The daily union., 1854-02-14
The navy
To the Edaoys Of The National Intsllixno,r

10 the EdAers J me National lateAiysaeer.
GrsrLraEs | beg you VIII give place ia your paper
TO one or two articles on naval matters touching It's per-
sonnel, which have written with several motives The
principal being place before yosr readers true
statement OF what the prospects OF promoton
In the service and ills consequent efficiency what are ils
necessities, and what will be the effect OF the ake oi
schemes OF reorganization l hope those members OF
Congress who have not time TO devote 10 an inyestiaa-
uon OF the subject will cast glance over them and
invite the attention OF those who feel an interest in The
service, whether the OF friends among lis off,
GERS desire to efficiency in that arm OF public
defence in order that they may be the better advised in
The facts
am. sirs, respectfully, your obeden servant, p
The ages OF the 6s captains. 81 commanders and a27
heutenans IN the navy range IRON 80 20 years and
upwards The junior captain entered in the year 1872
The 1rs nifty commanders IN 1912. l3. IA, and 'l5 and
the junior 1922 The eutenans except The frst fy.
unemployed NC, entered in 1922, and thence down to
about halt the class OF 1885, per Navy Register for
1881 their commissions ranging from 1881 TO 1853
pass lightly the facts be obtained from the Regis
er relative 10 promotion pror 10 ls42. when Congress
established the number al which each grade should be
maintained, with this remark, that while the entire
length OF service OF the senior and Junior leu,enans diff
fers bu 10 years, the dates OF their commissions,
SUCH differ ~ and their relative positions the Regis
Ter, under present rates OF promotion by than 80
years!-lha is, II will take the lieutenant the junior
10 years longer attain the head of grade than did
The one now there and that one has been about 81 years
in the service
As there were fluctuations in the number of officers in
each grade down ls42 shall now confne myself 10
the facts as they stand Tor the II that have
eapsed-lS42 to 1858
find the 96th lieutenant on the Register was promoted
IN 1912, alter having been nearly IL years He
had been therefore, % years service and IL years
lieutenant and in that time advanced from the 327th
the l96lh number that is, through l3l numbers, which
Is about the annual average rate OF H. Now, he to
advance at The annual through the remaining
1875 numbers "a supposon will show TO be impossble
would still require rather than le years reach
the head OF his grade, and he would then have been
years Lieutenant and 35 years the service. The 321
lieutenant on that Register entered in 1885, and pro-
NOTED Ill iS53hat is, after IS years midshp
man. passed otherwise Now his prospects the foot
OF The list OF eutenants precisely what those were
OF the ieutenan, promoted in ls42 and he was years
longer mdshipman therefore, he canno, arrive the
head OF the lis. OF ieutenants in AZ years If he
Is years old when he entered he would be 81 after the
az years seryce--yct not a commander
The increasing length Of service of the mdshipmen
(viz years. in the past years represents the increased
age of lieutenants, body, in that time and under
existing circumstances this general age will continue 10
efficiency as enenanis. and most OF them for any pur
pose whatever.
The grade of commander numbers 81, the annual va
cancies al the foot being about and al the head a.
Who that has already been 42 years hope
TO live TO reach promotion to caplancyi
II may be objected that this is iar statement in
asmuch as the officer to-day promoted to be commander
star in the OF long life with all above him still Older
than himself, and, consequently, while he grows to an
advanced age, those above are still more advanced and
that the mortality would be much greater proportonaly
Let suppose The mortality doubled (Which supposing
him 81 The junior commander, would be acualy
when he had attained 70 years OF age Tor every years
and that 100 always from above hun. he would then ad
vance 20 the first years, SO the next g. and Al
the END oil 10 he would have advanced rs numbers
which. taken iro 81, would leave him still % the list
OF commanders, and already SO years service and
less than o7 years OF age! iobear 10 follow up fur
her The bright prospects OF the luRior lieutenant the
Register OF 1858 II is utterly impossible with the pres
mi axGto I'm nj IN hu
slone) that he should advance at SO rapid rate as
have supposed,
In proof of the last statement and also that have as
sumed too shor, length OF service lieutenant find tha,
the actual vacancies from death have been for the II
years, lsi2 to 1853. follows: Captains ~
efs rs lieu,enanis, Ga yearly rate for the three
grades Of 10i about. And the vacancies from resigna
ton and dismissal follows; Captains, a commanders,
lerlenans, ~ yearly for nj! OF nearly Ina
KING an average annual casually for each as ioilows
Captains, 2637 commanders, 2.637 and lieuienans,
isis Hence the junior lieutenant begins his advance
with the sum Of lhese above him. about Is
and atans the head advancing by the of the yearly
vacancies among captains and commanders, viz 274
Now, mean o these numbers, 10 and 5, will not be lar
from the true annual average rate of advance through
The entire grade, which Is TO- There are 327 leulenans
90 that II requires 30 years 10 arrive AT ils head be-
fore supposed a. Now, the Is years service mid
shpman added gives about as years OF service 10 become
commander Having become a commander, The rise
then begins at The yearly of about and ends at tha
oi II, with which last number the officer would begin TO
advance through the grade OF captain but be has FIRST TO
tbe gfane OF numbering al tbe an
nua rate OF aboui4 forbear 10 perform the dvisen
Even as the services is. much complaint is heard
OF the advanced age of the higher grades and older lieu
tenants, but they boys comparison with what their
pre- sent Juniors will be when they shall have attained
their positions; yet captain the list born in the
present century The gradual increase of the different
grades, and especially the great in lsil, has ad
vanced those now filing them at much more rapid rate
than otherwise they could have advanced Thus the
promotion oil The last commander took place from five TO
ten years sooner than II otherwise could have done Ii l.
the increase in the grades that is TO be aseribed the
fact that serious complaint OF the want OF promotion has
no, been general until Of late years
None but hardy constitutions able TO bear the ey
posture and hardship incident to naval life, particularly
young oicer, and that s true which at first sight
may appear srange-vz; that when the age OF forty
~ attained in the service the chance OF long life
much better than in any other walk OF life other than
aring because none but those who have the strength to
hence the relative values Of lite in the high and low
In other words, long lived soon &c, to I'LL all the
upper grades
What the legitimate conclusions Simply that the
mortality and other casualties occurring among naval
officers not nearly Sufficient advance each ore 10
the grade appropriate to his yearshe necessities OF
vice requiring far too great proportion in the lower
grades and hence provision must be made 10 increase
the vacancies in order to have commanders at ser
viceable ages few must be promoted more rapidly than
others (such have influence, in the English serI
vice, Otherwise end the remainder be left Ahe low
grades all their lives There two methods besides
the above alike honorable and to the deserving of
cer, and doing away with The absurdty OF Young can
tans and old euenants, which will consider ia future