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BATTLESHIP AND ARMOR BIDS. Proposals for the construction of the two. big battleships of 20,000 tons au- thorized by congress at its recent ses- sion were opened last week at the navy department. There were only four bidders, the Fore River Ship Building Co., of Quincy, Mass.; the Cramps Co., of Philadelphia; the New- port News Ship Building & Dry Dock Co., of Newport News, Va., and the New York Ship Building Co., of Cam- den, No J; Altogether, they submitted 15 bids for the various classes, including the department's designs and, those sug- gested by the bidders. Between the highest and the lowest bids there is a difference of more than $1,100,000, and while this is surprising to the depart- ment, it is no more so than the fact that the general average of the bids is so low. The Newport News company under- bid its competitors by many hundreds of thousands of dollars, and it is proba- ble that this company, will get one of the big ships, and that the other will go to the Fore River company, which was the next lowest bidder. The bids as opened are as follows: Fore River company--Department's designs, $4,400,000; class 3, builder's designs, turbines, to be delivered in 34% months, $4,- 377,000. Cramps' company--Department's designs, $5,- 100,000; classes 3 and 4, builder's designs, 36 months' delivery, speed 21 knots, Parson's turbines, but not including cruising turbines, $5,050,000; same classes, slight changes, $5,- 030,000. Newport News company--Department's de- signs, 36 months' delivery, $3,987,000; classes 3 and 4, Parson's turbines, and including eruising turbines, $4,100,000; department's de- sign, with builder's machinery, etc., Parson's turbines, $4,050,000; same conditions, includ- ing . cruising turbines, $4,100,000; slight changes, and not including separate cruising turbines,$4,090,000; same as last, with cruis- ing turbines. $4,120,000; slight changes, $4,- 050,000. New York Ship Building Co.--Department's design, $4,545,000; department's design, with builder's design, machinery, etc., $4,600,000, with Parson's turbines, but without separate cruisine turbines, $4,530,000. Contract for one battleship will be given to the Fore River Ship Building Co. and for the other to the Newport News Ship Building & Dry Dock Co. Bids also were opened at the depart- ment today for armor for the two big ships. . There were three bidders: the Carnegie Steel Co., the. Bethlehem Steel Corporation and the Midvale Steel Co. ° the Carnegie and the Bethlehem com- panies were identical, even to the date upon which deliveries would begin and a letter insuring the government against the payment of royalties on patent processes for armor making. The bids of the Carnegie afid Beth- lehem companies were $420 a ton for 7,456 tons, class A armor, and $400 7 ton for class B: and. C, of 952 and 392 tons respectively. Curtis. As heretofore, the bids of' wheelsman to put the helm up. up and weather helm mean the same}. put the helm toward the high. "THE MarRINE. REVIEW The bids of the Midvale compiahy were $410 on all Classes'? "did for the same amount as the other companies. The Midvale company proposes to be- gin deliveries within six months after the contract is awarded and continue at the rate of 60 tons a month. 'The other' companies agree to begin de- liveries on Dec!' 20 and continue at the rate of 60 tons a month. TERMS USED ON SAILING VESSELS. FOR WHEELSMEN AND WATCHMEN. Although you are in a steamboat, it is- quite necessary to understand the mean- ing of the different terms and phrases used on a wind-jammer. In Stays. The 'situation of a vessel after her helm has been put down and she has come up in the wind preparatory to going about on the other tack., "Helm down" or "down helm" means to put the helm toward the low side of the ship, which is-always the lee side; that is, the side ship is listed on from the force of the wind on her: sails. In the Wind. When | a ship is so close to.the wind that all her sails are shiver- ing or shaking. Keep Her Full. man to keep the sails full of wind. Keep Off. An order to the helmsman to keep the ship's head more away from the wind. Keep Your Luff. An order to the helmsman to keep the ship close to the wind so that the sails will shake or tremble slightly. Look Up. A vessel is said to look up when by the changing of the wind she is enabled to point closer to the place of destination. Miss Stays. When a vessel fails to go around in tacking she is said. to miss stays. No Higher. An order to the -helms- 'man not to bring the vessel any closer to the wind. Steering high. Out-point. For one vessel to sail closer to the wind than another is to out-point. Also known as sailing higher. Pay Of" When a vessel's head falls off from the wind she is said to pay off." Wind's Eye. The exact point from which the wind blows. Windward. The. point or direction from: which the wind blows. Same as weather. . Weather Helm. A vessel carries a weather helm when her tendency is to come up into the wind, requiring the Helm that is, side of the ship, which of course is al- ways the weather side. An order to the helms- 25 Weather Shore, The shore to wind- ward, or the shore the wind comes from. Weather Side. The windward side; the side the' wind blows on. Helm Down. To put the helm down toward the lee side, so as to bring the ship's head. into the wind. Lee helm is the same thing as helm down or down ~ helm. Helm Up. To let the vessel go off from the wind by putting the helm to- ward the weather or high side. Helm's a Lee. Signifying that . helm has been_put over to leeward. _ Do not. get starboard and port helm mixed up with up helm and down helm, or with weather helm or lee helm, for starboard helm could be either weather or lee helm. Weather or lee helm or up and down helm, depend for. their names which is the lee and weather sides of the ship. The wind controls them, but' not so with starboard and port. These sides are not interchangeable as lee and weather. They are fixed positions and remain always the same while the others do not. Aweather, When the helm is put in the direction\from which the wind blows. The high side. Leeward. The lee side. In a direction opposite to that from which the wind blows, which is called windward. © The opposite of lee: is weather, and of lee- -- ward is windward. the TRIALS OF QUILPUE. The new twin-screw steamer Quil- pue, built by Messrs. William Beard- more & Co., Dalmuir, Scotland, for the Pacific Steam Nayigation Co., com- pleted her trials recently at Liverpool. The Quilpue is the second of four sim-~ ilar steamers which Messrs. Beard- more are building for the Pacific com- pany. The vessels have been specially designed for the Pacific west coast pas- senger and mail service. Their prin- cipal dimensions are as follows: Length 'between > perpendiculars,' - 360° - ft.; breadth, 46 ft.; depth, molded, to main deck, 25 ft.; height to spar deck, 32 ft. 9 in. The: dead weight capacity is about 3,400 tons on the summer free- board. The propelling machinery con- sists of two sets. of triple-expansion engines of 3,300 I. H. P.. Notwith- standing the stormy weather the re- sults on the run around to Liverpool, from the Clyde, were very satisfactory, the stipulated horsepower having been largely exceeded, and the expected speed easily attained. The other con- ~ ditions of the contract were also entire- ly fulfilled and the representatives of the owners expressed themselves as well pleased with the ship and her performance.