Show GREATEST battleship PLANS DECIDED ON FOR A MONSTER SHIP new york dec 30 A special to the tribune from washington bays designs tor tho greatest battleship I 1 over projected for the american navy were agreed upon by the naval board of construction today after several months of discussion over tho important questions of battery armor speed oal capacity and displacement the three new vessels to be called the the new jersey and the pennsylvania will equal in formidability the finest line of battleships yet laid down by any foreign power and with the addition of typical american improvements prove ments will surpass in fighting force any ships now afloat the salient features of the design contemplate a displacement of approximately tons as compared with the Or egons or the new maines the speed is to be at least 19 knots with a coal bunker capacity of 2000 tons there will be two superimposed turrets one fore and the other aft each containing two 12 inch and two 8 inch guns of the new bore and high smokeless powder velocity the remaining guns of the main battery will consist of twelve cinch C inch quick firo in broadside this arrangement of battery has been finally adopted instead of an alternative plan which provided tor tour 12 inch guns in turrets and sixteen ginch G inch broadside which had been put forward to avoid the expedient of superimposed turrets tee two story turrets which are a distinctively ively american innovation as applied to the kearsarge and kentucky are regarded as no longer of doubtful success and it is known that foreign governments are preparing to adopt them to secure the concentration and angle of fire they secure which is by any other expedient tha board also definitely determined upon the use of the most modern Kruppi zed armor tor the now vessels its precise distribution to be decided upon after the chief constructor has made sufficient progress with the actual plans to determine the proper arrangement ran gement of weights the armor problem has been the most to solve and to this cause is attributable the delay in planning the ships the act authorizing the vessels was approved on march 3 of tills year and it stipulated that no contract tor any portion of the vessels should be mada until a contract was made tor the armor congress having limited the cost of armor to the ridiculous price of a ton it was evident from the beginning that no satisfactory ship could be built under such restriction and for that reason the plans have been discussed with unusual deliberation As the weight of the armor entering into these was a very large item tho question of the adoption of krupp or material was extremely important this can be readily appreciated from the tact that roughly 2000 tons of the former alie approximate weight for each battleship is equivalent as regards rc to penetration to of tha latter the adoption therefore of the material treated by the krupp process meant that 1000 tons 0 weight would bd available for distribution among other vital characteristics of a battle shipwright ship weight of propelling machinery speed armament coal carrying capacity and draught the total cost of each of these three ships when ready for sea will exceed each they will cruise seven thousand miles straightaway and theio will not bo three ships of similar offensive and defensive strength in the fleet of any possible enemy |