Grand Manoeuvres or Tactical Exercises.

Return of the Italian Visit.

It will be remembered that last year an Italian fleet paid a visit to Portsmouth, and that great festivities took place in its honour. This year a return visit has been paid by the British Mediterranean Squadron to Italian ports, and naval amenities have taken place of a similar nature. Most warm-hearted and enthusiastic was the reception given to our officers and seamen at Civita Vecchia, at Rome, and at Naples. Sir Michael CulmeSeymour was received in private audience by the King of Italy, and was presented to the Queen. British ambassador to the officers of the fleet many of the At a luncheon given by the Italian ministers were present, and several official banquets also took place. The most notable feature of the visit was the welcome given by the Pope to some 300 Roman Catholic seamen and marines, who were present in the Sistine Chapel when his holiness celebrated mass, and were afterwards entertained at dinner in the Portico Carlomagne. All the officers present, both Roman Catholics and Protestants, were also presented to the Pope. At Naples the same kind of reception and hospitality was displayed, and altogether the visit of the fleet may be looked upon as another sign of the cordial relations existing, not only between the political heads of the two countries, but between their peoples also. At the same time that these friendly acts were taking place in Italy, the officers and men of the Blenheim and Charybdis, who had acted as an escort to the yacht conveying the Duke of Connaught to St. Petersburg, were being splendidly entertained by their confreres at Cronstadt. The Russian officers gave a reception, followed by a dance and a supper, on board the ironclad Gangut, and this hospitality was reciprocated by a similar function on board the Blenheim, to which the principal naval and military officers of the port and the officers of the foreign vessels present were invited.

The Admiralty Inspection.

This annual perambulation or stock-taking of the chief officials at Whitehall occupied a shorter space of time this year than is usual. Possibly this was owing to the circumstance that several of their Lordships had been round the yards recently and the visit on this occasion was therefore rather for the personal advantage of the First Lord. The progress made in some respects is very striking, in others not such as might have been expected and hoped for. During the administration of Lord Spencer 10 battleships were laid down in public and private yards. Of these vessels the Magnificent and Majestic are already in commission, and the Renown is ready for sea, and will, it is anticipated, be commissioned for this year's manœuvres. Of the remaining vessels, the Prince George, Hannibal, Jupiter, Mars and Victorious are in the water, while the Cæsar and Illustrious are still on the

stocks. The Victorious, which was laid down at Chatham in May, 1894, and launched in October, 1895, is fast approaching completion so far as the hull is concerned. Her armour-plating is virtually all in place. nearly 3,000 tons of Haveyed steel having been used in the process. The machinery is heing supplied by Messrs. Hawthorn, Leslie & Co., and although one of the cylinders had to be taken out, necessitating considerable pulling about, it is probable that this will not postpone the trials, and that by September the vessel will be completed. The Prince George at Portsmouth is similarly advanced, and should be completed a month earlier if all goes well. On the other hand, the remaining battleships have made comparatively little progress. As regards the cruisers of the Spencer programme, the Talbot, Eclipse, and Minerva are fairly advanced, and several of the Diana class have been delivered. The Powerful and Terrible too should both be in the dockyard hands by the dates fixed, one being already delivered at Portsmouth. Of the ships of the Arrogant class, that at Pembroke seems to be leading at present, but the forty odd vessels of the Goschen programme have not advanced much further than the laying off stage.

The Powerful" and "Terrible."

It is not too much to say that of late years no ship's trials have attracted so much interest as will these two important cruisers. Not only the various trials, but their subsequent performances at sea when attached, as it is said they will be, to the Channel Squadron, will be watched with the greatest interest and anxiety. The reason is not far to seek; the "battle of the boilers" so far as polemics and discussion in the Press or on the platform are concerned has resulted in a victory for the advocates of the water-tube and the defenders of the Admiralty, but it is now that the real test is to be applied which is to prove if theory is borne out by practice. The Terrible is the first of the pair to be ready, and has been delivered after sundry successful trials on the Clyde, to the authorities at Portsmouth by Messrs. J. & G. Thomson, her builders. Her unofficial trials took place on June 22nd and 23rd, and are reported to have been most satisfactory, a good omen for those which are to follow. Very interesting in connection with these trials are those of the Russian volunteer cruiser Kherson, to which we have already briefly alluded. This vessel is fitted with twenty-four Belleville boilers, of the same kind, therefore, as those in the British cruisers. These boilers were, on May 16th, subjected to what has been described as a severe test, for with indifferent coal and inexperienced stokers the vessel was kept under steam for eighteen hours, during which time in twelve hours she kept up an average speed of 19.6 knots. The report states that there was always an excess of steam, and that the engines worked better, while the power and speed increased as the trial progressed. This is of course merely corroborative evidence of the experience gained in the French Navy and Mercantile Marine, but it is worthy of note for all that. The Powerful should not be long behind the Terrible, and in these vessels the Navy should, by the early part of next year, receive a remarkable reinforcement and important accession of strength.

