The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1884-12-06
OUR NAVY.
saggestiOns Made by Secretary Chandler
in Els Annual Report.

An AAAs AHhbdA ASePOft
WARRINGTON, Dec. The annual report of
the Secretary of the Navy was made public
today. The report saws that the despatch
steamer Dolphin has been launched. Her
speed Is 16 knots. The fracture of her shaft
delays the formal acceptance. The Chicago is
seven-tenths completed. The report eaya It
has been shown thet cur steel makers can
readily furnish excellent material in large
Quantities, its high quality being assured by
tests adopted.
AS to want of full sail power and absence of
sheathtng, il appears that the British admir-
atty is now building steel cruisers absolutely
without maets or sails and unsheathed The
objections to the machinery Of the Chicago
ere met BY the satisfactory performances Of the
Louisiana, vessel with machinery generally
similar. As to the peculiar features Of the
Boston, 1t is to be neticed that the same fea-
lures are to be found in the new Gillian yes
sci, the Esmeralda, the latest development of
naval construction in England. Both vessels
are unarmored steel cruisers, with protective
decks and water-tight subdivisions, aad with
out wooden or copper sheathing They also
have the same dimensions, being 270 feet long,
az feet beam and of 5000 tons displacement. In
both the top=gallant forecastle and covered
poop have been done away with. Apart from
this fact, even If there were any weight to the
objections advanced against the design of the
boston and Atlanta, they are offset by its over
wheimiDg advantages in giving an extensive
fore an increased efficiency to the battery.
Comparisons Of speed between the new
cruisers and the great Transatlantic
racing steamers are unfair because tho latter
attain speed only by sacrifice of qualities es-
sential TO ship of war. They are unprotect-
ed, unwieldy and of enormous draft and di.
menSions, the number of them possessing very
high speed is small, and the new eruiaerSsesnld
oVertake 96 per cent. of the merchant steam.
ers OF the world. The rates of speed assigned
q nar oh tpoa
tive calculations of their probable perform
ance, and they will undoubtedly exceed the es-
Inmates. But the unarmored cruisers of the
new American feet are not intended for a
comparison ia speed with the unprotected racs
ing ship of enormous s;z5 or in defensive power
with modern iron eiads,
The steel forgipgs for the six-inch guns of
the new steel cruisers are being made at the
Midvale Steel Works, Phiadelphia, and those
for the eight-ineh guns in England. There
being no plant in this country capable of pro-
duci1g eight-inch forgings the government is
compelled to employ foreign manufacturers
The machine finishing of the guns is being
done partly at the Washington navy yard and
partly at the South Boston Iron Works and
the West Point Foundry. The manufacturers
OF modern high power guns, snch as are re-
qnired by the new cruisers, being wholly new
In this country, is slow and; difficult and the
cost here is necessarily greater than Ii theV
were procured abroad, The armor of the Mi
antonomah is nearly completed aud in place;
the machinery of the Amphitrite and Terror
Is about one-half completed while that of the
P0ritan is finished. No work has been done
upon the hu Is Of the monitors and common
prudence demands that immediate steps be
taken to remedy the defenceless condition of
our coasts and harbors and the moet rapid and
econornlc8l measures which can be adopted at
tue present time is to push the partially con-
structed monitors to completion.
1he report states he conclus on of the 6dViE-
ory board recommending the cons ruction of
one cruisers of 1900 tonP, one cruiser of 5000
tons, one dispatch vessel OF 1900 tons, two
heavily armed gunboats OF 1900 tons each, one
Iight gupbcat OF 750 tons, one steel ram, cne
cruising torpedo boat, two harbor torpedo boats
ana one armed vessel not exceeding 1000 tons
and sho department in adopting their recon-
mendations call special attention TO the neces-
sity Tor torpedo boats. Ia general the secretary
recommends the construction OF seven modern
cruisers annually fer q period of ten years,
such plan he says while conforming to the con-
ssrvatiye demands of our national policy and
sHofdlng ample time for adopting every new
d5Ylce IN their construction Wonld give the
county at moderate cost, a navy ADEQUATE 10
train its officers aud maintain its safety and
honor.
