The _Gymnote_ was first tried on September 24, 1888, in Toulon harbour. The French Press was enthusiastic about the qualities of the new boat. According to _Le Temps_ she was a complete success: “She steers like a fish both as regards direction and depth; she masters the desired depth with ease and exactness; at full power she attains to anticipated speed of from nine to ten knots; the lighting is excellent, there is no difficulty about heating. It was a strange sight to see the vessel skimming along the top of the water, suddenly give a downward plunge with its snout and disappear with a shark-like wriggle of its stern, only to come up again at a distance out and in an unlooked-for direction. A few small matters connected with the accumulators have to be seen to; but they will not take a month.” At the trials which took place before the Maritime Prefect of Toulon in 1888, the _Gymnote_ behaved very well, as far as speed and stability were concerned, but it was found difficult to keep her at a constant level when submerged. The _Gymnote_ was commanded by several officers, and for some time served as a training school for officers and men in the management of the new type of craft, and many suggestions and improvements were suggested by them, and in some cases carried out. She is now used as an instructional boat. At first the vessel carried no armament, but afterwards two torpedo tubes were fitted. _Gustave Zédé._ The _Gymnote_ being intended merely as an unarmed, experimental craft, the next step was to construct a larger vessel carrying a submerged torpedo tube. M. Barbey, the Minister of Marine, took the initiative in this project and M. Romazzotti, Naval Constructor, was ordered to draw up the plans for the boat and to place it on the stocks in the yard of Mourillon. The construction of the boat (which was to be named the _Sirène_) was decided upon in 1890. During the building M. Zédé, the inventor of the _Gymnote_, died, and the Minister of Marine conceived the happy idea of paying a last tribute of respect to the famous engineer by giving the name of _Gustave Zédé_ to the first armed submarine of the French fleet. The _Gustave Zédé_ was launched at Toulon on June 1, 1893; she is 159 feet in length, beam 12 feet 4 inches, and has a total displacement of 266 tons. Her shell is of “Roma” bronze, a non-magnetic metal, and one that cannot be attacked by sea water. [Illustration: _Photo by_] [_M. Bar_ THE “GUSTAVE ZÉDÉ.” ] The motive power, of 720 h.p. is furnished by two independent electro-motors of 360 h.p. each of the Thury type, constructed by M. Sautter-Harlé and fed by accumulators of the Laurent-Cély type. The screw revolves at the rate of 250 revolutions a minute.