The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1895-03-21


tions at Halifax and ST. Johns. Ber-
muda has been fortified and supplied
at very heavy expense, aud there she
has built the largest floating drydock
in the world; ample shops and i'm
mense quantities Of coal have been
provided. Thus, at 800 miles from
New York and less than 600 from the
CarOlinas, she has a station second TO
none in the world from which as
base her ships could in few hours
attack any Atlantic seaport and con-
troll the commerce Of the Western
Hemisphere in that ocean. Our Gulf
coast is similarly threatened by ia
maica and st. Lucia and these with
Belize would control any isthmian
canal on the Atlantic side. England
recognizes that the opening OF such
canal must Of necessity divert the
route OF trade on the Western Henri
sphere from the Straits of Magellan to
the Isthmus, and she is endeavOring
to be ready for such a contingency.
France has st. Pierre and MiquelOn
on the northeast, and Guadalupe,
Martinique aud Cayenne on the south
and southeast. Spain has Cuba and
Porto Rico, while the Dutch at Cura-
Goa and the Danes at st. Thomas,
either of which could probably be
used by Germany, complete the line
of hostile bases on our Atlantic coast.
Returning to the Pacific, any foreign
power occupying Hawaii would have
an impregBable base from which to
strike at any part of our Pacific coast
and destroy our Pacific commerce.
Not only this, but Hawaii is the only
base in the Pacific from which this
could be successfully done. Great
Britain's ships are never more than
1900 miles from base of supplies and
repair, where, protected by immense
land batteries and all modern appli- |
ances for harbOr defense, they can find !
Ravens of safety and refuge.
One of the greatest difficulties is in |
cOaling ships of war. Vessels of the I
Philadelphia class have q coal capa- |
city of 1000 tons. Moving at a mOder- |
ate rate of speed, such vessels eau &C !
complish about 5000 miles without |
recOaIIng, but under forced draught |
$500 miles would probably be the |
greatest distance they could hope to |
make. Commerce destrOyers are de- |
signed to make very long cruises, and
will carry from 1000 to 5000 tons of !
coal. Moving slowly, such vessels /
will accomplish about 5000 miles !
without recoaliDg; but to overtake [,
and destroy commercial steamers, |
they must often move at their highest |
speed, aud under such circumstances
they would not make over 10000 or
1900 miles. Therefore, IL ships of war
operate from a single base, 1900 to 1000
miles for cruisers and 5000 to 5000
miles for com meTce-deStroyers would
be the extreme distances for opera
tionE, barring delays from accidents
and Gripping from hostile vessels,
which are always likely contingencies. |
Much has been done in recent years to
improve the United States Navy.
New ships, equal to any others in the
hnUn q 4 |
cost, but the Government dues not
seem to be equally progressive In pro-
vidiDg the necessary coallng stations.
All other great nations have TecOg-
nized the necessity of providing them.
Without such stations, for example,
no nation could make successful war
against the United States, p fact
fully appreciated by Italy in the late
diplomatic incident arising from the
New Orleaus affair.
To protect our Atlantic coast in case
OF war tile United States would have
to capture aud retain the hostile bases
fronting that coast, and to protect her
Pacific coast she must similarly hold
Hawaii. If she possessed these strong
holds she would be safe against the
combined attacks of the world. The
power that holds San Francisco and
Hawaii will control the western out
let Of the isthmian canal, and hence
the CONNIE re Of the Pacific The pos
session OF the Bermudss by the Brit
jsh i'm the war of 1Sl2-14 caused i'm
mense damage 10 American trade in
the Atlantic. Geographically the
Hawaiian Islands bear the same i'm
pOrtant relative position toward the
Pacific that the BermudaS do toward
the Atlantic coast, 3 position which
makes them important alike to for
eign war and maritime powers aud
essential to the United States.
England has sought in every posi-
bile way to establish commercial and
social supremacy in the Hawaiian :
Islands, to- the end that sometime the .
over ripened p um might fall into her
lap. She doubtless would he much |
pleased to join the United States In q /
Samoan like protectoTate over this
group. She is now striving to- land y !
British cabI- from Vancouver To Aus .
tralia on Neckar or Bird Island, aud
but i'll cOuceHls her chagTin that the [
Of the United States has
forced her to give up the Hawaiian
group and pass 700 miles farther on to
Tanning Island.
"The maritime power that holds
Pearl River HarbCr and mOOrs her
feet there holds the key to the North |
Pacific" "For no trade could prosper
or even exist, while a hostile power,
possessing powerful and active ma
rine, should send out It's cruisers TO ,
prey upon cOmmerce; but once firmly
upon them (the Hawai-
ian Islaudsl, il might put TO defiance
any m+aus of attack which could be
brought to bear upon them" On the ;
other hand it is declare by United
States naval officer that in case of war,
the islands would be source Of ua-
tiOual modification. lie advocates
their naturalization by international
treaty so that all nations could coal
and refuge there, and declares that
the rest is sentImentality. 1t would {
doubtless be very philanthrOpic to
these islands, but it Is diff
cult TO accept the idea Un any other 1
ground. Another objection urged is