Apollo-class cruisers balance capability and quantity

The Apollos' procurement logic resembles later programs that sought acceptable combat capability at a price that allowed mass construction. Their roughly 3,600-ton size limited individual power, but their value came from being available for task groups and overseas stations around the world. Quantity gave the class a force-structure advantage without making each ship the equal of a larger combatant. The opening also explains why an 1890 class label is awkward when Apollo herself launched in 1891.