SUBMARINE VESSELS 



ship and destroying it, are as yet the creations of vivid 

 imaginations. For submarine marksmen, like all others, 

 require a fairly clear view of the target — even such a 

 huge target as a battle-ship — to direct their shots with 

 any degree of certainty. 



The greatest problem now confronting the sub- 

 marine navigator, therefore, is that of seeing without 

 being seen. At night, and at long ranges, this is not 

 difficult, as the little conning-tower, or tiny periscope 

 tube protruding above the waves, is not easily detected 

 even by strong searchlights, sharp eyes, and marine 

 glasses. But long ranges are of little use to the sub- 

 marine; and there is always another difficulty — the 

 leviathan battle-ship does not lie still waiting to be 

 stabbed by its sword-fish enemy, but keeps moving 

 about, twisting and turning, at a rate of from fourteen 

 to eighteen knots an hour, while the submarine can 

 only make about eleven knots when submerged. In a 

 stem chase, therefore, the submarine is one of the most 

 harmless of sea-monsters, in the open ocean. For 

 harbor work, however, the case is different. In some 

 recent tests the submarine boats made eighty per cent, 

 in hits while attacking moving vessels in a harbor at 

 night — a far higher percentage than is usually made by 

 surface torpedo boats under the same circumstances. 



At present the best solution of the problem of steer- 

 ing the partly submerged submarine is offered by the 

 use of a conning-tower elevated five or six feet above 

 the body of the submarine, which can be kept just 

 above the waves, and present an inconspicuous target. 

 The early Holland boats did not have this, although 

 ▼OL. VII. — 8 [113] 