United States Navy.

If our own statement of progress with new ships does not present an altogether favourable appearance, that of some of our friends is not more encouraging. A recent official document, issued by the Chief Constructor of the United States Navy, shows that work on the new vessels has not been advancing so rapidly as might be wished. The battleships of last year's programme, the Kearsage and Kentucky-which, by the way, all the industrious compilers of naval statistics always pitch into the scale to weigh down the English beam, are not yet begun. Nor have the gunboats Nos. 10 and 13 (practically third-class cruisers) been yet laid down. Two other gunboats, Nos. 14 and 15, were at the time of the issue of the report only 8 per cent. constructed; and a torpedo boat, No. 8, had made as much progress. Still, two more gunboats, Nos. 11 and 12, were 11 per cent. advanced; and a submarine torpedo boat had 27 per cent. of her hull together, and it was hoped would be ready for launching this summer. Three other torpedo boats, not for submarine purposes, Nos. 3, 4, and 5, had advanced 38 per cent., and this completes the work on the stocks. Of vessels launched and named, the cruisers Nashville, Wilmington, and Delaware, at the Newport News Shipbuilding Co.'s works, are given a percentage of completions which varies in the several ships from 78 to 79. The Brooklyn cruiser is 80 per cent. completed, and is prac

Wight, and then ran down Channel until off Portland Bill. Here the course was reversed, and the vessel carried to the eastward until off Brighton, when she returned to Spithead. Within an hour of getting under way the indicated H.P. of 8,000 was attained, and this was subsequently increased to as much as 220 above the demand. The engines worked most smoothly, and without hindrance of any kind, the average temperature in the engine-room being 85 degrees. The following were the chief results of the trial:-Steam in boilers, 152 7 lbs.; vacuum, starboard, 25.7 in., and port, 26.5 in.; revolutions, 135.7; and total I.H.P., 8,220, with an air pressure of only 39 in. The average during the run was 19.2 knots.

French Types of Warships.

While Admiral Fournier in his brochure, the "Flotte Nécessaire," argues that one type of warships is sufficient for all purposes-and that type an improved Dupuy do Lome-the French Minister of Marine is also taking steps which indicate an unsettled state of mind in regard to this question. The latter official has recently addressed to officers in command of all men. of-war an instruction to furnish him with reports embodying their views as to the best type of war vessel for modern con. ditions of battle, and the character of the armament they consider it would most advisable to furnish their beau ideal of a fighting ship with. So far the replies of the French officers have not been made public, but Admiral Fournier's pet ship will hardly meet with any great favour amongst them after they have perused the critical article on the subject which appeared in the current number of Blackwood. His improved Dupuy de Lome is a vessel of 8,300 tons, with greater speed and range than his prototype, and a heavier armament, including two of the largest quick-firers (presumably of 9-in. calibre), and 6-in. Harveyed armour for her plating. These vessels are to cost £400,000 each, and to be built within two years. It is noteworthy that Admiral Fournier's objection both to armoured deck protection pure and simple, as in the Terrible, and to a narrow water-line belt, as in the Ruric, finds an echo in the circular of the Minister of Marine, who draws attention to the great importance of high explosive shells of large capacity, and their result on in sufficiently protected vessels. Another French writer refers to this tendency to spread vertical armour over the greater part of the hull, which is so apparent in projected construction on the other side of the Channel, and he maintains that owing to the comparative thinness of armour so distributed it will have to be abandoned. He affirms that high explosive shells of large calibre have passed through six inches of steel without bursting, and he advocates therefore thicker armour on the vital and more important parts of the ship.

The "Himalaya" Troopship.

This historic vessel, which for more than forty years did good work in transporting our troops and seamen all over the world, is now entering a new phase of her existence, one, perhaps, not less useful in its way than that for which she can no longer be employed. The first trip the Himalaya made for the Government was in February and March, 1854, when she carried the 93rd Highlanders, and detachments of Artillery, Engineers and Rifles to Malta. She had been doing passenger service for the P. & O. Co. before this date, and was not immediately purchased into the Naval service. She is now being converted by Messrs. Earle's, of Hull, into a coal hulk for Devonport. All her masts have been removed, and everything above the upper deck has been cleared away. The saloon cabins, lower deck, store-rooms, magazines, boilers and machinery, have also been taken out of her, thus affording a deep hold from the main deck downwards, which is subdivided by iron athwartship bulkheads into four large compartments, capable of containing 4,000 tons of coal. The main deck will also give storage for 500 tons, thus giving a total coal capacity of about 4,500 tons. It is said that the vessel is still in splendid condition and will last for many years to come, and that if a shipbuilder wished to turn out a similar ship now he could not do so, for he could not obtain iron of the same quality to do it with. The old figure-head of the ship, which represents an Indian chief, is to be preserved at Devonport Dockyard as a memento of the good work the Himalaya did on trooping and relief service.

