Show NAVIES OF EUROPE A presentation of their existing j strength and condition A return made recently to th the e british parliament of the strength of european navies gives material for forming some estimate of the comparative efficiency of the navy our government is building the larges and fastest european war vessels belong to italy her largest ship the italia has a displacement of nearly tons or about more than any other war vessel afloat notwithstanding this enormous bulk the italia teams steams 18 knots knuts an hour while the fastest armor clad in the british navy is is the colossus tons which attains knots the italia dalia carries the heaviest guns of any vessel afloat consisting of four breece loading guns of inches caliber and eight of six inches caliber two other vessels the duilo and the dandalo nearly approach the italia in size and armament altogether italy has eleven war vessels of the first class and is building seven more with three of the second class she has one torpedo vessel completed and eleven in progress with fifty five torpedo boats and twenty eight in progress although england has a larger navy alai th an any 0 other power most of her vessels are unprotected by armor or only partially so she has twenty turret armor dads completed and six more in in progress s her largest guns eight tons in weight and of 16 inch caliber are carried by the inflexible but th they ey are muzzle loading one of the vessels now in in progress pro grees the reil with others of smaller caliber will carry two ton guns and with their completion england will then have the heaviest battery afloat seven armed cru cruisers iseri of tons are building three barbette ships are completed and six more are in progress and there are twentynine twenty nine broadside ships also in commission when the ships in in progress pi ogress are completed england will have three vessels of between and tons built to compete in size and armament with three great monsters france has 16 first class dads one of over tons and 13 others arc are in in pr progress gress all the guns are breech loaders while eng lands armament is mostly of muzzle loaders the largest french guns are 14 inch caliber france has 12 armor clad clada of the second class the largest having a displacement of tons russia has eix six armored vessels in the black sea fleet and 15 battery ships and monitors with five belted cruisers cruisers in the baltic fleet germany has bits 13 armored vessels ranging from to under derI and carrying guns gulls of not more than a little over 10 inches caliber she has also 14 ot of a smaller class under 2000 tons toni austria has 10 armored vessels of from to over tone tong compared with these gr great eat fleets our navy will appear very small the tile largest of the new vessels whose construction has been authorized by y congress are two ton ironclads iron they are however to have a speed of 16 10 knot knots an hour faster than any english vessel now afloat the bill passed by the last congress pro provides v ides for one cruiser which is i to possess the highest practicable speed and which hence ought to equal or excel the eighteen knots an hour of the italia there is no necessity for our government to enter into the costly competition of european powers in turning out enormous war vessels we should however have bave as fast and well armed vessels as there are in in th the world worl dand and begins it molook to look a as 8 if we shall get them pittsburg Comme commercial roial gazette gazelle |