US News, H1 1900

[KWorld]

February 6, 1900 - Department of the Navy
The USN has announced a plan to rationalize the naming of it's ships.  Currently, any ship with larger than 6" guns is named for a state, while cruisers are named for cities and torpedo boats and torpedo boat destroyers are named for distinguished former sailors.  With the increasing size of the USN, this process is no longer tenable, soon there will be no states or even territories to name ships after.  A policy change, effective immediately, announced by Secretary of the Navy John D. Long, is moving the armored cruisers of the navy into the same classification as cruisers, and they will be named for cities, while the Arkansas-class monitors under construction will be named for Indian tribes.


March 18, 1900 - Washington, DC
The process of choosing the next President of the United States is clearly now underway, with the leaders of both parties jostling and testing their strength.  President McKinley seems likely to be re-nominated for the Presidency by the Republican Party, while the Democratic Party looks to see if any challengers to William Jennings Bryan emerge to prevent the stalwart of Free Silver and the working man from making a second run at the Oval Office.

[KWorld]

March 29, 1900 - Washington, DC
The Isthmian Canal Commission has reduced its areas of interest to 2: the Panamanian route, where the French attempt to build a canal has slowed to a crawl for the last decade, and the Nicaraguan route, where the route for such a canal was surveyed for the ICC's predecessor, the Nicaraguan Canal Commission.  Exploratory negotiations with both Panama and Nicaragua are on-going.

[KWorld]

January 19, 1900 - Seattle, WA

"Sir, sir, cable from Washington!"  The runner announced himself as he pushed into Robert Moran's office.  Moran frowned at the interruption, and moreso at the likelihood that it was yet another change order.  He had 2 battleships building in his shipyward over in Bremerton, the USS Maine and the USS Wisconsin, and the Navy had been sending him change orders since the day the contracts were awarded it seemed.  '12"/35s, no, 12"/40s, they're not ready yet but the dimensions are X, Y, and Z.'  'Harvey-process armor.  No, Krupp.'  Now what??

He took the telegraph sheet from the youngster who promptly scooted out of the room to wait.  On it, he read, "Add wireless station to both ships."

Oh, hell, one more change......

[KWorld]

February 19, 1900 - US Embassy, London, UK, evening

    Something most decidedly was up, the US Ambassador to the United Kingdom knew.  Reports were coming in from various parties that suddenly the RN was calling personnel to their ships, coaling, and loading ammunition in quantities unusual for peace time.  Ranking members of Parliament were being bundled off to meetings, when no meetings were seemingly scheduled, and not coming out.  He hadn't been officially informed of what was going on, but that might change at any minute.  ANd there was this recent rumor of an explosion on the royal yacht.

"Robert, a cable for Washington:  UK government in uproar.  STOP  RN coaling and loading ammunition.  STOP  No detail or official word yet.  STOP.  Rumors of explosion aboard Royal Yacht.  STOP  Am officially requesting word on status of HMG from Foreign Ministers office.  STOP"


February 19, 1900 - New York, evening

   The headline on the 1-page special edition blared in huge type: "QUEEN OF ENGLAND KILLED?  EXPLOSION ON ROYAL YACHT REPORTED."

[KWorld]

February 20, 1900 - Washington, DC

    "So, Mr. President, at this time we do not have official confirmation of the Queen and most of her heirs death, but the reports out of the UK are pretty conclusive.  The British appear to be believing that it was NOT an accident, that someone intentionally caused the explosion.  The RN is loading coal, cancelling leaves, and loading ammunition. "

    "But who would be behind such a dastardly plot?"

    "Our best guess, and that's all it is at this point, sir, is that it's probably the work of an anarchist or two.  This is the sort of thing they do, and do well.  If it was an anarchist, it won't be the first crowned head they've killed."

[KWorld]

January 20, 1900 - Washington, DC

President McKinley had called a Cabinet meeting after the news of the new Treaty of Paris was communicated to him by the Secretary of State.  Present were the President, Secretary of State John Hay, Secretary of the Navy John D. Long, and Secretary of War Elihu Root.


"So, what does this new treaty mean?  Have the Iberians gotten a bunch of allies that they're now coming back at us with?  Or is it directed entirely elsewhere?"

