrongs, with a secondary battery of rapid-fire guns and torpedo-tubes. The estimated speed is fourteen knots. In addition to these two vessels the Argentine navy has two small coast-defence turret-ships, one 14-knot steel cruiser (the _Patagonia_, which is similar in appearance to the United States steamer _Atlanta_), six gun-boats, eleven torpedo-boats, and a few other vessels of an unimportant character.

The Brazilian navy has, exclusive of her capital torpedo-boat flotilla, over fifty vessels, of which a dozen are classed as armored. These last are mainly medium draught, coast-service turret-ships and river monitors, though among them are the _Riachuelo_ and _Aquidaban_, twin-screw armored cruisers, and the _Solimoes_, an armored battle-ship. The _Riachuelo_ made a sensation when she first appeared, and is still one of the most formidable vessels in the world. She is built of steel, and has the following dimensions: length 305 feet, beam 52 feet, draught 19 feet 6 inches, displacement 5700 tons. Her armor is compound, eleven inches thick on the belt and ten inches on the turret, conning-tower, and redoubt. She has also a steel deck, which curves forward to strengthen the ram, and aft to protect the steering gear. Her armament consists of four 9-inch 20-ton Whitworths (Armstrong altered) mounted in two echeloned turrets, and of six 5½-inch guns carried under cover in the superstructure. Her secondary battery includes fifteen machine Nordenfeldts and five above-water torpedo-tubes. With 7300 horse-power she attained a speed of 16.71 knots, and is credited with a coal endurance of 4500 miles at 15 knots speed.

The _Aquidaban_ is of the same type and general appearance as the _Riachuelo_, but of smaller dimensions. Her length is 280 feet, beam 52 feet, draught 18 feet, displacement 4950 tons. The compound armor is from seven to eleven inches in thickness, and seven feet in width on the water-line belt, and is ten inches thick on the conning-tower and on the oval redoubts which protect the bases of the two echeloned turrets. The armored deck and redoubt roofs are built of steel, from two to three inches thick. The armament consists of four 9-inch 20-ton guns mounted in the turrets, and of four 70-pounders carried under the superstructure. The secondary battery is made up of fifteen 1-inch Nordenfeldts and five above-water torpedo-tubes. She developed on trial 6251 horse-power and a speed of 15.81 knots, and made on the voyage from Lisbon to Bahia 3600 knots in 13 days and 17 hours, and from Bahia to Rio Janeiro 750 knots in 2 days and 20 hours. The average speed for the passage from England to Rio was nearly eleven knots on a daily coal consumption of forty-three tons.

The Chilian navy has the two iron-armored, twin-screw, central-battery ships _Almirante Cochrane_ and _Blanco Encalada_, and the lightly armored turret-ship _Huascar_. The _Almirante Cochrane_ and _Blanco Encalada_ are 210 feet in length, 45 feet 9 inches in beam, 19 feet 8 inches in draught, and 3500 tons in displacement. The former carries four 9-inch and two 7-inch breech-loading Armstrong rifles, four lighter pieces, and seven machine guns. Before the alterations and repairs lately made, the _Blanco Encalada_ had six 12-ton muzzle-loading Armstrong rifles, four lighter pieces, and seven machine guns. The _Huascar_ was built in 1865, and is a slightly protected iron ship of 2032 tons displacement, 1050 horse-power, and 12 knots speed. Her battery consists of two 10-inch muzzle-loading Armstrongs and two 40-pounders. Her wonderful record on the west coast of South America has made her name as familiar in the mouth as a household word, and whatever may have been the justice of the war, there never can or will be a question of the superb courage with which she was fought by her gallant officers and crew. Chili has three wooden corvettes, the _Chacabuco_, _O’Higgins_, and _Pilcomayo_, one composite corvette, the _Magellanes_, one steel cruiser, the _Esmeralda_, five gun-boats, two paddle steamers, one despatch-boat, one transport, and eleven torpedo-boats. In April, 1885, the _Esmeralda_ ran from Valparaiso to Callao, 1292 miles, in one hundred and eight hours, the engines during the last eight hours barely turning over. In the exhaustive trials made before her departure from England the highest speed attained was 18¼ knots per hour. The _Esmeralda_ is said to be at present in an inefficient condition, both as regards her speed and battery power. In November, 1886, the Chilian government gave the Armstrong firm an order for a powerful, partially-protected steel cruiser, which is to be of 4500 tons displacement, and to develop 19 knots speed. Her armament is to consist of two 10-inch, one 8-inch, and two 6-inch Armstrong breech-loaders, with a secondary battery of four 6-pounder rapid-fire guns, eight Hotchkiss revolving cannons, and eight torpedo-tubes. The cost of this vessel is to be about $1,500,000.