5th Aug.
THE 27th of June last was a great day on the Tyne, for on the evening of that day tivo monster vessels were launched from the yards of Sir W. G. Armstrong, Whitworth & Ca., Ld. The one, the Hatsuse, was a gigantic battleship for Japan; the other, the Aflantian, merchant steamer built for the West Indian and Pacific Ca. of Liverpool. The one is a messenger of War, the Fury dreaded by all. the other 2 messenger of Peace, the goddess whom we-are all supposed to adore. The mission of the one is to destroy not only as many lives and as much: property as possible, but. also the commerce which the other is built. to promote. Yet it requires we columns of small type in the Vewcustle Daily Journal to chronicle the launch of the destroyer, with the names of all the celebrities who attended to do her honour; while the launch of the peacefial commerce-promoter missed in three or four lines, This is one of the ironies of life.
And yet: this is a superficial view after The Hatsuse may well.claim that if she is one of the most powerful destroyers afloat, she is equally powerful as a_commieree-prorector, and that but fur the existence of herself and her consorts, the great fleet of merchant steamers which Japan has acquired in the last few years would be as helpless as a flock of sheep whose shepherds had no dogs to defend them from the wolves. All residents in the Far East are deeply interested in the growth of Japan's navy. We are charged with having in this column on the Ist when writing on the projected alliance between China and Japan, thrown cold water on the efforts of Japan to come to the rescue of China and prevent the dismemberment which must inevitably follow the aggression of Russia. But that article only gave one aspect of the question: it was an endeavour to show that the projected alliance would fail from the weakness of China; that Japan is hardly yet strong enough to carry through the regeneration of such a disintegrated anomaly as China has become in the face of the jealousy of the Western Powers. If Lord Salisbury could be persuaded to show a little boldness and consistency, to realise that Japan is only too anxious to ce-operate with England in supporting the better elements that still exist in China in resistance to farther aggression on the part of Russia, who would draw back at once at the first show of determination, and who is even now consumed with anxiety lest Japan should find a backer, and making a frantic endeavour to detach the United States from her friendship with England, there would be a great and salutary change in the situation, We must hope that when the vaal question is settled, as it bids fair to be, some of the stronger men who surround Lord Salisbury will {get him to turn his attention to {China, and make him change his present policy of drift and " graceful concession." " Meanwhile, we at least feel no jealousy of Japan, and are honestly' pleased to see her rapidly acquiring from English and American shipyards a navy which will enable her to speak with a voice that must be listened to in Far Eastern matters. As Mr. Arakawa, the Japanese Consul-General in London whose wife christered the Hatsuse, said at the launch: "A strong navy was the best guarantee of peace, and of that he was prepared to say that: England was the best example inthe world.
The Hatsuse, built at Elswicl one of four battleships of our Mujestic class, recently ordered by Japan from British shipyards. The other three are the Shikishima, built on the Thames, which has already arrived in Japan, another build: ing by Messrs. Vickers at Barrow, and the Asahi, recently launched at Clydebank. The Hufsuse is the heaviest vessel ever launched on the Tyne. She is 400 feet in length, 76 feet 6 inches in breadth, and 43 feet 11 inches in depth. Her mean draft is 27 feet, and her displacement 15,000 tons. She is to be armed with four 12-inch Dbreech-loading guns twin-mounted in barbettes; fourteen 6-inch quick-firing guns, all in casemates, six on upper deck, and eight on main deck; twenty 12-pounder quick-firing guns, eight on main deck, four on upper deck, and eight on shelter decks; eight 3-pounders; four 24-pounders; and five torpedo tubes. She has a complete armoured belt nine inches thick for a length of 220 feet amidships, and gradually reduced to four inches at the ends. Above this there is a citadel extending for 220 feet along the side amidships of G-inch armour, and bulkheads at the ends extended at the centre line to enclose the barbettes. The machinery is of twin-screw vertical triple expansion type to develop) 14,500 indicated horse-power, and the speed guaranteed is 18 knots. Belleville boilers of the latest type are used. Capacity is provided for 1,690 tons of coal, of which 700 tons are carried on the normal draft. Accommodation is provided for an admiral, 60. officers, and 670 petty officers and men. This isa modern first-class battleship, which it is hoped will never have to display her Sighting qualities in earnest, and which, as science marches constantly on, will be obsolete no-one knows in how many years. Perhaps we may here make a quotation from the speech made by Mr. Watson-Armstrong at the launch in returning thanks for the toast of the Armstrong Company. He said:—
"Elswick had now built many powerful battleships for Japan, but none more powerful than the Hutsuse, and they felt confident that she would worthily uphold the credit of her builders alongside of the Yoshino, Yashima, Tukusago, and others, and bring fresh laurels and renown to the brave and skilful seamen of Japan. Tu conclusion, let him say that peace was now recognised as the greatest of blessings: and an international conference is at present discussing as to how best it could be secured. But he was confident that nothing could have so great a moral effect on the world as to see England and Japan, the great'island Powers of the West and of the East, fully armed and equipped in unconquerable strength to uphold their common. interest. He trusted that their proceedings that day might have a very marked effect in bringing about that very desirable result."
And to illustrate that Peace hath her victories no less renowned than War, though they do not get so much attention in the Press which takes its cue from the Public, it was casually mentioned at the banquet that followed the launch, that at the same moment there was sent into the Tyne from another of Armstrongs' yards one of the largest merchant vessels ever launched on that river, all that was said of her being that she was 500 feet in length and would carry over 11,000 tons.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.