Show A NEW BRITISH CRUISER TIM THE building of the united states alser cruiser the vesuvius and the speed slid aad seagoing sea going qualities of that ves vee have stirred up the european chip P building powers to emulation aud d a desire to excel england is still a great naval power and has not given up her em are pa of the seas the tradition regains allIS in the minds of her sailors that t brittania rules the waves nd any advance in maritime faelli ws ta on the part of uncle sam will ba de sure to stimulate john bull in the lh same direction the launch of the british gun amt oat the spanker from the davenport dockyard is evidence of this 1431 irit rit the spanker la is intended to if not outstrip the vesuvius sh is feet long 27 feet beam of 0 horse power is built enair entirely ely of steel and her load draft of water evvard ward is but 8 feet and aft 8 feet ax all inches she has watertight water tight with doors at long I 1 in n als longitudinally and other wile wa the divided engine rooms are by a bulkhead bulf chead partition and rend dered secure in ease case of accident tle ae coal bunkers bushere are on the sides of the engines affording additional protection election brer battery will consist of two 36 rapid fire guns one bow torpedo torP OdO tule tube and a pair of torpedo teab t bes on each broadside the two are mounted one forrd and one aft and can be fired at angles abaft and bof 0 ve tt the beam so that if necessary they y could cou converge verge on to the same object she will have also a steam steering engine distilling apparatus electric engine and torpedo air service the enormous amount of machinery lh intended tended for the spanker will take up fully two thirds of her for e and aft length her coal carrying capacity is tons necessarily small because use of lack of bunker space the spanker is intended for active cruising work and expected to be a powerful destroyer of commerce in time of war and also to do good service as a torpedo vessel but is not designed to act against armored ships her trial trip will be watched with eager interest and if she beats the record of the vesuvius american shipwrights ship wrights will be put on their metal at once to get ahead of her however to do this she will have to excel all other european gun boats of the same bonnage and class |