“Summing up the foregoing statements, I desire to record my opinion, based upon complete personal knowledge of every detail in the calculations and designs for the _Admiral_ class, that the disposition of the belt armor (in association with the protective decks and cellular sides, water-tight subdivision, etc., existing in the unarmored portions of the vessels situated above the protective decks) is such that the buoyancy, stability, trim, speed, and manœuvring capabilities are well guaranteed against extensive damage from shot and shell fire in action. And, further, that in these particulars the _Admiral_ class are capable of meeting, at least on equal terms, their contemporary ships in the French navy. “I must add that I am not here instituting any comparison between the ‘fighting efficiencies’ of the ships of the two fleets; nor have I space in this letter to do so. Opinions have differed, and will probably always differ, as to the relative importance of the different qualities which go to make up fighting efficiency. There is no simple formula admitting of general application which enables the comparative fighting values of war-ships to be appraised. As the conditions of naval warfare change and war material is developed, so the balance of qualities in ship-designing has to be readjusted, and estimates of the fighting powers of existing ships have to be revised. And, further, different designers, working simultaneously, distribute the displacement, which is their sum total of capital to work upon, according to their own judgments of what is wisest and best for the particular conditions which the ships built from those designs have to fulfil. The designer who has the larger displacement to work upon has the better opportunity of producing a more powerful ship; but it by no means follows that he will secure so good a combination of qualities as a rival obtains on a smaller displacement. And hence I cannot but dissent from the doctrine that displacement tonnage is to be accepted as a fair measure of relative fighting efficiency, or that recent English ships are necessarily unable to fight recent French ships because they are of smaller displacement. “In the preceding remarks I have been careful to confine myself chiefly to the naval architect’s side of the subject, as it would clearly be out of place for me to say much respecting the artillerist’s side. But, having had the great advantage of knowing the views of some of the most experienced gun-makers and gunnery officers, and having studied carefully what has been written on the subject, I would venture to say a few words.