The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1898-04-04
DEFECTS or OUR NAVY

DEFECTS0 OF OUR NAVY
Assistant Secretary Roosevelt Criticlies
Past Comgresses for Their Siyyardiy
Policy 1t was Costly Par,imony.
NEW YORK, April a-The Press pub
fishes the following from Its Washing
ton correspondent: Assistant Secretary
OF the Navy Roosevelt, in talking about
the condition OF the navy. explained the
need OF hurried preparations and the
handicap under which the department
worked because OF previous lack OF I'M
Outstanding and nlggardly policy on the
part of consrtss. He said:
IF there remains any person so I'M
wise as to think n navy can be impro-
vised, or even materially ENLARGED, or
made more effective at the last moment,
he events Of the past month should
undeceire him. No expenditure OF
money. no amount Of energy and no adj
ministratire capacity or mechanical in
gcnuity can take the place, even to a
small degree. Of faithful and far-sighted
preparation in advance. when we come
TO deal with IN instrument at once so
formidable and 50 complicated as n
modern navy.
This applies quite as much to the
personnel as to the material. Only the
officers. and men who have already had
thorough training on warshlps can be
relied upon to do the best work. OF
course n number Of new recruits can be
added, and as long as they do not make
too large q proportion OF the crew they
an be put in shape. but the bufk Of the
fighting must be done by the men al
ready In the service. So It Is with the
ships and gum
Nearly a month ago congress appro-
priated $780, 00, 900 TO prepare for war.
The navy department has bent every
energy TO buying ships. 1t has sought
in every part Of the world TO get them,
with the net results so far OF fair
sized cruisers and two second class tor
pedo boats. together with a dozen tugs
n yachts In our own waters. None
of these craft are yet availale for use.
The New Orleans Is about as good as
u average unarmored cruiser: better
than the Cincinnati. Tor instance. and
much below the Olympia. The two tor
pedo boats are distinctly inferior to our
own torpedo boats. The tugs and
yachts are mere m~akeshifts, with which
their officers will do the best thai can
be done, but they are, OF course. in no
way so satisfactory as the vessels
against which they Will have to be pit
ted. 4 few, a very few. guns have been
bought, and 1t Is, OF course. possible to
greatly Increase the output of powder,
but II is entirely impossible TO build
either guns or torpedo boats in time TO
make them available, in any contin-
gency that might occur within the next
two or three months.
"1n short. u experience shows that
not the richest nation In the world by
an expenditure Of money or any exer-
else of ability could improvisc n i!eet
capable of coping with that OF even 4
tenth rate power in three or four
months. while 4 really respectable navy
could hardly be begun under less than
as many years.
u two years ago . proposition
came up In congress to allow for the
construction OF q number of torpedo
boat destroyers and torpedo boats. SEN
ator Lodge heartily champloned It, as
did Senator Chandler. II was, however,
voted down, the opponents OF the meas
ure stating that there did not seem to
be any likelihood of war, and that the
government could not afford 10 Incur
such expenses. II the course advocated
by Senator Ladgc had been followed at
that time, we would Tow have L tor
pedo boat tlotilla much r:ore powerful
than that OF the S~paliards. Instead OF
not having I single torpedo boat de-
stroyer which could be pitted against
the Spanish torpedo boat dcstroycrs;
and this great increase In the efficiency
of our service would have beer obtained
for Father less cost thar the malIeshift
tugs and yachts which We are now
obliged to get; moreover, the torpedo
boats would have represented n perIna-
nent increase OF strength in our naval
force. whereas most OF the tugs and
yachts would be vn.ueiess IL the pres
ent emergency.
80 it Is with taking vessels like the
st. Louis and New York Of the Ameri-
can line. a certain class OF crude viz
ionaries believes that these ships can
be suddenly made formidable warships.
Now, they can be made OF great use in
time OF war, but 1t will take time to fit
them out ever for the purposes for
which we would need them. II will be
enormously expensive thus to 1T them
out, and by no possibility could they be
employed against my real fighting
ships. No amount OF money would
make them as efficient as any battIeship
or any armored cruiser. The service. on
which they would be employed would
necessltate their being able to rum. and
they could be trusted to iightonly weak
regular warships.
AS l said before, these services Nigh.
be very important, and the ships Will
In all probability be utilized IN the event
of wal as auXiliarieS to the regular bat
tie fleet, but they in no sense or man
ner could take the place OF the battle
ships even ir5utlicientiy. The adyo-