Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-11-20
AMERICAS DEFUNCTNAVY
ADMIRAL PORTER MAKES HIS
ANNUAL REPORT.

The Enormous Expenditures of the Last
Two Decades Charged to the Late War
"A Comparative Statement of the An
nual Expenditures of the Leading
Maritime Nations.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 19.-The annual re-
port of Admiral David d. Porter has been
submitted to the Secretary of the NAVY.
Admiral Porter says that there is a gen.
eral impression throughout the United
States that very large amount of money
(Oyer S3OO,O ,OOO,00O) has been spent on the
navy since the war without ANYTHING 10
show for it, and this impression has him
dered the advance of the navy. He saws:
1t must be remembered that after the war
and up to 1862 a large sum of money was
drawn from the Treasury to pay for war
debts as well as to provide for the mainten-
ance OF the navy, and 1t was not till 1869 that
the navy settled down to run on reasonable
annual appropriation for Its maintenance.
During this time bills to the amount of $780,
100000 in round numbers had to lie
paid for work contracted for during
the height Of the war. while $780, OOO 600
was refunded into the Treasury When il is
considered that all the naval appro-
priatiOns since 1869 were simply for the main
tenance of the navy, with the exception of
about S5,OOO.0C0 for new cruisers. the amOunt
expended will be found to be nothing more
H.
nual expenditure has been about SI6 OQO 600
Compare our expenditures with that of anv
other navy of Importance and it will be
proved that we have kept within reasonable
bounds. Yet half of the people in the cOun-
try are convinced that the naval approDria-
uOns are recKlessly expended.
THE EXPENDITURES OF OTHER NATIONS.
Comparison Of the expenditures in foreign
navies with ours will go far to put a stop to
the cry that wasteful extravaganza has been
shown in the administration of its financial
affairs, and viii show the necessity Of our
doing something towards building navy If
we want to keep pace with the spirit of the
age, and to hold ourselves ready to maintain
the respect of foreign nations. The assertion
that we want a "small but effective navy,
does not cover the case. No small navy can be
an efficient one if we consider the needs of
the country. 1t must be large enough to COM
mand the respect OF the greatest naval power.
Up TO 1850, or thereabouts, our policy was to
bull better vessels than were built in any
other part of the world, and thus for some
years we maintained a small, but effective
navy. All the powers OF Europe have been
engaged for the last twenty years in increas-
ing their nayies, while we have been indifTer-
entity looking on, not even taking the trouble
to profit by their successes or failures in
modern shipbuilding. During this time some
grand ships have been built, while others
nave been shown to be unequal to modern re-
quirements.
MODEL WAR VESSEL.
Admiral Porter proceeds to describe the
features Of modern vessels. citing the Es-
meTalda, ship of 900 tons, built in Eng
land for the Chilian navy, as the most
perfect ship of her class ever constructed.
She will, he thinks, prove a more formida-
bic vessel than either the Boston or At
lanta, and shows herself to be an unsur-
passed vessel. He says:
There Is no reason why we cannot build
ship of 500 tons on the lines and plans OF the
Esmeralda that will give a speed of nineteen
lraGf lafaf
speed of any merchant ship anoat. / here
with submit plan for a gunboat, which,
when completed will be a match for
anything in our navy, and will have speed
enough to escape from a superior foe. 1t is es-
timated that her hull and engines will cost
S3jo,0Oa, and requests that an appropriation of
that amount be asked for.
We have but one torpedo boat and she is
not complet'd. l recommend her completion
and that she be put in condition for offensive
warfare. All other nations are paying great
attention to the building of torpedo boats.
France, Russia and England have about 100
each, and now Engl nd p' opposes to build $50
more for cruising and home defense. She
VIII probably complete the whole number of
them while we are considering the prospect
of building three or four.
BIG WORK FOR TWO YEARS.
Admitsl Porter submits in conclusion
what he thinks the government ought to
do in the next two years:
1. Complete the unfinished monitors and
arm them with heavy rifed guns, making
them rams as far as their models Will permit.
?. Appropriate money for all vessels that
were proposed to Congress last winter.
3. Build as commencement four of tho
heaviest monitors Of great endurance and
speed, each to carry four 6-inch rifles in tur-
rets.
4. Euild twenty torpedo boats of not less
than 100 tons each, with a speed OF 20 knots.
3. Build one cruising irOnclad OF not
less han 4 600 tons.
s. Have all our ships of over l,25O tons sup
piled with torpedo boats, filed with nOiseless
condenslnS engines. so that they cannot be
heard when approaching an enemy. The ship
launches which are now called torpedo boats
in our navy are perfectly useless for this pur
pose.
Admiral Porter appends to his report a
table exhibiting the expenditures of the
leading nations of the world for the main
tenance of their navies during the last
10 years as well as for the construction of
new ships:
1t shows that the expenditures for the main
tenance of England were $S15, 00,OO0. of
France S630,0G0, 600. of Russia S34. 600 600. of
Italy Sl42, 900. .009, OF Germany $l44,0 O,00O, of
the United States $250.OO0,C0 For the con-
structiOn of new ships, England has expended
S9l,OOO000, France Sl2l000,0O0. Russia $S3000,-
600, Italy SiS,000,000, Sweden 1900 600, Ger
many $26,O00,000, and the United States S4,-
907,454.
THE MONITORS NOW BUILT.
The Naval Board of Inspection. Com
mOdOre Dehrotd. President, in It's report
to the Admiral of the Navy calls special
attention to the condition of the monitors
MahOrpac, CanOnicus, Lehigh, Manhat-
tan, Catskill and Ajax, now at City Point,
Va, and says that if the country depends
upon monitors as important elements in
the defense of its harbOrs, it is of vital
Importance that they be kept in condition
to meet any emergency. Before any of
them could be placed in active service, the
report says, it would be necessary to dock
them and overhaul their steering gear and
test their boilers. Four out of the six are
not in condition to move with their own