the opportunities for riddling the raft body will be few and far between. “I may also express the opinion that for repairing damages in a raft-bodied ship at the water-line far more efficacious means can be resorted to than the ordinary shot-plugs, and that the use of cork bags for closing shot-holes in the coffer-dam sides, if they are open at the top, is far from being an unreasonable or ‘stupid contrivance,’ as it is called, considering that, as a general rule, the perforations through thin plating would not be ragged or extensive. Sir Edward Reed’s wise suggestion to make the outer skin of the coffer-dam of two-inch steel plates would render machine-gun fire of little avail. The injurious effects of shell fire would, I reckon, be far more fatal if the projectile exploded in passing through the ten-inch belt than if it burst at some distance inboard after penetrating thin plating. I think it will be admitted without dispute that this feature of design must be governed to a great extent by tactical considerations, the object sought for being to secure out of a given weight of steel the greatest amount of fighting vitality consistent with the power of manœuvring available between skilful antagonists. This view of the case is especially applicable to single actions at sea, when a clever tactician will select his mode of fighting according to the offensive and defensive properties known to be possessed by his opponent, and in this respect an armor-plated bow and stern will afford enormous advantages, both for attack and defence, if the plating is extended as high as the upper deck. “In fleet actions the ram and torpedo will require more attention than the gun attack, and that feature of battle introduces another disputed point, namely, the limit of size of ship; but that question is outside the scope of the present discussion, and I shall conclude my arguments by a strong expression of opinion that, as gunpowder has so completely mastered the pretensions of outside armor protection, the direction in which prudence leans towards defensive properties in future designs for ships-of-war is that of deflection rather than of direct resistance, and that in this respect science has not reached its utmost limit of invention. “The prevailing disposition to regulate the power of the gun by the size of the vessel is, I consider, a great mistake, seeing that the additional weight of a powerful gun is not inadmissible, even in such vessels as our belted cruisers, and looking to the strong inducement held out by the continued use of armor-plating, even of such moderate thickness as ten inches. In the splendid steamers purchased from the mercantile marine, which are being armed with light guns only, one 25-ton gun would greatly add to their fighting power, but the cause of this omission may probably be found in the answer to the question, Where are the guns?”