DREADNOUGHT £.s.d.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 161, 29 June 1908, Page 4

DREADNOUGHT £.s.d.

WHAT JACK TAli COSTS JOHN HUih Our Navy co*t just under thirty-three | million* for the liuancial year lately closed. An enormous sum; Vet. says a Home paper, considering that our protect over sixteen million tons oi shipping, it is not a eostiy insurance. Il is only ±i:»]>er cent. .Japan spend* 5 per cent.: Hermans' II per cent.: and the I'niled State* no lc*s than -Jo per cent, for a similar purpose. \\V hear a great deal of the enormous expense of building new battleships. It is true that the new ships, like the Dreadnought and Temeraiiv. are tremendously costly. Heady for *ca. they average out at Cl.750.001) apiece, an I the present value of our Navy in hard cash U put by- experts at ):>3V ; . millions. RinM AN ADMIRAL DOWN.

Hill is 11' it in eonstriielion I hat Ilio money £»<■<. It is ill upkeep. Our -liip-s ;m- manned liy nearly UIIJIIH) ollicers ami liicn. ami we liave also Hll.oOO Ma l ines. These have to be paid, ami die 1111'u victualled. Tlieiv is also to lie considered the cost of coal. of stores, and of repairs. to say liolhinj; of fiuns ami ammunition.

Take a vessel of the newest type — (lie Dreadnought—which hits III.ODH tons displacement and a sea of il knots.

Hit full complement is allium ei»ht hundred - a comparatively small number, -eeinu' that uUli-r ;ilid much smaller vessels of (tir Royal Suviwign pla-* r»>over Novell bundled 111011. A vessel like tin' Dvcsnliiou^lil has ;iii ilrllllifill aboard her. whose pay is C 1 a year. I[l •l" <;\] it ain "els nvi'r Cllilll. includiiij; allowance. and licr two commanders L' 100 apiece. Nile has about a dozen lieutenants. who manage various <t<'|i:ir(iiu'i)I ~ —navigation, ginnery. torpedoes. ete. -and their combined pay i-. roughly. tisnn. lies- half-dozen engineer officers arc rather belter paid. They take i: 1 tiOO between l belli. Ulfi.niio |X PAY AI.OXK. She ha - a chaidain. two doctors, a naval instructor, accountant oHieers. a pa\ ma-ter. and lii> stall. i.liere are four warr.iiit-o(Tii-er>. who each draw' about, IT2O a year: a mimber of midshipmen. or naval cadets; a sick-bay stall', carpenters and artisans, cooks and domestics, bandsmen and ship's police: besides all Ihe petty-ollicers. seamen.

boys, eniiine-i'ooni artificers, and stokers. She carries also Marines, both artillery and lijil infantry. So it is not wonderful that the totai pav-voll exceeds C4IJ.(100 a year. The cost of victualling varies very

"really in clilt'ercnt places. In -nine places' you can buy lieef as cheaply as 3d a pound; in others—sncli as Ascension—it costs 2s (Id a pound. The men nowadays gets live meals a ady, if yon include the early-morning cocoa. t'ntil lately they bail three only. hi round lijiures, the feeding of the Dreadnought's crew costs CIS.IHHI a veal'. Coal is, of course, an item 'which depends upon the distance travelled, and the speed. Although the Dreadnought's turbines can drive her through the water at twenty-lour mill's an Injur, she u-ually travels at all economical ei'llisiii;: spccj of about (en knots, Kvett so. the 27U0 lon- of best Welsh -which her vast bunkers contain will carry lie;' only 5SIII) sea miles. IJesjdes the vast amount which sbc Uses for »t earning. she needs coal for distilling. for makiilu' electric lieht. and lor tiie pumping and other auxiliary en

grilles, of which she lias no fewer than "lil aboard her. The coal costs about CI a ton. and the bill lor fuel-coal and oil toiretlivr--comes lo about the same as thai lor victuallinu'. The value of the ship like jhr Dreadnought i- ;»1 nmt i L'l-'Uiiii). Slui'i's im-liiili' painl, ]"n|u\ Inl>ric:iiinp' nil. lioal-. fooU, furors, etc. Tin- ainounl u«m| \ early would amount t" iilmul CTOim). A«l,I UiOlin for d<'|.r.cinlitm. ami tho >iijivs liuiuv out ni. XI3.00(1 a vear. amjttxtttok a bki item. Ammunition i- ii"t <oiin(<'d anions -l'o'v-s. lu ilif-i: day-. of keenly-i'oin-j»' titi\ta) ici». <vorv >}» ip in a s(|Hiulron U trying to wipe i\v<\ {lie larQet-prneliee alkrwaneo lar-Tf. Tin 1 1 dtpmiulH. |i,»-u-iH Ul-.OIHI apircc. 'i'll lil'l- ;l Millie -\\n[ frulll Olle Of fillip \V(';| pOIIS C'U-1 > 150 llian CSi). Then l arc ai-o a number uf . '|uirk-fnvr<. and other >malk'r jjmis; ;i ml 1111 it f" .L\")00 Jut - tt> lie itlluwcd for ritlp-c.irlmlfro* for small-arm prsiLlice. Torpedoes cms! .LoOI) apiece, aii'l a ••hip usually lose* ill lea>t one in tli, 1 i-ouim- of a year. Eighteen tljon>and ponmU i< Hio lo\vo>l wlur-li you can pnl. iliai our- iioin-anummilioii.' repairs atv ahvav.~ a hijf imiltrr: luif <ln\v vary so <!')vafly from year to year itial. it. IanyHiinp' like a eorri'ci A .•! onr-s on an um'har(<'d vock. ami. like Coninionwcahh. knocks a in Imt \v)jic|i you r-onl/] ili'ivc a ra 1> IJr-ull. monllis in il»<-k. anil ati r\p<'Hflii inv of C7li.(lliu r»r L'SO.iiiin, AiiMiiirr .H'M'x tli a yea!' willi <oily <iiic ordinary doekiiiLr. and nil will, L'-'pHH i,i' Ciiono.

TWKXTY VK A lIS OF LFK I Tin- lit'f of a modern stool ' hattlc-lii|i i- iml. tit ilic niiUiilc. niniv : f It;! II (uVftty yc:M'-. .Ami at t)l<' flld (if that lini' l a fetches. <,l,i Iron. *o tiic Admiralty has to allow 5 per :<mh t'.ir <l«')»«-ci;uioii. In t) h , n f a or an Inili'XiMc. tlu< menus tlie vani-iinK' of eST.nnil a yt\\r. file !i-i N ami ineontj(J s >i<». FoherUon. a «|iie*tion in IMrlumieni fit Hip lM»niiiniii«; nf the |nv*eiil yi-ar. Nii«l tlta( li.' wi"'ii\c<l ~u|- Itic cost 'if ;i I>af!l<'-iiip. iuclu.litiL' cXi-r\-{]<intr. ;U I a vciirr while oven a ilesiroy- I '■r L'l7.--)i'U a year out of dm nr ti'ina! ('\r!)i'i|nfr.