merely belted with very thick armor, and armed with an abundance of comparatively light shell-guns, would effectually defy them. There would be no need of enormous and costly armaments, or of ponderous armored towers, or of huge revolving turrets, for giving battle to ships which any shells would be able to open up to the inroads of the sea, and which, being opened up, would lose their stability, and insist upon turning bottom upward. But for the purposes of the Italian government, as I conjecture them, the _Italia_ class of ships, large as they are, have probably been excellent investments, and may continue to be, so long as the priceless value of impregnable belts and interior torpedo defence is understood by so very few. The Italian government, having completed the _Italia_, is now pressing forward with four other equally large ships (of over 13,000 tons each) of similar type, and with three others of 11,000 tons. Curiously enough, it keeps with these among the “war vessels of the first class” not only the _Palestro_ and _Principe Amedeo_, of about 6000 tons, launched in 1871-72, but also the _Roma_, a wooden vessel of 5370 tons, launched twenty years ago, and some four or five iron ships, of 4000 tons and of 12 knots speed, launched more than twenty years ago. I will not occupy time and space by regarding the particulars of these old vessels (having omitted similar ones from my French tables), but will here give the particulars of the modern vessels of the Italian first class, which alone deserve notice: MODERN ITALIAN WAR-SHIPS OF THE FIRST CLASS. Part 1 of 2 +---------------+---------+---------+--------+---------+----------+ | |Displace-|Indicated| | | | | NAME OF SHIP. | ment. | Horse- | Speed | Length. | Breadth. | | | | power. | | | | +---------------+---------+---------+--------+---------+----------+ | | Tons. | | Knots. | Feet. | Feet. In.| | Duilio | 11,140 | 7,700 | 11.1 | 340 | 64 4 | | Dandolo | 11,200 | 7,700 | 11.2 | 340 | 64 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Italia | 13,900 | 18,000 | 18 | 400 | 74 | | Lepanto | 13,550 | 18,000 | 18 | 400 | 73 4 | | Re Umberto | 13,250 | 19,500 | 18 | 400 | 74 9 | | Sicilia | 13,250 | 19,500 | 18 | 400 | 74 9 | | Sardegna | 13,250 | 19,500 | 18 | 400 | 74 9 | | Lauria | 11,000 | 10,000 | 16 | 328 | 67 | | Morosini | 11,000 | 10,000 | 16 | 328 | 67 | | Doria | 11,000 | 10,000 | 16 | 328 | 67 | +---------------+---------+---------+--------+---------+----------+