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She was, however, found to be of little value, drawing too much water to serve for harbour defence, and not being handy enough at sea in manoeuvring. Turret-ships, as first constructed, were very heavily, armoured, and in consequence rather unseaworthy.
Does not the epigram on our war-ships our "sub-marine fleet" owe its point and sting, in a measure, to its truth? Of the various types of modern war-vessels, the most formidable yet devised are undoubtedly the steam-rams and turret-ships.
To which it may be answered, first, that the masted ships must inevitably draw more water than those of which the Cyclops and Hecate are types. Turret-ships like the Monarch, or broadside-ships like the Hercules and Sultan, draw about twenty-five feet of water; the smaller ships only sixteen, while at the same time they are more heavily armoured.
Being intended for coast defence only, they always had a harbour available in bad weather, and sails were not required as they were never far from a coal supply. In 1869, however, Sir Edward Reed designed the first sea-going turret-ships, properly so-called, taking the bold step, as it seemed then, of providing no sails.
Both turret-ships and steam-rams are, of course, iron plated. Vessels of this description were first employed by the Americans in the great civil war. The careers of the Merrimac and Monitor may be said to have become a part of American national history. The Merrimac was the first iron-plated steam-ram. She was originally a wooden frigate; was cut down, coated with iron, and furnished with a ram.
It will thus be seen that these turret-ships are practically stronger in defensive equipment than any other class of ironclad cruisers. The battery of these vessels is surrounded by a breastwork six feet in height, plated with nine-inch armour. Entrance is gained to the turrets themselves from inside this breastwork.
In the other line were cupola or turret-ships; iron-clads, with four or five huge guns, armoured screw frigates, and screw corvettes, and rams hideous to look at, but formidable monsters and gun-boats innumerable, like huge beetles turned on their backs, each with a single gun capable of dealing destruction on the proudest of the ancient line-of-battle ships.
The armour on the sides was 2 feet thick, and the vessel was divided into 135 compartments, so that she would not be readily sunk. The Inflexible was the last of the turret-ships properly so-called.
"Gaze at yonder sight, ladies and gentlemen; it will probably be the last time you will see the ancient and modern fleets of Great Britain placed in juxtaposition. All those magnificent three-deckers will be cut down into turret-ships, as the Royal Sovereign has been treated, or be broken up as useless, unable to contend with the smallest gun-boat afloat."
Instead of developing individually into huge proportions, the human race tends rather to aggregate into vast empires, which compete with one another by means of huge armaments, and invent mitrailleuses and torpedos of incredible ferocity for their mutual destruction. The dragons of the prime that tare each other in their slime have yielded place to eighty-ton guns and armour-plated turret-ships.
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