A cruiser is a vessel built to secure speed and fuel capacity at the expense of armor and battery strength.

The modern cruiser may be regarded as the offspring of the frigate of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The later construction has been designed for a minimum speed of twenty-five knots an hour, with a possible attainment of thirty knots or over, under favorable conditions.

The battleship and one form of cruiser were evolved from the conflicting opinions of two opposite schools of design. The battleship is the expression of the thoughts of those who stood for extremely developed battery power, great thickness of armor plate, and moderate speed. The cruiser is the result of the triumph of those who contended for high speed at the sacrifice of heavy armor protection and excessive battery strength.

The armored cruiser was the particular development of the antagonistic views prevailing among naval architects. The type of this class in the United States navy was the "Brooklyn," which figured prominently in the war with Spain in 1898.

Recently the armored cruiser has been superseded by the battle cruiser. The armor protection in this type of ship is much lower than that of the battleship, while the ordnance, on the other hand, is practically the same. High speed, wide radius of action and great battery strength are the characteristics of this type; and to meet these requirements the battle cruiser is planned of a size considerably larger than the battleship. . .

The protected cruiser is a later development of naval construction. Its distinguishing features are certain modifications in the distribution of the mass of protective armor of the ship.

Light cruisers are vessels of from 1,500 to 7,500 tons, used in scouting, as commerce destroyers, et,. They are outside the armored class.

Sinking of the German Cruiser "Bluecher".

This most dramatic photograph of the Great North Sea Battle, in which the British fleet was victor, January 24, 1915, shows the death agony of the German cruiser "Bluecher" just as she turned turtle and sank. The ship is shown lying on her side with her machinery and armament shot into masses of twisted iron and steel, great fires raging forward, amidship and aft.

Copyright by the International News Service.

Photo by Underwood & Underwood, N. l. UNITED STATES BATTLESHIP "OKLAHOMA".

One of the latest types or super-dreadnaught is here shown, racing along at 20 1/2 knots an hour on a speed test. This great warship is a sister-ship of the "Nevada." Her displacement is 27,500 tons, her engines develop 28,000 horsepower and she is armed with ten 14-inch guns in her four turrets, twenty-one 5-inch and four 3-pounders, together with four 21-inch Torpedo Tubes. She cost over $6,000,000.