Albuquerque daily citizen. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1895-1903, 1902-12-02

hut for allowances for prizes to encour-
age the gun crews. and especially the gun
pointers. and for perfecting. an intelligent
$, stem under which alons it is possible 10
get good practice.
There should be no halt In the building
up of the navy, providing every year ad-
ditional fighting craft. We are a very
rich country. vast in extent of territory
and great in population; a country more
over. which has an army diminutive in
deed when compared with that of any
other first class power. We have deliber-
ately made our own certain foreign poll
cies which demand the possession of a
first class navy. The isthmian canal will
greatly increase the efficiency of our navy
IL the navy is of sufficient size: but IL we
have an inadequate navy, then the build
ing Of the canal would be merely giving
n hostage to any power Of superior
strength. The Monroe doctrine should
be treated as the cardinal feature of Am
erlcan foreign policy; but it would be
worse than idle to assert it unless we in
tended to back it up. and it can be back
ed up only by a thoroughly good navy. A
good navy is not a provocative of war.
1t is the surest guaranty of peace.
The Bravery o. Our Sailors.
Each Individual unit of our navy should
be the most efficient Of its kind as re-
CARDS both material and personnel that is
t. be found in the world. I call your spe-
cial attention to the need of providing
for the manning of the ships. Serious
trouble threatens us If we cannot do bet
ter than we are now doing as regards
securing the services of a sufficient num-
Der of the highest type of s%ailormen, of
sea mechanics. The veteran seamen OF
our war ships are of as high a type as
can be found in any navy which rides the
waters of the world; they are unsurpass-
ell I'm daring, in resolution, in readiness,
in thorough knowledge of their profess
sion. They deserve every consideration
that can be shown them. But there are
not enough of them. Il Is no more posi-
BILE to improvise a crew than 1t is possible
to improvise a war ship. To build the fin
est ship, with the deadliest battery, and
to send It afoat with a raw crew, no mat
ter how brave they were individually,
would be to insure disaster II a foe of av-
erage capacity were encountered. Meth
| er ship nor men can be improvised when
: war has begun.
We need n thousand additional officers
in order to properly man the ships now
provided for and under construction. The
classes at the naval school at Annapolis
should be greatly enlarged. At the same
time that we thus add the officers where
we need them, we should facilitate the
retirement of those at the head of the list
whose usefulness has become impaired.
Promotion must be fostered II the service
is to be kept efficient.
We Need More Recruits.
The lamentable scarcity of officers. and
the large number of recruits and of I'M
skilled men necessarily put aboard the
new vessels as they have been commits
stoned, has thrown upon our officers, and
especially on the lieutenants and Junior
grades, unusual labor and fatigue and
has greatly strained their powers of en-
durance. Nor is there sign of any imme-
date let up in this strain. 1t must con-
tinue for some time longer, until more Of
f1cers are graduated from Annapolis, and
until the recruits become trained and
skillful in their duties. In these difficult
ties incident upon the development of our
war fleet the conduct of all our officers
has been creditable to the service, and
the lieutenants and Junior grades in par
ticular have displayed an ability and a
steadfast cheerfulness which entities
them to the un~grudging thanks of all who
realize the disheartening trials and fati-
.pes to which they are of necessity sub
jected.
There Is not a cloud on the horizon at
present. There seems not the slightest
chance of trouble with a foreign power
We most earnestly hope that this state OF
things may continue; and the way to in
sure It's continuance is to provide for q
thoroughly efficient navy. The refusal Il
maintain such a nav would invite trou-
bic, and II trouble came would insure di'
saster. Fatuous self-complacency or van
ity, or short-sightedness in refusing Il
prepare for danger, is both foolish and
wicked in such a nation as ours; our pas
experience has shown that such faulty II
refusing to recognize or prepare for an,
crisis in advance is usually succeeded 10y
a mad panic OF hysterical fear once tn
crisis has actually arrived.
P~ostoffice Department.
The striking increase in the revenues
Of the postojce department shows clearl!
the prosperity of our people and the In
creasing activity Of the business OF tn
' country.