The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-07-28

be trained to equip all the five vessels st
 tnas or snagro uney can 1e organszed into notilla place to demonstrate the theoretical value of the submarines operating as a squad.
 being perfecfsa ffasmehas ST ms ior r Inis worK are gation by direction of Secretary Moody The competitive test between the Fulton ana ana the Protector win be conducted by the Board of Construction, of which Rear Admiral O'Neil is Chairman. A three-cor- nered contest between the Fulton, the Protector and Government boat was contemplated but it was held that the | compa risons should be made by individ- ual records instead of by means of race. The board holds that the records of the Government boats were established at the contractors trials when they were han dled by well-trained and skillful crews. tbs esuai t or sua surpass tnese records VIII be the. Fulton. They will be put through their paces one at time. and tested for speed, dirigilibity. acuracy of delivery of their torpedoe, etc. and their records com- pared with each other and with those of the Government vessels made at their of- ficial trials. The law authorizing the pur- chase of one or both of these vessels is not mandatory, but places 00000 at the disposal of Secretary Moody for the pur- chasing of submarines If he Is satisfied are superior to those already purchased and that one or both should be added to the navy. In addition to the sale of the SuCCeSSIul DOaI to the navy, It IS ReueTallY understood that Secretary Moody's action in purchasing or rejecting the boats will determine the future attitude of Con- gress.
 If he gives them the stamp of his ap- proval by purchasing one or both, Con- gress will undoubtedly make further ap- propriations; if he rejects one and ac- cepts the other the unsuccessful com petitor may as well go out of business as far as the United States is concerned
 It is rather an amusing fact that during one Of his vehement arguments against submarines in general a distinguished Naval Bureau chief of long service. ad- vanced the proposition that submarines could be built and placed in service in been spent on the Fulton and longer time on the Protector. The Fulton Is of the Holland type and Is strictly subma- rine torpedo boat. The Protector Is de- signed by simon Lake and Is combina- ton or general utility" submarine, hav- ing cable cutting apparatus for remov- ing mines. as well as torpedo tubes. Their method of submergence are also distinct as the Fulton Is diving boat and the Protector sinks by means of weights and valves on an even keel. The Protector up to the present time her trials have been confined to surface and awash con- ditions, as far as reported, so that little is known of her capabilities for sub
 The Holland Company which has con- structed all the submarines in the navy. IS ueVotlng US attention at present almost exclusively to the foreign field. and, in addition to supplying England with it's submarines, is conducting negotiations with Emperor William III. with view to equipping the German Navy.
 The President of the company and for mer United States Constructor. Y Spear who is the constructor for the Holland Company. have recently been at Kiel where they consulted with the German naval officials and as the Emperor is un- derstood to be favorably disposed toward the vessel it Is likely a contract will be concluded by which number of Aneri- can submarines will be added to the Ger man Navy. R. H. Watkins.