The record-union., 1898-08-31
THE NAVAL FACTS.
A BUREAU THAT COLLECTS
THEM CAREFULLY.
How the Work is Done-Avenues
Of Information for Uncle
Sam.

When the war with Spain threatened
and before the actual beginning OF nos
tilities, the Secretary of the Navy was
able to learn from his subordinateS on
few minutes notice just what the
strength of the Spanish navy was, the
character of the vessels, the style of
their armament-in fact every particle
of information necessary to compari-
son of the navieS of the two countries
and forecast of the probable result
Of an encounter between them. He
found out the character and extent of
the permanent defenses of Cuba and
Porto Rico and the Philippines. In fact,
he was able to assemble facts, the
knowledge of which enabled him to
take in the whole situation at a glance
The information about the Spanish
navy on which Secretary Long was
able to call and which he is now using
every day, is backed up with facts
about all the navies of the world, in the
secret archives Of the department kept
by the office of naval intelligence. This
cfflce is an attachment of the Secre-
tary's office 1t has existed for sixteen
years, and in all that time until this
year it has never had an official status.
l. ue CleThS eUlplOy ca III II AAliiOA ~ 49, '
been assigned from other bureaus.
The office was stablished in Secre-
tary Chambers time. It's business was
to collect all the information OBTAIN
able concerning foreign navies with
view to utilizing it in the building OF
the new American navy which was be-
ing planned. Uncle Sam has been q
pioneer in invention, but seldom in ex-
has
chosen to go slowly and surely forward
waiting until the costly experiments OF
other nations had developed the value
of a device before adopting 1t.
In pursuance of this policy naval at
taches were sent to most Of the foreign
courts with instructions to send in in
formation about foreign navies. AT the
time the war with Spain began there
were naval representatives at Paris,
Vienna, London, Rome, st. Petersburg
and Madrid. Most of these have since
been recalled for active service.
These naval attaches sent to the de-
partment printed reports as we'll as
written observations of naval opera
tions and experiments. The written re-
ports were always secret and they can
not be seen to-day without an order
seen at all except by some officer Of the
department having the Secretary's au-
thority.
Another source of information was
the intelligence officer aboard ships.
Every Captain of an American vessel
on foreign station designated one Of
his Junior officers to make observation
and report to the department. and the
"a asked n give him
the benefit of any information they
might pick up. Even the petty officers
and the sailors contributed to the re-
ports what they saw or heard of the
methods OF foreign navies- No sub
ject was too small for observation, from
a gasket to a 16-inch gun. In addi-
ton to this special information, all
sorts of published information was ac-
ouired-clippings from newspapers, ar
ticles from magazines, photographs of
foreign ships. and pictures of foreign
guns and Notifications. The intelli-
gence bureau contains the only COM
plete set of pictures of the Spanish
navy in the United States.
This accumulation of written and pic
tured facts fills six large rooms. 1t
is arranged in cases against the walls
indexed. Captain John R. Bartlett of
the navy. who is in charge of it, ex-
planned the arrangement to the corre-
spondent the other day. He pulled
out a file case which was one Of a
group marked ships" This one was
labeled English ships" The classifica-
ton of these was marked by red cards;
standing upright in the case, and each
individual ship was named on blue
card, which was held by a rubber strap
to a number of white cards. On each
white card was a reference to the files
of the bureau. In the case which Cap
tain Bartlett chose for illustration inn
mediately behind the blue card was a
card telling of the launching of the
ship; the next card referred TO a COM
plete description of this particular ship;
the next TO a test of her guns; the next
to an inquiry in Parliament concern