The Portland daily press., 1884-11-20
THE NAVY.
admiral Porter's and Commodore DE.
Araffs Reports--Necessify of Doing
Something TO Build Et Up.

WASHINGTON, Nov. 19.-The annual report of
Admiral Daniel d. Porter has been submitted TO
the Secretary of the Navy. Admiral Porter says
there is general impression throughout the eoun-
Try that very large amount of money-over three
hundred million dollars-has been spent on the
w since the war, without anything to show for it,
and this impression has hindered the advance of
the navy 1t must be remembered he says, that
from after the war and up to 1884, a large sum of
money has been drawn from the treasury to pay
war debts. as well as to provide for The mainte-
nance OF the navy, and it not until 1859 that
tne navy settled down to run reasonable annu-
81 appropriation for its maintenance. During this
unle, bills to the amount of $40 900, 900 in
round numbers, had to be paid for work contracted
Ior by ring, III the height If the war while $8O-
oo,ooo was refunded into the treasury. When it.
II considered he Gays that all the naval appropria-
uons since 1869 were simply for the maintenance
OF the navy with the exception of about So 00O,0O0
on new cruisers, the amount expended will be
found to be aothing more than reasonable Since
1Sn9, the average annual expenditure has been
ABOUT Sl6oo0.n,O. Compare our expenditures,
says ADMIRAL Porter with that of any other navy
OF Importance, and it vii be proved that have
kept within reasonable bouads. Yet half the peo-
PIE 10 the country are convinced that the naval ap
preparations are recklessiy expended. compari-
son OF the expenditures In foreign navies with
own VIII 90 far TO put stop to the cry that waste
ful extravagance has been shown in the administra
Ton OF It's financial affairs and will show the neces-
SHY ior our doing omething towards bui ding q ma
Wy II we want 20 keep pace with the progress nf .
spect OF foreign nations he assertion that we
want smal but effective navy, do not cover the
e.se NO small navy can be an efficient one, if we
CONSIDER the nee is of the country, and it must be
la ge enough 10 comm And the respect of th- great
est naval power Up to 1850 or thereahout our
policy build etter vessels than we're built IN
any part of the world, and thus for some years we
maintained a small, but very effective navy. All
the powers OF Europe have been. engaged for the
last twenty years in increasing their navies white
have been indifferently looking on not even TAX
ing the trouble profit by their successes or fail
Gres in modern ship.building: During this time
grard ships have been built, while others have been
shosn to be unequal to modern requirements.
Admiral Porter proceeds to describe the features
of a modern vessel citing The Esmeralda ship Of
1000 Jons, built in England for tue Chian navy as
the most perfect ship IT her class constructed
She will, he thinks, prove formidable vessel
than either the Boston or Atlanta and sho Ss her
sell to be unsurpassed as commerce destroyer.
There is no rsason he says, why we cannot build
ship Of 5000 tons on The lines and plans Of the Es
merada that will give speed of 10 knots An hour
which would quite equal the speed OF any merchant
shi vdoaE. Admiral Porter submits plans for
good boat, which. when completed, he says will be
match Tor anything In our navy. He es mates that
heF hull and engines will ccst $350.O0 , and re-
quests that an appropriation of that amount be
asked tor. He says, we have but one torpedo boat
and she is not completed. He recommends her
competitor and that she be put in condition for Of
feDsive warfare. All other atious are paving
gleat attentloa TO the building of torpedo boats.
and England proposes to build $50 more for cruis-
ing and home defence. She will probably complete
the project Of building three or four.
Admiral Porter submits, IN conclusion, what he
TIL KS the government ought to do in the next two
years. First, complete the unfinished monitors and
arm them with heavy rifed guns, making them
far as their models will permit: second an
propriate monev for all the vessels that were pro-
posed TO Congress last winter; third build as a
comm mencement. four of the heaviest monitors of
great endurance and speed each to carry four six
inch rifles in turrets; fourth, build twenty torpe-
do boats of not less than loo tons each, with
speed VI 70 knots; fifth, one cruising ironclad of
not less than 40 900 tons; sixtA have all our ships
Of over Zoo TONS supplied with torpedo beats ft-
ted with noissless condensing engines that they
launches, which are now called torpedo boats in
our navy, are perfectly useless.
admiral Porter appends his report table ex-
bibting the expenditures of the leading nations of
the world ior the maintenance Of sheir navies dur
ing the last fifteen years, we'll IS for the con-
struction of new ships since 1865 1t shows that
the expenditures for the maintenance of EnQand's
navy were $805 000,0 900: of France .oUO-
600; Russia, S345 900, 900; Italy. $l42 800. 900;
Germany $144O00,000; United States, S251,-
00uOOO For The construction Of new ships Eng
land has expe aded $91, 10000 France Sl20-
100000; Russia, $8S, 600, 900; Italy $38 600 600
sweden, $l4,0uO00d; &c many, $26, ,OOO. 900; and
the United States o. SOC, 900.
The Naval Board OF Insps ction Commodore De
Kraft, president, in report, calls special atten-
ton the condition of the monitors Mahopac
CanonicuG, Lehigh, Manhattan, Catskill and Ajax
now at Cty Point, va, and says that if the country
depends upon monitors as important elements in
the deience of its harb0rs it is of vital Importance
that they be kept In condition to meet any emer.
geDcy. Before any Of them could be placed in ac-
tive serVce tue report says it would be necessary
their boilers Four out of six are not in condition
to move with their steam and it is not believed
they be put in condition for even temper ary ac
tive service until supplied with new boilers.