There had been very little said about the large number of torpedoes expended by the torpedo gunboats Almirante Lynch and Almirante Condell when they sank the Blanco Encalda. This raised an important question, the old theory was that the torpedo bo0at had to do its work at one blow - to kill or die. It was evident, however, that with so uncertain a weapon it was useless to depend on one shot and the torpedo boat must be prepared to hit often. The problem was a serious one, not only on account of the costliness of the weapon, but also the space required for storage. Making these weapons larger, which had been the direction, they were taking, had to be checked by the above considerations, and it was a question as to whether a number of short-range torpedoes should be carried instead.