TWO FLEETS THAT MAY FIGHT.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1784, 24 June 1913, Page 6

TWO FLEETS THAT MAY FIGHT.

JAPAN & AMERICA. THEIR HITTING POWER GAUGED,

[By Gyho.]

Recent symptoms of hostility between Jopan and tho United States have naturally awakened interest in tho question: In tho event of war how would the navies of these two nations compare? The purpose of this article is to disclose tho exact fighting coefficient of cach.

Fifteen or twenty years ago, when Sir William White used to design types of ships as .symmetrical as a regiment of Prussian soldiers (other nations copying) comparisons wero easy. It was in fact sufficient to add up tho tonnage of a fleet, or its primary guns, or some such simple operation, and the thing was done. Now, however, when the.number of types of ships are almost as numerous as the ships themselves the .arithmetic of the thing has become more intricate.

In making a comparison nowadays, all that can be done is to suppose and figure out tho case in. which fleets engage beam to beam at some such range as 8000 yards, for tho baffling situations which arise in tho case of end-on, echelon, and 1 bow and quarter actions transcend all figures. Even for beam action, which is the simplest of all kinds of naval battle, on accurate comparison is not so easy as it seems—there arc so many types and calibres of naval guns, and so many styles of deck plans. Very much depends on whether a ship has all her heavy guns mounted on tho centro line or not. If she has, then it is immaterial to her captain which side of him tho enemy looms up on: all his guns can bear either way. Tho best of the American ships are "centro liners," so, in working out their fighting coefficients it is safe to count in every heavy gun. On the other hand, the Japanese ships are nearly all "non-centre liners," and, for the purposes of action on the beam, a certain number of euns have to be cut out of the calculation altogether, since they would bo masked by funnels, superstructures, etc. Thus, ia the case of such a type as tlio Japanese battleship Kawachi, we havo a deck plan showing twelve 12-incli guns. Out of these, however, she can only bear eight on either beam, and the same.drawback is visible in the deck plans of Scttsu, Aki, and other Japanese ships. Of course they gain something by this arrangement of guns also, but that is another story. Tho foregoing is one feature which must bo borne in mind in making, o comparison. between two navies. It is also very noCessary not to lose sight of the. fact that nothing in naval artillery of less calibre than an 8-inch'gun is likely to be of much use against armour at a range of SOOO yards-so all the 6-inch and 7.5-inch guns have to be cut out, useful as they may bo in the last stages of a fight, when the battle has already been lost or won by the fire of their heavier brethren.