THE GREAT CRUISER INDOMITABLE.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXX, Issue 424, 15 August 1908, Page 4

THE GREAT CRUISER INDOMITABLE.

The Prince of Wales, on his recent visit to the tercentenary celebrations at Quebec, made the Atlantic crossing on the nation’s greatest cruiser, “the Mystery ship,” the Indomitable. She is one ofjthree sister ships, the other two being the Invincible and In flexible which were voted in 1905, but not laiddown till 1906, and which are to all cruisers of the past what the Dreadnought is to all earlier battleships.

On the return to Cowes the Prince of Wales and other officers assisted the stokers. The vessel averaged 25.13 knots, and frequently exceeded 26 knots. She is at once the fasted, the largest, and the most heavily armed cruiser afloat; indeed, in many respects she resembles a fast battleship rather than a cruiser. Begun some months later than the Dreadnought and built much more slowly, she embodies many improvements upon that famous ship. The first point to notice is the immense power of her artillery. She carries eight huge 12in guns, each 45ft long, and each capable of firing an 8501 b shell twice in the minute. These guns are mounted in pairs in four turrets, and the turrets are so arranged that all the eight big guns can fire on either broadside, and six of them ahead or astern. As in the Dreadnought, there is some risk of the turrets injuring one another. To meet this danger special alarm trumpets are fitted in the turrets, which sound when there is any obstruction in the line of fire. The word “ danger ” appears, and the trumpet emits a note which no one can mistake, even in the tremendous din of battle.

The guns are directed from firecontrol stations, which are duplicated, one on each mast, the details of the system being absolutely confidential. Some idea of the blast and the force of these guns can be gained from this fact—that during her trials two of the amidship turret guns were trained right ahead and fired simultaneously. A boat was hanging on the davits, well out of the actual path of the projectiles, but in the track of the blast of gas which accompanies them. After the shots had been fired the boat was left a mass of matchwood, lying on the deck. The projectiles from these mammoth guns will pierce 4ft sin of solid iron placed close to the muzzle. At s,oooyds they will penetrate with ease 14m of the best and strongest steel armour now made.

Besides her eight big guns, the Indomitable carries sixteen 4m guns for the purpose of meeting torpedo boat attack. Eight of these are mounted, two on the top of each turret, and the other eight on the upper works. The engines of the Indomitable are of the Parson turbine type, developing over 41,000 horse-power the most powerful ever put into a British warship. They drive four screws, and on her recent official trials, which were carried out under war conditions, propelled her at a rate in excess of 25 knots. The turbine engines run smoothly and almost without attention ; indeed, it is said that the engine room staff in these new turbine vessels have so little to do when running at high speed that there is danger of the men going to sleep. Truly an enormous change from the reciprocating engine which had always to be watched with the closest attention when the machinery was working at full power.

The Indomitable displaces 17,250 tons, and is 530 ft long, so so that she is the longest vessel in the Royal Navy’ She has armour of Krupp steel jin thick on her side, or sufficient to defeat the attack at battle range of any guns under the loin weapon. Her turrets are ot yin steel. All her equipment is of the latest pattern. She has a long-distance wireless signalling installation, which will exchange signals at distances up to 600 or 700 miles, and for shorter-distance signalling the very powerful form of flashing searchlight devised by Sir Percy Scott. With this, messages can be rapidly sent to a range of 30 miles. The immense advance in signalling which the last 12 years have witnessed, will be understood when it is remembered that in 1896 there was no form of signal fitted in warships which could be trusted to send messages more than ten miles with any certainty. In external appearance the Indomitable, with her two masts of even size, is a more gracefullooking shu; than the Dreadnought, and her effect on naval construction has already been remarkable.

In Germany two gigantic and even more powerful cruisers are now being built of her special type, while Japan is also constructing cruisers of the same general design. It is gratifying to British national pride to reflect that she represents the conception of British gemus, and that the highest compliment to her qualities is being paid by those who are copying her many novel features.