The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-09-05
THE AMERICAN NAVY.
-o,,, OF PRESIDENTS UReINa
FORCE AT SEA.

,.rr.t,ry roosevelt nssues . Ttneiy
-JneEss.s .'1nstinet Tor the
,.z.,,r--Attao Tour Ene@y 1sstead OF
u.,,,r rr Hin 70 Attack Hoa-A stresE
IN. surest Guarantee OF Peace
,-,...nt Secretary Of the Navy Theodore
,.o.,yslt has prepared q pamphlet, which has
-. nan issued from the Government print
- ,cace and is timely and well chosen a. q
-. Of showing thai our naval establish
-, ,hould DO made equal to our standing as
..tiop. The pamphlet Is entitled: The
-, polic7 Of America as Outlined In Mes
-. n, the Presidents Of the United States
- The Beginning to the Present Day"
~, roosevelt introduces the words Of the
,..ton's leaders As follows:
~rN. following references twhero necessary
49, .s slightly condensedl by Presidents OF
~. United States to the urgent need OF the
r.,,.d States possessing q proper navy, CORE
So,d,nr to the nations position as q great
s-r and ready at any time for efficient ser
=, IN war. could be multiplied q thousand.
"a trom the speeches and writings Of almost
an The statesmen who have striven disinterest-
IN, and tntellisentlJ for the true honor and
~.,tness of America By no means all OF the
.sr,pcye made by the Presidents themselves
Nv, been taken Many OF them, such ss
p,r.dent Taylor's urgent appeals for the estab-
hAn,nt Of q retiring list and pension HIST,
"a the Improvement Of the personnel Of the
,,v,. or the r~ecitals Of the glory gained and
corfsrred BY the navy in the war Of 1912 and
n. civil war. are omitted because they do not
h~,r on the problem Of the present day, which
n In my own opinion. to further strengthen
a, navy, both in materiel and personnel, In
h.tsleships. in torpedo boats, In drydocks, In
numSers Of officers and men
fortunately the quality Of the ships and
wnA and Of the officers and men, that we have,
b excellent
the utternnces OF the Presidents here quot
a, tel In outline the growth of the navy.
Washington drst advocated its formation for
r,sons which apply now a. forctbly as they
svulied when be wrote, over q century ago.
vhat he said shows well how. on this Is on all
uther questions, the greatest OF Americans ap-
uroachsd every problem Of vital interest to
America IN 4 spirit Of the broadcast patriotism
and craftsmanship. combined with clear up
~preciatiop of the needs Of the present and keen
nstxht into the greater needs which the future
would develop.
Under the elder Adams the navy which
Washington advocated was actually begun.
md even In It's infancy it accomplished feats OF
note. The work OF building it up was unwise-
h stopped, and the war Of 1912 showed clearly
the vital benefits conferred upon the nation by
he little navy which il possessed. and the terri
he loss and damage caused by the fact that in
m this navy was but q small fraction Of what
Il tbsSia have been. The utteranees Of Mon
roc. the younger Adams. and Andrew Jackson
show that the lesson was at least partially
harmed. and our navy. though never brought
W quite 20 the standard it should have been
b point Of size, was nevertheless maintained in
condition not wholly out Of proportion to the
nscts and the honor OF the nation
Especial attention should be paid to the
bird quotation from Andrew Jackson The
victor Of New Orleans had that instinct for
the jugulaT which is possessed by every great
fighter. All that hs says applies 70 the pres
mt day, for, rs he points out so clearly, the
1iy effective defensive Is the offensive; the
only way to defend our own seacoass properly
b 70 attack our enemy instead Of waiting for
hin u attack Us. It Is for this reason that we
annot afford to rely purely upon torpedo boat
upon any kind Of mere coast-defence vessels
Though il is. OF course, absolutely necessary
b have an abundance OF torpedo boats, We
nnst also POSSESS a powerful feet of ships ahle
70 hold he seas, able TO make long voyages, &c
Stand rough weather. and TO meet and overcome
IN tia shock Of actual fight any enemy's feet
hr it Is tho enemy's feet which should be tht
tus objective IN nava, war. Fortidcations are
Indispensable. but they in no sense equal, Oh
uvpty the place Of, q fighting navy.
The effect Of bringing the navy Up to some
nng like q proper ssandard was shown In tn.
hesttmahle services it rendered during the civi
va. 1t Is characteristic OF Lincoln's farseeins
Hateananship aud loving care for the welfare
Ultimate as well as Immediate, OF the people fol
xhum he was soon to lay down his Life, that /,
Ne midst Of the ton stress Of tho civil war
vhen the problems Of the present would hav
Shaly absorbed any lesser man. he should ye
hEs thought OF the future in connection witt
ar navy, and should have advocated the build
hg Of those aeasoinR battleships which, though
ns needed in civil strife. would most assured!
% indispensable If the honor and renown O
America were to be upheld against foreign
psWerA
After the close Of the civil war there tame
1aand Of reaction and decline In spite O
President Grants repeated warnings and pro
hstA' a spirit OF economy prevailed. and on
navy wa suffered to sink below the level Of tina
q even the thtcd-rats poUers. Then, in III
Mdde OF President Arthur's Administration
NE Turn came; the people and their representa-
ives a"oke to what was demanded by nationa
if'respect, the foundations Of our present nav,
Ssfe laid, and ever since then under every Ad
hinistratioa the work of building it UP has gon
readily on
In point OF efficiency our ships need fea
sSmpeflsnn with those OF no foreign nation, an,
Iousn they are not as numerous as they shoult
@umateiy DE. yet long strides in the right di
krSS%sa lave been taken IL We continue Il
: ySnd up our navy for a few years to come aIon,
ge lines We have followed for the fifteen year
%mediateiy past, we shall, within a conpara
ssssSeJ snort period, place the United State
Sasfe she should be, among the naval poWer
me world. sucn a navy would be, as AL o
LsLeat leaders from the days OF " ashinRtol
40 ne elder Adams TO our own have poInte.
srS me 'qrest guarantee Of peace; and II b.
- 9nIucky chance we were to have war 1
souD1 not merely save Us from material disal
=, oqt what Is Of l~ncaiculably more moment
NoI!n prevent that loss Of national homo
ss1nGen you'd be felt as keenly In the turthest in
n. Of the country as on the seaboard Of tn
Atlantic or the Pacific"
The words or the PresaesatA