Show awn 1 I ch C h I 1 U H N A V y EVERY precaution TAKEN TO INSURE AGAINST FIRE ships must be completed in forty two months they are of tons washington june 23 bids were opened today at the navy department on the proposed ton battleship michigan and the battleship south carolina authorized by an act of 0 congress approved marell march 3rd ard 1905 the new battleships are to be feet long and will have hav an extreme breadth at the water line of 80 feet 2 58 5 8 inches the T no mean draft at trial displacement is not to exceed 24 feet 6 inches the coal bunker caba capacity city of the ships will be 2200 tons tong each each dach ship will have a main battery of eight twelve inch breech loading rifles and two submerged torpedo tubes the second battery of each ot of the battleships will consist of 22 three inch 14 rapid fire guns 22 three semiautomatic semi automatic guns 8 one semiautomatic semi automatic guns 2 three thre inch ench field pieces 4 machine guns of caliber 30 tho the twelve inch guns will be installed in palm pairs in four electrically controlled balanced elliptical turrets on the center line two forward and two aft each with an arc of fire of about degrees A secondary battery of three inch three and minor caliber guns will be installed in commanding positions with large unobstructed ted arcs of fire the tuo torpedo tubes and accessories will be installed in a submerged torpedo room forward the hull of the new battleships Is to bo be protected by a water line belt eight feet wide varying in thickness from eight to twelve inches armor of corresponding thickness and breadth will extend from the top of the side armor belt to a level eight feet above the barrettes barbettes bar bettes will wili carry ten inches of armor in hont h ont and the conning tower will be 12 inches thick which is also the thickness of the tur refa ret armor complete belts V if cellulose will encircle the ship to automatically close up holes made by shot below the leyel I 1 the vessel loessel will bo be driven b by v engines of 16 horse power fower fole 1 joliase s expansion in type supplied wath steam stam by twelve water tube boilers and super heaters the smoke pipes of these now new ships will be feet high and aid steel masts masta forward and aft will be equipped with wireless telegraphy outfits I 1 every precaution is taken to insure against fire and all the living places are to be she sheathed thed with metal backed with an inch and one half of cork and felt the maximum time to be allowed for completion of these battleships will be forty two months and a heavy penalty Is provided for delay william cramp and sons ship and engine building company of philadelphia was the lowest bidder today for shins of tho the michigan and south carolina type with machinery as prescribed by the navy department the department plans for machinery will probably be accepted by the navy department part ment in reference to plans of bidders is as submitted in other proposals the bids for the prescribed machinery were known is as class no 1 bids and ithe ille cramps offered to build a ship of th this is type fr fir the new york shipbuilding company offered the next lowest bid in this class 3 As one firm is allowed to build only one of the ships this second bid will doubtless be accepted in case the department decides to accept the class plans in class no INTO 2 1 there was a great variety of bids and the prices price s varied according to the plans of the various ship yards for machinery under this class the machinery may be of the turbine type and many of the bids specified turbine engines tho the lowest bid in ili this class was that of the fore river shipbuilding company for 1 this bid la is on a ship equipped with turbines As it is generally believed that the department will anard aard the contract in class I 1 for both of the ships in terest centered chiefly in ili the bids of that class the bid of 0 tile newport news shipbuilding and drydock company on oil this class was and the union iron works of san francisco bid |