TWO CENTURIES OF SEA POWER 1776-1976

The title promises scope; the 48-page, photo-dominated format belies the expectation. What we have, on inspection, are descriptions, with historic engagements noted, of about ten sailing warships from the Revolutionary War period, an equal number of ""Centennial"" ships from the days of steampower (actually, half of these saw pre-Centennial action in the Civil War) and, with scarcely a mention of the battleships of the two World Wars, a few ""Bicentennial"" models, ""stressing speed and maneuverability,"" currently on the drawing board or in testing--but destined, like today's nuclear warships, to be a ""power for peace"" and ""deterrent to any would-be aggressor."" Again, big talk but little substance.