lu regard to the existing navy Secretary
Chandler says. 1T appears from the condition
OF tne 1eet that at the end OF fifteen years ihe
only cruising vessels of the present list remaiu-
ing viii be three small iron vessels, the Mon
ocacy, Alert and Ranger. The real explana-
fion OF the dispropertlon between expenditures
and results accomp plshed in naval administers
ton IS to be found in the policy of attemptinp
at great cost to rehabiiitate worn ont structures
under the name of repairs. The practice OF
feeons. .r0ctIng vessels under the name of re-
pairs is the only pretext upon which our over
grown navy yard establishments could be jas
tined, and it appears that instead of maintaiu-
ing oar yards for the advantage and banefit of
our ships they have dragged out a profracted
existence for the benefit only OF the yards.
concerning the navy yards the Secretary
nolds that only two naval workshops should be
maintained on the Atlantic coast and on the
Pacific. The New London yard should be re-
stored to Connecticut, and the League Island
yard to Philadelphia. The Boston ward should
be sold or reduced in size; the Pensacola and
Portsmouth yards may be kept for naval sta
tons, and the workshops would then be at
New YORK, Norfolk and Mare Island. These
need certain improvements in organization.
First, all politics should bs excluded from
their management in accordance with Section
1916 OF The Revised Statutes, which saya: 'sNor
Shall any workingnen be removed or discharg-
ed for political opinions" Secondly, RESPONSE
bility for the work mast be mora definitely
fixed.
The report gives history OF the Greedy re.
lief expedition, the expenditures for which
were $T62, ,996. 1t is recommended that the re-
lief vessels Ihetis and Bear be retained for
expedition there was no omission or mishap,
and its success reflected high honor aud credit
upon the American navy. The report recon-
mends that these should be an assistant secrs-
tsry ana solicitor in the department. and
that the bureaus of construction and of steam
engineering be united as single bureau, and
TO have for its chief the most competent naval
architecE that can be found, whether In the
navy or civil life.
Secretary Chandler details the facts in con-
uyif hat DO fv
cine and surgery. TIE amount of suspected
vouchers is S124 S35, extending over period
from 1876 TO 1888. Tue expenditures of the
department. daring the year wers SIT 292 Sol.
Inc estimates Tor ordinary purposes aud pab-
lie works for the next year are ST., $50 COS: er
Inmates under increase of the navy are, for
completion of mentors, S4, ,232, ,654, including
for ordnance 81 073 COO; for new cruisers and
gunboats. 4,542,0 600; for ordnance for the
same, W, Col ,9i8; for armored vessels S29OO.-
OOO; for sundry other items, including two
training barks and rihsd ordnance, S13 956, COO
making in all for increase of the navy $15,-
OIl,572, and OF this sum about one-half would
DO needed for the coming year.
The Secretary comments severely upon the
existing practice Of securing solicitations of
ence in behalf OF officers, whether
for the purpose of obtaining agreeable
duty or of effeciing restoration by legislation
of those who have been dismissed for drunk
enness or other misconduct or incapaciGy. He
says such Testorations demoralize the service
In conclusion Secretary Chandler dwells
upon the close connections between improve
ment of the navy and the development of
the merchant marine and shows that to make
the latter commensurate with our trade, coast
line aud the number end wealth of cur com
mercial cities, We must have great lines OF
ocean steamships of high speed and large ca
pacity, carrying our flag to the most distant
lands and saving to our people the vast profits
of the carrying trade. The only way to ac-
complish this result, he says, is through direct
announcement given by the government
either in the form OF bounties upon construc-
ton or of payment for carrying the mails so
that American capitalists will be induced to
embark in the business