Evening journal., 1892-03-14
UNCLE SANS NEW NAVY.
The Report of the House Com
mittee on Naval Affairs.
WE WANT MORE FIGHTING SHIPS.
Our Force Anoat should BE Strong
Enough to Command Peace-Lack Of
Armor Plate Stands In the Way OF Rapid
Progress--A Reduced, a appropriation.

Progress--A ReducedsA appropriation.
wAsmNeroN.l March ll.-The report Of
Representative Herbert, OF Alabama, chair
man of the house committee on naval af-
fairs, accompanying the naval appropriation
bill, has been submitted 20 the house. The
bill carries an appropriation Of 81, ,GG0, s23
being 81, 4G7, SIG less than the estimate and
$s,sl4,sSl less than the appropriation for
the current fiscal year. The committee, the
report says, have been enabled 20 make this
reduction without in any manner impairing
the progress Of our new navy in great part
because Of the large surplus that viii re-
main on hand unexpended and TO the credit
Of The increase of the navy" at the end Of
the present fiscal year.
The report continues; Your committee
are unanimously Of the opinion that every
dollar should be appropriated necessary TO
complete the vessels heretofore authorized.
To this end they have recommended, as
they believe, all the money that win be
called for during the coming fiscal year.
They also believe that it should be the set
tied policy Of congress 10 authorize the CON
struction Of one or more new vessels at
each regular session until we shall have pro
vided considerably larger number of fight
ing ships than we now have or viii have
when those authorized are completed. The
recent Gillian embroglio, during which a
naval war seemed for time 20 be quite a
probability, developed the fact that our
people at large quite approve OF the policy
in which we are engaged Of rehabilitating
the navy By thoughtful people who ap-
/ preciate our situation and who understand
the policies of the government as settled
many years ago such a reminder was not
needed.
The Armor Plate Problem.
Il seems to your committee that every
one who considers at all the welfare and
honor of the whole country must recognize,
as every president has done, from Georgt
Washington down TO the present day, the
necessity OF putting ourselves in condition
to resist attack coming from the sea. Thl
report reviews at some length the dificultie
J met with in making shafting, steel forging
and armor plate and says that the com
mittee are gratified to be able % state tina
the present secretary Of the navy, MI
Tracy, in view Of the delays incident b
: the work under the Bethlehem contract, 1
} the summer Of 1890 endeavored to secure
second source Of supply, and on Nov 20 q
that year entered into a contract wit
D Messrs. Carnegie, Phipps & Co. for 800
a tons Of nrmor plates at the same priC
8 ds that stipulated in the Bethlehem col
| tract
; The time fixed for deliveries to begin wa
+ July /, 1891. This time proved to be II
a sufficient. Carnegie, Phipps q Co., thong
r they are furnishing, are not yet abl
D to deliver at the rate required by their col
0 tract Had the armor been furnished b
the Bethlehem company according 10 agree
ment we should have had, perhaps, tw
monitors besides the Miantonomah read
for use against Chilli in case OF war As IL
except the Miantonomah, the armor f
which had already been purchased abroai
q not one Of the armored vessels provided Il
Il in the act Of Aug 8, 1856, or since, has bee
l. completed,
y We Need Battieshlps.
For these reasons the majority Of yol
! committee have decided that it would NJ
be best now TO authorize the construction
another battleship Some Of the project,
vessels have been awaiting their armor e
years. There is no reasonable expectatiC
3 that the armor for all the twelve ships c.
= be furnished before we enter upon the ca
y endar year 1894. Your committee do M
7 believe, however, that our anew navy h
!. yet reached the point az which further !
y crease should cease Il may be taken 4
y granted that we do not need 10 build
= great and expensive navy, like those
= Great Britain and France, but certainly q
4; time has come when II would be well
form some distinct and definite idea Of q
the naval powers Of the world
To regain the relative position amor
these navies we occupied prior 20 our civ
- war is certainly not too much TO attemp
y especially as we know now that we have /
"a such efficient coast defenses as we then b
y lieved ourselves TO possess. To reach th
A point it is not disputed that we need moi
4, first class battleships. We have now on
= three authorized Eight OF nine more
:, ! these, in addition to our authorized flee
would give US q respectable navy, sufhcien
perhaps, for the purposes.
But if a battleship were authorized no,
we could not reasonably expect that tl
al heavy armor it would require could be fu
d nished when needed Certainly, If reason
Is BILE progress were mede in constructio
VI either the new ship OF some OF those alreat
n authorized would 10 obliged 10 wait for a
"a NOR, as several Of them are doing nov
'e Some Of thsm have been ready, or in como
's tion to be speedily made ready, for arm
for years.
Our Commerce Destroyers.
y Next in Importance TO these are stroI
he and swift commerce destroyers, such as Il
ID New York, which is armored with six inch
he Of steel, sufficient TO protect its crew fro
10 the destructive missiles of rapid fire gun
rs This ship is considered the best "all arounl
ship in the world combined speed, endu
ance and lighting capacity considere
Nothing can be more effective argument 4
10 continued peace than such vessel as th
ID especially wheniconsidered by a nation Ia
q. ing large commerce ahOat. We have on
lis one such vessea as the New York, and it
ID believed we need another With two SUI
IN ships as this added 10 our 2i-knot and 9th
unarmored swift cruisers, it is believed
the committee, if they may venture
opinion for consideration by the house, tn
IN our programme OF commerce destroyer
he ought to be sufficient, at least for a numb
a Of years to come Afterward we may co
r. tinue the construction Of battleships.
In conclusion, the committee say th
they have been thus full and explicit
their explanations Of the progress that
t. been made in the construction Of the ne
Of navy because we have now reached poi
he In its development which is full of intere
IN to the country and they have quoted larl
ly from the report made in 1886 in ord
that congress may be able 20 see for its
what was then proposed and to judge
e the manner in which its programme