New Ships for the Argentine and Brazil.

The Argentine Government have recently purchased from the

Italians two remarkably fine cruisers, one of which was built at Sestic Pinente, and the other by Messrs. Orlando at Leghorn. The San Martin, as she has been renamed, was originally the Varese. She is of 6,810 tons displacement, and is 328 ft. long, with 59 ft. 8 in. beam, and 23 ft. 3 in. draught of water. Protection is afforded by a 6 in. belt of Harveyed steel, and similar steel of the same thickness covers her turrets. Her protective deck is of 1.5 in. steel. The armament consists of two 9.8-in. breechloaders in turrets, ten 5·9-in., six 4.7-in. and 2.9-in., all these being quick firers. There are also twenty lighter pieces and two machine guns. The torpedo-tubes are five in number. Engines of 13,000 I.H.P. are expected to give her a maximum speed of 20 knots, and her normal coal storage is to be not less than 600 tons, which it is reckoned will give her a larger range of action. The Jose Garibaldi, a sister cruiser, has made satisfactory trials, and has been delivered to the Argentine representatives. Brazil, inspired doubtless by a desire not to allow its neighbour to obtain a superior Navy, is also showing activity in this direction. Several small armoured vessels and cruisers have been ordered from private shipbuilding firms in England and France, while at Kiel a German firm is constructing three torpedo gunboats for the same Power. One of these latter, which has been given the name of Caramura, has been launched. With a displacement of 1,030 tons, her length is 259 ft., beam 30 ft. 3 in., and draught of water 10 ft. 2 in. The armament this vessel will carry consists of two 4-in., six 2.2-in., and four 1·4-in. quick-firers. She has also three torpedo-tubes. It is expected that on trial she will develop a speed of 23 knots, for which purpose she is to be furnished with engines of 6,000 The Names of our Warships.

1.H.P.

The principle upon which the ships of Her Majesty's Navy are named has been called in question by Mr. Arnold Forster, M.P., who in the House of Commons interrogated the First Lord of the Admiralty on the subject. Mr. Arnold Forster directed his queries rather to the naming of some of the torpedoboat destroyers by too pacific sounding appellations than to the general question; but this has been raised in the correspondence which has since appeared in several quarters. It does seem, at the first glance, that such designations as Violet, Dove and Pilgrim, are rather inappropriate for destroyers, nor is the excuse made by Mr. Goschen that it is less troublesome to take old names out of the signal book than to add new, very sufficing. The truth is, names for destroyers have not been considered of any great importance, while those for the larger vessels have at least in many cases of late been selected because of the associations attaching to them. It is obvious to those who examine the cor. respondence on this subject that the majority of civilians do not, perhaps they cannot, regard this question with a Naval mind. In nine cases out of ten they want to commemorate some hero of their own selection, or have formulated some pet scheme by which the characteristics of a ship are to be made known to all and sundry by her name. Naval men want something entirely different: it is their wish that the crews of the ships shall be inspired by the sentiment that the names have already been rendered illustrious by connection with daring achievements and gallant deeds performed at sea. The civilian, when he reads that a vessel has been named Canopus, goes to his Lempriere or to some work on astronomy for information, when he should turn instead to his Naval history. He connects the Pickle with Crosse & Blackwell and not with Trafalgar and Nelson. This is the mistake underlying much of the civilian criticism on this point. Surely the Laming of the streets and roads should suffice for his purpose and the nomenclature of our ships of war be left to the men who are to fight in them.

Launching a French Cruiser.

The D'Entrecasteaux, a protected cruiser, one of the largest unarmoured vessels of the French Navy, was successfully launched at La Seyne, from the works of the Société de la Méditerranée, on June 11th. This vessel was designed by M. Lagaue, and has a displacement of 8,114 metric tons; her length is 393 ft. 8 in.; beam 58 ft. 6 in.; and a mean draught of water of 25 ft. 9 in. To give her the 19 knots speed which it is anticipated she will achieve, she is provided with two vertical triple-expansion engines of 13,500 H.P., steam being supplied to them by cylindrical double-ended boilers. In addition to a bunker capacity of 650 tons of coal, arrangements have been made allowing her to carry and use on occasion liquid fuel. The protection given consists

of a belt of 4 in. of steel, and the turrets in which are to be placed the heaviest guns will also be plated with 2.7 in. of the same material. The armament will consist of two 9.4-in. breechloaders, with twelve 5.5-in. and twelve 1-8-in. quick-firers. Six torpedo tubes are supplied, two of which will be submerged. It may be assumed that this vessel is for use on foreign stations in attendance on a fleet, as she is built of steel and sheathed. She has not the speed of the croiseurs-corsaires, which work up to 23 knots. The date for her delivery and completion is fixed early in 1897.

