The evening times., 1895-11-25
NAVAL l0BBI APPOINTED
Officers Of the Line Who viii
Work Upoa Congress.
IN SPITE OF sEC'Y HERBERT
He Is Opposed to Any Activity on the
Fart OF Officers In Behalf of Legis-
iation-Renewfng the Old Fight
With the staff-Other Departments
News.

The navy line Officers are arrayed for
the winters campaign. A large number
OF the Officers on DUTY In Washington. rep
resenfing, 1t is claimed, majority of the
line officers Of the navy at home nd abroad,
met Saturday night and discussed the
chances of obtaining relief from Congress.
Tie meeting was rema rkable In view of
the known wishes OF Secretary Herbert
that navy Officers shall refrain from activity
In their own behalf where national legis-
laiion is concerned. The meeting was
called for the purpose of furthering the
project To relieve stagnation in the line
anu make the lot OF naval officers more
bearable.
There was a general approval OF the
efforts of Secretary Herbert to secure a
better condition aud the bill presented by
the Congressional committee last year hav-
lpg Tor It's object the desires OF the line Of
ficers was generally indorsed.
COMMITTEE APPOINTED.
A RESOLUTION was adopted conveying to
Secretary Herbert the appreciation of the
line Officers III his efforts. Another resolu-
ton was presented aad adopted appointing
; Commute including Capt. Sampson,
naval cniel or ordnance: Capt. Phythian,
head OF the Naval Observatory and Lieut.
Scheutze, naval aide to Assistant Secre.
tary McAdo',, TO engage the attention OF
Congress and secdre the passage of the
measure of last year one nearly like il.
1t WAS the sentiment of the line officers
assetneied sst, Ne, that nothing sh,ald be done to
behalf.
There has always been strong fight be-
tween the line and staff. Last year both
line and staff officers c,,lnplained that their
respective efforts were injured by the
eiiniity OF the ,ther.
Secretary Herbert is not In favor of either
line or staff officers taking prominent part
IN any movement where Congress must act
The staff officers will have several bills
before G,,ngress. but it is doubtful If Sec
refary Herbert viii approve OF more than
the Dill FOR the relief uf the line
MAY BE FAR REACHING.
The result of the official examination Of
The Columbia's eight-inch gun, which met
with anaccident in target practice recently,
may be far reaching. If the cracking OF
the breeciI block was due to a flaw in the
metal. that VIII end the matter, as such
deiects VIII sometimes occur in the best
systems OF cuB-.na king; but should there be
10 flaw. and should the weakness of the
breech block be due to the cutting of the
groove across it's face, then other blocks
viii nave to he supplied to all guns above
the six-inoll calibre- 1t is held, however,
by the Ordnance Bureau, that the slotted
screw mocha uism had nothing to do with
the fracture of the block
Time penalties ON new ships viii, ii Is
said. be looked after strictly hereafter. on
the Kearsarge and her mate $40 per day
except Sundays Will be due during the
first three months beyond the contract
time OF three years; $50 per day for the
next three. and S20O per day for the six
months following. The Department has
always been liberal in making aIlO wances
for delays not due to the contractor, and
Congress has in repeated cases remitted
penalties after those allowances had been
made But it is felt that steel ship
building is now too old a story TO justify
sum per ton Will be charged against the
contractor for every ton of ma chinery
CARRIED over the 1,100 tons allowed.
The report on the improved Gatling gun
that 100 rounds were fired in seven seconds
anu 200 in thirteen seconds, with one man
st the crank and two at the feed. Later,
400 rounds were fir, q In half a minute. In
five minutes $50 shots were fired, and it
is said that with an electric motor attached
there could be fired within one minute
500 shots.
A NEW SURVEY.
The Coast and Geodetic Survey will be re-
quested to make 4 new survey, very soon. OF
the bar at Port Royal. 1t is believed, how
ever. that there are twenty six feet of water
there NJ least. and that the Amphitritc's
troChie arose from her being out OF the chan
mel; The cry-dock Is now believed to be all
right.
The order issued by Secretary Herbert
ma king the course next year at the Naval
War College from June 1 to October l
accorGs with the suggestion OF Capt. Tay-
lor in his report. This officer also suggest
ed that the permanent staff should be in
creased to six Officers, and should remain
three years. There will again be twenty
five Officers of our navy in attendance, as
this year. only five being below the grade
of lieutenant. Preparations are already
begun for next years work.
Capt. Cooper. who has now been superin-
tcndlent of the Naval Academy bout year,
thinks that the results of the June examina-
tious only add to the arguments in favor OF
the admission age to between
fifteen and seventeen years. He also
believes that no rejected candidate should
he readHnitted without the recommendation
of the academic board. Still another i'm
provement. he holds, could be made by
dropping altogether the two years cruise,
thus reducing the course to four years. as
in the colleges and at West Point. But
a striking new idea, which might be an
offset to this change and help to insure the
of studies, is that, after
cruise of three years all ensigns should be
sent back to Annapolis for post graduate
course of one year. at the expiration OF
which a competitive examination would de-
termine their relative positions on the
navy list.
1t is understood that Admiral Bunce
doubts the expediency of having
assistant naval constructors assigned to
duty with squadrons. and that the same
view is taken Dy members of the cOnStruc-