The Dalles times-mountaineer. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1882-1904, 1897-11-13
SHORT OF SEAMEN.
A Lack Which Is One Of ,EugI
lands Gravest Dangers.
Some Interesting Facts About Great Bffsj
aims Huge Naval squadrons--Not
Enough Trained Men to
Handle Them. T.s

II may be said without eXaggeratiou
that the question of the hour is. the
supply of seamen for our feet, says
the Fall Mall Budget. No Juggling
with figures can conceal the fact that
in case of war we cannot send even all
our modern vessels to sea. Though
every nerve wa strained at the mansu-
ve-s, though the depots were depleted
of scamcn and stokers, we had to leave
in port no less than 16s fighting craft.
In this total are included ten first and
second class battleships, ten third-class
battlcships, seven coast defense IRON
clads, four old ironcla2s, seventeen
cruisers, eleven torpedo gunboats, forty
destroyers and sixty-nine serviceable
torpedo boats. Many of the vessels in
this enormous category are of the new
est construction, and, though some are
not yet completed for sea, all should be
finished by the end of the financial
year. We have none too many cruisers
rs it is, and when war is upon us we
shall want every single one to protect
"T- colossal trade. All the older IRON
ciatis will be needed to convoy our slow
ocean tramps, all our coast defense
vessels to protect our unfortified ports
and towns on the coast. The French
are known to contemplate the bonn
bardment of open towns, and this is the
only means by which we can prevent
stray cruisers doing us terrible harm.
Our battleships will be wanted for the
combat and to watch our enemies
ports. Our ironclads lack their proper
complement of torpedo gunboats and
torpedo boats; ind eed, our. first line,
the Mediterranean fleet, has still
only two. The crews required for
the ships which woul not be able to
put to sea amount to no less than
22,G10 men, or, reduc ing them to
nc lowest possible limit, 10000. Ships
we can build in three years and less,
but-saflorsscan hardly be trained for
war in twice that time. Since 1850 we
have been building. faster than we coulf
obtain seamen. We have on the stocks;
or projected, to-day another mass Of
vessels which require St least 10000
more men. 1t is true that the naval es-
Inmates for 1894 contemplate an addi-
tod to our personnel of over 5000 men,
but this is u mere drop in the ocean to
the number which we require. We
must understand that the English feet
disposcs of practically no trained re-
serve. Though the naval conflict Of
tomorrow will be bloody beyond be-
lief, involving holocausts of ships and
men, we have not merely too few sail
ors to stahctoareffective ships to sea-,
but no one to replace those who fall in
She struggle.
Year by year the proportion of Eng
Esh seamen in our mercantile marine
dwindles, while the proportion of for
eigncrs increases. OF our $4,000 able
seamen 10 less than 1000 are foreign
ers, AMI half the remainder have had
less than four years service. Nor Is It
Il question of wages. From the ship
owners goes up the ominous complaint
tia, tile Swede or the German is bet
ter e. ilcated, more sober, more respect
full. He uoes not desert, he is a better
sailor, and his physique is superior.
1.-THE supremacy of the English sailor
Is waning" says the chairman of the
West India and Pacific Steamship COM
pany. These are terrible words for us,
whose pride and whose heritage in the
past has been the sea.
Our naval reserve numbers in its first
class 10000 men. Their training 10
limited in the extreme. They are, !.
many of them, ignorant of the manipu-
lation of the .breechloader, for such is
the wisdom of our rulers that they per- {
sist in drilling our reserves with OBJ
solete guns. At Wick, where 1,16O
men are trained, there is not single
modern weapon. After this they get.a
month at sea on war ship. And that
is all. The trumpet will sound; as
many of them as can be obtained in "
our home ports will be huddled on
board our ironclads; lieutenants and
officers will be borrowed from ships in
and our fleet will be put
to sea-to sure and certain defeat
Abroad there is readiness for instant
action, at home unreadiness.