"Too early to say, sir.  At this point, the Ambassador to France has recieved assurances from France that it is not directed at us, but....."

"It's diplomacy, the fine art of saying nice things while picking up a rock, yes."

"Exactly."


"So we are agreed, this Treaty poses a threat, correct?"

The three Secretaries looked at each other and nodded, Secretary of State Hay more slowly than his comrades.  "Yes.  How much of a threat depends on whether there are any secret offensive codicils to the treaty, and any future decisions by the allies.  The alliance may CURRENTLY be focused elsewhere, for example towards the Dutch, French, and Iberian possessions in the Pacific, but that doesn't prevent it from becoming more of a threat to the US as the alliance matures."


"So, John, what's the Navy's thought on this?"


"Well, we hadn't really thought of the French as an adversary up to this point.  The French do have a pair of bases in the Caribbean, which they could operate out of in the event of a war.  The Dutch also have a port there, in Suriname.  The Iberians, since the war, have focused on ships that are as small as they can make them, short ranged and with low freeboard, similar to the coast-defence ships we were building at the beginning of the decade but even smaller.  The Dutch have some coast defense ships that we're unlikely to see and some long-ranged cruisers that we might.  In the event of a war, the French would be the primary threat, if they concentrate to meet us.  We might, again, need to pull some ships from the Pacific Fleet, unless we want to use them in a more forward fashion against various possessions around the Pacific."


"Elihu, the Army's thoughts?"


"Well, it looks like a very good thing we ordered those 12" coast guns last year, they're being sited and installed as fast as they can be delivered.  This has certainly put paid to the idea that had been floated of trying to buy a license for the new French 75mm field gun, as well, though I'm told our odds there were not good in any event.  We might want to accelerate some re-equipping in light of what we learned in Cuba, though: the Krags need replacement, as do our field artillery and the Gatlings.  On the artillery, we've already got a request out for interested manufacturers to provide samples for demonstrations this summer, but we may want to do the same for a replacement for the Gatlings once we figure out what cartridge a replacement for the Krag should use."

[KWorld]

March 13, 1900 - Washington, DC

The US War Department has contacted the German Mauser A. G. company about purchasing a patent license for the patents to it's Model 98, 96, and 93 rifles.  Should an agreement be reached, it appears that the replacement for the Krag-Jorgenson rifle will be based upon the design of the Mausers that so impressed the US Army and the Volunteers at San Juan Hill.

[KWorld]

March 19, 1900 - Washington, DC

The Secretary of War, Elihu Root, looked over the Army's field artillery wish list, which it hoped to get proposals from industry over the summer to fill.  It was a credible list, consisting of 4 different classes of weapons, ranging from light to heavy.  Certainly heavier field artillery guns existed, but they were special-purpose siege weapons, that the US Army did not see a great need for at this time.

US Army artillery desires:

3" quick-firing, recoil-system equipped field gun - rate of fire of around 15 rounds per minute, capable of firing shrapnel and HE projectiles of around 15 pounds weight, range of at least 7000 yards, towable by a 6-horse team.  This gun would replace the older 3.2" black powder field gun.

4" quick-firing, recoil-system equipped howitzer – rate of fire of around 10 rounds per minute, capable of firing shrapnel and HE projectiles of around 30 pounds weight, range of at least 7000 yards, towable by a 6-horse team.

4.7" quick-firing, recoil-system equipped field gun – rate of fire of around 2 rounds per minute, capable of firing shrapnel and HE projectiles of about 60 pounds weight, range of at least 10,000 yards, towable by an 8-horse team.

6" quick-firing, recoil-system equipped howitzer – rate of fire of around 2 rounds per minute, capable of firing shrapnel and HE projectiles of about 100 pounds weight, range of at least 7,000 yards, towable by an 8-horse team.

Bore sizes and rates of fire are approximate, a deviation of up to 15% from these nominal numbers up or down is acceptable.  Shell weights and ranges are minimums, but exceeding these values is welcome. 

