The New era. [volume] ([Portsmouth, Va.]) 1845-1847, 1846-05-09

" ."o'" INC way ior more rapid promotion. This
| reduction Of the number of mdshipmen. although
has hitherto been less publicly and less earnest
" proposed, is deliberately recommended as ne
| cessary to prevent a recurrence Of existing evils
On no subject has the action Of the department.
hitherto, been c, vacllating. In one year, more
than two hundred warrants were given, bringing
into the service, without much discrimnat ton.
young persons, some Of whom were even nh yscal-
ly and mentally disqualified for duty While,
during the period from 1897 to 1907. the com.
plement OF midshipmen for first class fiigate
was eight. in 1916 it was raised to twenty, great
! ly to the detriment of the service. The present
complement of eleven, besides one as a master. il
believed To he ample
The duties of master in time of peace NAV be
performed by younger lieu,enants, or selected
passed mdshipmen During the present admin.
lstraton. The vacancies that have occurred in that
grade have not been filed The greatest abuse
has existed in this branch of the service. OF
twenty eight masters il is believed that eighteen
nave never performed cruise at sea- Some of
'hem are utterly ignorant of navigation. Ifthey
| were discharged as masters, the useful among
them could still find employment in the naval
| service.
Ii this change in the assignment of the duties
OF master be adopted, the class of masters mates.
az permanent corps. should be abolished
confidently hope that Congrsss will permit
| sea to be appropriated for the accommodation and
| instruction of midshipmen at Fort Severn.
Another source of expense has been multiplied
IN the number of secretaries aud clerks that ara
| employed in connection with naval commands.
BY an act approved 9th March. 1894, cap
'ains OF forty -four and thirty sixgun ships were
authorized to appoint clerks, thoir pay to be fixed
oy The President. BY an act approved Cd Janua-
~, 1918. captains of ships of not less than seven
n mil rod
| clerks. their pay to he fixed by the President
Commodores' secretaries were first appointed,
II Is believed without any authority of law other
than the appropriation for the navy, conseanen,
upon the g estimates" of the Navy Commission
ers. submitted 9Th December. 1896 Their pay
was fixed BY the Secretary of the Navy
Thus it appears that Congress never explicitly
authorized the appointment Of clerks in any vessel
OF less than thirty-six guns, and never regulated
| the appointment of secretaries
The act approved Sd March, 1885. makes the
| annual pay of secretaries +" to commanders of
squadrons, when commanding in chief. one thou
sand dollars to comman ders Of squadrons. when
not commanding in chief. nine hundred dollars"
A year ago, there were six secretaries at sea, at
the annual pay of 81 900 each, and ration equal
to about $40 80 more.
The same law of 1885 directed that there
should be paid to clerks "to commanders of
squadrons, captains Of fleets, and commanders of
vessels, five hundred dollars'' Under this
clause, the custom has grown up Of allowing not
only to commanders of frigates. but to command
ers Of soops OF the first, second and :hrd classes,
of brgs, and even of schooners. clerk at the paw
OF hve hundred dollars per annum and to com
manders OF sqnadrons. no, secretary only. bnt
also clerk. A simple rule. abolishing the office
of secretary in the navy, allowing an extra clerk
to the ship bearing the commander of a squadron.
and abollshing the Office of clerks in vessels of
less than thIrty-slx guns, except where the COM
handing officer acts also as pnrser, would effect
a reduction of many useless officers
1t the propriety of a reduction in the number of
officers in the naval service is assented to- there
are three ways in which the reduction may be
effected.
]. Further promotions may be forbidden till the
number of officers shall be reduced to tho number
required. This mode was proposed in the House
of Representatives in the last Congress, but was
not approved of by the Senate. 1t would be very
injurious to the service, taking from the present
generation all hope of promotion. 1t would, for
purpose of economy, endanger the well being of
the navy. This system cannot too strongly be
deprecated.
g. The excess of officers may be discharged
This has been repeatedly done in the army; and
this was the precedent set in 1901, when it was
provided by the fourth and fifth sections of the
act of March 3, 1901, approved by John Adams
and carried into effect by Jefferson, that the
President be authorized to discharge officers in
the navy service of the United States, and tina,
all commissioned and warrant officers, who hall
be discharged as aforesaid, shall BIO entitled to re-
ceive four months pay over and above what may
be due to thcm respectively, at the time of their
discharge" This was the precedent established
in the marine corps by the act approved Sd
March. 1917, of which the second section enacis,
that the President of the United States cause any
suPernumerary officers to be discharged from the
service of the United States and 10 all persons
so discharged there shall be paid three months
additional pay.
3. A third mode may be adopted which re.
qures no great change from the actually existing
system. II ia. to discharge none, bu, to limit the
number of active officers. and TO put all super
numerarles on furough. This might be directed
to be done in the usual form. Or it might be
enacted. that officers who have seen at least
twenty years. sea-service, and have faithfully
performed thior duty, shall receive, whom neither
employed nor waiting orders, half the sea pay
of their grade; and that officers, who have seen
less than twenty years' sea.service, but at leas,
fifteen years Of seaservice, and faithfully perform
| ed their duties, shall receive. whom neither en-
ployed nor waiting orders, half the leave pay of
their grade. Officers who have not seen fifteen