The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1895-12-05
UNCLE SANS NAVY.
Substance Of the Secretary's Re-
port to the President.
HIGH STANDARD OF EXCELLENCE.
Satisfactory Results Shown In This De-
partment-No New Docks to lie Built.
The Naval Militia Commended Esti-
mated Cost of Maintenance.

WAsHINGroN, Dec. 2.-In his report
to the president, the secretary of the
navy states that since his last report
six vessels have been completed and
put in commission. Three Of these,
the Olympia, Minneapolis and Indiana,
were built by contract, and the Maine,
Texas and Amphitrite at navy yards
The ram Katahdin, completed under
contract at the Bath iron works, failed
to make the stipulated number of knots
per hour and was rejected by the de-
partment, The final disposition of this
matter will be left to congress.
Progress in the construction of such
armored vessels as were being con.
structed in government yards has been
slow. Constructors in charge of these
establishments, impressed with the
necessity as we'll as the difficulty of
keeping always together an efficient
force of skilled workmen, have been,
until the practice was changed by posi-
tive order, following the traditional
custom Of using for urgent repairs the
force employed upon those in course of
construction, thus taking workmen of
and putting them back on these ships
as the exigencies Of this system re-
Quired. The department, some time
since, peremptorily ordered that full
force should be kept always at work
upon each vessel building.
The high standards of excellence,
both In material aud workmanship, de.
termined upon when the foundations
Of our new navy were being laid, were
then thought by many contractors to
be too rigorous and exactinR; but the
department has at all times upheld and
even raised these standards as occasion
offered, and now it is gratifying tC
state that the time has come when our
shipbuilders not only live up to all the
requirements that have been made, but
acquiesce to the fullest extent in the
wisdom of a system by which they have
been enabled to put themselves in the
very front rank Of naval constructors.
Woodwork in war vessels has been
dispensed with so far as practicable.
No substitute for wood IN all essentials
has as YET been found, and for some
purposes 1t is deemed indispensable.
therefore recently ordered an inVesti'
cation of the new process for tlreproof
Ing wood in use by the Electric Fire
proohng company. The reports made
Of these Investigations led the depart
ment to the conclusion that it was de-
sirable to treat by this process such
wood as must be used in the interior OF
our new ships, and on July 90, 1895
| having first agreed with this company
upon reasonable price, it was ordered
that hereafter, as far as possible, al
wood so used should be first treated by
this process.
The system of gun construction
adopted when the reconstruction of the
navy was undertaken remains un
changed in its general features, and Il
considered fully equal II not superior tC
any that has since been tried here o,
abroad. OF the $40 guns-from incl
to l3-inch caliber-thus far ordered 48,
are wholly or in great part completed
and 80S are afioat.
The problem Of a satisfactory suppl,
of powder for the large guns has no
yet reached complete solution. Tn
smokeless powder now being manutac