[KWorld]

April 4, 1900 - Watervleit, NY

Out on the firing range, a deep "BOOOOOOM" rumbled.  Near the test stand, the air trembled to the concussion and the spring birds flew away crying their complaint.  Smoke from the blast rose and dispersed in the breeze.  On the concrete pad, not far at all from the rail line, sat a massive gun mounted on a test stand, it's stubby barrel still smoking.  Two men came forward from the proof bunker and examined it, then another 5 came out and looked it over.

"Colonel, what is that?  I'd think it was a coast gun, but the barrel's too short."

"It's a 10" howitzer.  In the right mounting, it could be used for coast defence, but for that you might want a 12" version, firing a shell weighing almost half a ton way up into the sky.  No ship in the world could keep that from penetrating its decks.  This is a proof piece, to test out the new forges and drilling machinery, mostly.  In a field mounting, which hasn't been designed, it could be a siege weapon, for tearing open forts and so on.  But you'd need a LOT of horses to move it, and a crane to assemble it.  That's why it's here, where we could assemble it from the railway."

[KWorld]

April 6, 1900 - Newport, RI

As is usual in militaries after the completion of a war, the US Naval War College had, since the end of the Iberian-American War, been studying the conflict to glean the pearls of wisdom, both false and true, from it's events.  The Battle of Santiago de Cuba had been gamed out 6 times since the war, using both the historical forces and start positions and times and alternate set-ups.  Hypothetical Battles of Manila had also been gamed out, with varying forces.  Now, with the spring term underweigh, it was time to look forwards, or so it seemed.

The next exercise was another Battle of Manila, but this time the date was set as 1904, allowing the use of the US fleet as it was coming to be, rather than the New Navy it had been.  The heavier defenses installed by Iberia since the Iberian-American War would need to be taken into account, as would possible intervention from the nearest French and Dutch fleets.  The officers assigned to command those fleets were frantically reading up on their new commands, learning about fleets that the US Navy had not considered as adversaries since the 1790s (in the case of the French) or ever (in the case of the Dutch).  The Royal Navy was assumed to be neutral in this conflict, as they had been in the previous war, but the Imperial Japanese Navy was a wild card in the affair, there was no way to know what role their government would choose to play in such an event (in 1898, with the lack of action in the Pacific, no decision had needed to be made beyond neutrality).  Two IJN officers, Lieutenant Commander Sano Tsuneha and  Lieutenant Akiyama Saneyuki, had just arrived at Newport for the spring term and would be assigned the command of their home navy's squadron if it was activated for the games.

[snip]

That same day, United Kingdom embassy:

The receptionist sitting behind the desk facing the doors leading out onto the streets of Washington was doing her level best to whittle away the remaining time of her shift. The sound of footfalls pulled her nose out of the book it had been buried in and she hurriedly tried to look engaged in some paper shuffling. Just as she hid the book away on her lap, two Royal Navy officers turned the corner continuing the conversation they had been having. Idly watching over her note shuffling, she saw a not insignificant amount of money pass from the more senior officer to the junior. The only fragment of the conversation she overheard was "Make them talk". Salutes were then exchanged, and the officers parted company. After the coast was again clear, the book resurfaced from under the desk and the receptionist began reading again while twirling a lose lock of hair with a index finger. Five-o-clock could not come fast enough.

[KWorld]

April 8, 1900 - Washington, DC

      The US Army has released a request for proposals for a new machine gun for the US Army, to replace the .45" Gatling guns that currently equip the army.  The Army would like any company or individual who would like to enter a proposal to provide estimated costs and weights for a gun using a .30" rimless cartridge of somewhat longer but otherwise similar dimensions to the 7mm x 57 Mauser cartridge.  As the cartridge is not yet definitized, examples cannot be provided, but cartridge overall length is expected to be under 3.4".  Estimated weights are to be provided with and without mount, and with and without water (where applicable).  Proposals will be accepted through June 30 of 1901.

[Obviously, the US Army is not in a great hurry here, but until it settles on it's new rifle cartridge, it really can't get too serious on this front.]

[KWorld]

    Jim Field, the junior draughtsman at William Cramp & Sons shipyard in Philadelphia looked at the blueprint and wondered, "Is that right?  Certainly seems odd to have the upper 6" turret more heavily armored than the lower 10" turret."  But there on the blueprint, plain as day, the armor thickness covering the upper turret on the new USS Pittsburgh was specified as 8" and 6", while the 10" turret below was specified as 6" and 4".  He was in charge of making copies of the blueprints, so that the work crews would have them when they needed them, but this looked off.