Navy Records Society.

The third annual meeting of this flourishing society took place on June 11th at the Royal United Service Institution, when Earl Spencer, who is its President, was able to give a most satisfactory report of its condition. The number of members is now 523, and we see among the names those of many distinguished engineers, who thus show their appreciation and interest in Naval history. During the past twelve months the Society has published and issued some particularly interesting and indeed

grasp the heart-strings of the ship, then a new lexicon is required to define his worth. If he falls beneath a maze of wrecked machinery, or within a blast of scalded steam, or sinks to death in the closed compartment, either he dies as heroes die, and his career has been honourable, or the world's ideal needs revision." Much the same argument is used by Mr. Ira Hollis, professor of engineering at Havard College, who points out that there never has been a secretary of the Navy with an insight into mechanical and technical matters, and holds this to be the reason that in a democratic country like the United States it has become necessary for the engineers to make a plea for recognition. Two other articles by Professor Aldrich, of the University of West Virginia, and Mr. Sims, of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, respectively deal with engineering problems and the repairs of warships after an action. The concluding article is by Mr. George Uhler, who warns the Navy that it cannot expect to recruit its engineering branch largely from the mercantile marine in time of war. Altogether this is a series of particularly instructive papers, which should be widely read and studied as a reflection of the

amusing books, throwing considerable light on the social life and manners of the old Navy. Among these may be mentioned "The Life of Captain Stephen Martin" (1666-1740), and "The Journal of Rear-Admiral Bartholomew James" (1752-1827). In these two volumes there are numerous delightfully characteristic sketches of the officers and seamen of the last century. As Earl Spencer said at the meeting, the history of the Navy is the history of the Kingdom, and therefore in producing naval records which had never been previously printed the Society is in reality making a very interesting contribution to the history of the United Kingdom itself. This year it is proposed to issue a couple of books which will give us an insight into life in the Navy in the reigns of Henry VII. and his son, from the "Navy Accounts and Inventories" of the period. For the present the Society's volumes are issued only to members and subscribers, and are not offered for general sale, but a sufficient stock is kept to enable Professor Laughton, the Hon. Secretary, to supply those already issued to new members.

The Engineer in Naval Warfare

In a recent number of the North American Review will be found an enthusiastic "symposium" upon the above subject, which should be interesting to many of our readers. Commodore Melville, Engineer-in-Chief U.S.N., writes:-"If the engineer is not worthy of official recognition, and of some of the emoluments of the naval service, as he stands in that magazine of death, with clear brain and steadfast courage, holding in his firm

spirit in which the engineering branch of the United States Navy regards its present position.

Entry of Engineer Students.

The names of the successful candidates who obtained the first twenty-seven places in an open competition examination for studentships in the engineer department of the Royal Navy have been published. These gentlemen, with three holders of service cadetships and seven colonial candidates, will enter the Royal Engineering College at Keyham immediately after the summer holidays, and will date their service seniority from July 1st. The following is the list.-Messrs. Herbert J. T. Jinks, Surrey; F. E. Dean, Sussex; J. A. T. Fielder, Strood; A. V. Sharpe, Malvern Link; J. L. Badham, West Meath; H. V. Whyham, Hants; S. B. Preston, New Brompton; H. W. F. Heneage, Bradford; W. D. Copplestone, Chester; B. Hocken, Plymouth; R. G. Morton, Deal; G. Bevis, Portsmouth; C. R. J. Rundall, Guernsey; H. J. A. White, Basingstoke; H. E. Hoare, Plymouth; W. G. Main, Portsmouth; J. F. Goldsmith, Dublin; A. C. Turnbull, Salisbury; H. Burt, Devonport; J. M. Walker, Cork; H. D. Bishop, Bournemouth; V. G. Le Mesurier, Cork; S. G. Nancarrow, Saltash; J. C. Joughin, Isle of Man; G. F. Coomber, Strood; W. J. Deans, Portsmouth; and R. Walker, Oxford. The examination was held simultaneously in April last in various centres in the United Kingdom. The service candidates are Messrs. A. O'Neil, Plymouth; P. L. Butt, Bristol; and E. Moore, Chatham. The names of the successful Colonial candidates do not appear in the list.