    He went down the hall, up the stairs and knocked on the door of Alvis Archer, the engineer in charge of the armaments on Pittsburgh.  Archer's voice came through the door, "Come in."  Jim opened it, and gulped a bit inside.  It wasn't just Alvis, a mild-mannered fellow.  No, it was the Man himself, Mr. Cramp, who was NOT mild mannered, looking at him as he held the rolled up print.  "I can come back....."  Mr. Cramp shook his head, "No, go ahead, I expect you won't be long, Mr ....?"    "Fields, sir, Jim Fields, junior draughtsman."  "Right, go on then."

    Jim carried the print over to Alvis' drafting table and rolled it out, then pointed to the upper turret.  "I was getting ready to work on the first copy of this print and found something that struck me as odd, so I thought I'd check with Mr. Archer to see if it was correct."  As Alvis leaned over to look at the upper turret, Jim could see Mr. Cramp slowly turning red.  "See, Alvis, the upper turret armor vs the lower turret armor.  Is the upper turret supposed to be better armored than the lower?"  At that, Mr. Cramp blinked, and came over to look himself.  Alvis shook his head.  "No, it's not.  Let me think....." he paused, then he looked at Mr. Cramp, who nodded.  "Pittsburgh should have had 6" and 4".  The 6" side armor might be a carry over from the Nebraska, she has 6" side armor on the upper turrets, but the 8" front.... that's just a mistake on the drawing."  Mr. Cramp nodded, and put out his hand.  "Good catch, Jim.  Carry on."


[Basically, as I was drawing up Minsk for the Russians, I noticed an error in the Pittsburgh design.  The above is the yard catching it.  I'm not going to adjust my turn over 44 tons, though, just assume the 8" plate has to scrapped causing the (by the new design) cost overrun.]

[KWorld]

June 3, 1900 - Washington, DC

      The office of the head of the USN's Bureau of Ordnance was hot and stuffy, since the summers day was hot, humid, and there was very little breeze.  But Admiral O'Neal had an example to set, so he was resplendent in his white summer uniform.  "Now, this entry on the agenda, the 7" gun.  Why is it proposed?"

      Commander Hilton answered, "Sir, the intent is to provide the largest gun suitable for rapid fire and manual loading.  Such a gun could replace the current 5" and 6" guns wherever weight and recoil allows."

      "Mmmmm.  According to the proposal, the expected weight of shell is 165 pounds.  That is too much for 1 man, surely?"

      "For an untrained man, yes.  For a trained man, it is thought to be about the most that could be asked.  Using a shell of that weight would give the 7" gun an advantage of 60 pounds over the 6" gun, and 115 pounds over the 5" gun."

       "So.....  Is this gun intended to be employed on cruisers, or on battleships?"

      "Either, sir.  A cruiser of similar design to Montgomery, for instance, might replace her shielded 6" guns with 7" guns and keep her 4" guns, while a battleship similar to Nebraska might replace her 6" guns in the upper turrets with the 7", whether or not she replaced her casemate 6" with the 7"."

     "Mmmmmm.  So, both armor-piercing and common should be provided, I expect?"

     "Certainly, sir."

     "Very well."  The Admiral signed a sheet of paper and gave it to the Commander.  "Approved."

[KWorld]

June 8, 1900 - Washington, DC - The White House

"So, John, what's this about movement on the Central American Canal?"

"Mr. President, we've received a positive response to our proposal from the government of Nicaragua, and they seem eager to get down to brass tacks so that work can begin."

"Any word from Colombia?"

"No, sir, not as yet."

"In that case, get the exact terms hammered out with the Nicaraguan government.  If Colombia wants the canal, they'd best get their hat in the ring, time waits for no man.  Once we have a treaty, it will need to go to the Senate for ratification, and the sooner the better.  Oh, and let the Steering Committee know that the Nicaraguan government has agreed to the broad parameters of a treaty for a ismthian canal and what those parameters are."