The San Francisco call., 1904-04-25

&no rfHC1CeS nOrn llt DuASluc- ~ a
natural consequence development in
Sighting material in the army and navy
IS only accomplished with much diff
Guilty and through great and persistent
efforts by persons not affiliated with
The service In civil life IL is recognized
that specialization in the various arts,
sciences and professions is necessary
for high degree Of proficiency in any
one Of these, but the navy still cinGs
TO the tradition that a line officer knows
all about building ships and engines,
guns. electricity and torpedoes, in ad-
6ition to knowing how TO navigate and
night his ship. This belief is based on
the assumption thar four years
course at the naval academy win equip
a yOungster with all the requisite
knowledge enabling him to become al
expert in any one Of the various en-.
gineering branches he might be called
upon 10 take uo at short notice 1t is
true that = speciality has been made Of
naval construction, but marine en-
gineering. which uD to 1893 was a spe-
cialty, is now part Of the line officers
wade mecum- Efforts TO broaden the
line officer in general knowledge are
likely '-to spread him out too thin" as
the chairman Of the Naval Committee
remarked during the course of the
hearing regarding the personnel bill in
1898 The recent frequent accidents to
guns, either by bursting. caused by
defective material or faulty design, or
prematu explosions through improper
handling. would indicate the necessity
for a specially educated and trained
corps Of ordnance officers, and the re-
Gently retired chief Of bureau. Charles
O'Neil, strongly recommends it.
Upward of 1900 guns Of all calibers
have been manufactured at the Wash
ington gun foundry during the past
twenty years and the results have un-
I'll recently been highly satisfactory.
This was probably due to the fact that
earlier guns were made on models of
the best ordnance in other navies and
that carefully selected material was
used. The ordnance bureau officers
were cautious and content with slow
progress in this new business, but
had been tested and found safe and
PRACTICAL by other gun manufacturers.
The officers charged with the construc-
tion Of guns were selected for their fit
ness for such work. and the inspection
Of material in the shops was rigid. The
present unsatisfactory condition Of our
naval ordnance is due TO a variety of
causes, namely lack Of a sufficient
ambition Of theorists TO produce guns
better than those OF other navies, su-
perhcial inspection Of material and the
Introduction Of a new powder, the quail
tiles Of which seem to puzzle the ex-
perts. Since 1881 there have been four
chiefs OF the ordnance bureau, as fol-
lows: Sicard uD TO 1890; succeeded by
Folger, uD to 1898; then Sampson, UP
10 1897. and finally O'Neil, up to March
last In the gun foundry over one hun
dred officers have been employed since
1884, which with a yearly force of
eleven officers gives an average Of
about two years service TO each officer
At the gun foundry. At the bureau,
where the designs are made for guns,
mounts. gun shields and other details
pertaining TO ordnance matters, no less
than fifty officers have found a two
years retreat after the usual cruise at
sea or TO break I'D the monotOny Of
other less congenial shore duty. At the
proving grounds and torpedo station
the same average Of two years holds
good OF course, a number of officers
have had from four to seven years
ordnance duty, but only a few of these
experts are left, and there are probably
not over twenty bona fide ordnance eX-
perts from which to select a corps OF
ordnance officers, of which the navy is
sadly in need
The organization of an ordnance
corps would not alone be beneficial to
the service, but quite in consonance
with the personnel law OF 1899 by which
former engineer officers, now classed
as line officers, are carried along and
promoted. without performing any sea
service, after reaching the grade OF
commander. An ordnance corps to
perform shore duty alone would be no
departure from the present practice
OF employment and promotion Of Off
GERS.
Two eX-Secretaries of the Navy.
Chandler and Tracy, have indorsed the
y
and Moody, who has hitherto been
somewhat skeDtcal, now also favors
the plan. The proposition appears TO
be quite in line with conditions of the
present time, which differ from those
prevailing twenty years ago, and ex-
pert advice TO the Secretary is essen
tial to a successful administration. It
has hitherto been optional with the
head of the Navy Department TO call
for advice or opinions from officers, but
now it is proposed to establish such a
board by Law, which is to give respon-
sible advice TO the Secretary on mat
tiers OF which he, as a non-expert, is
not familiar. The board is to be com
posed OF not more than seven officers
OF or above the rank of captain, to be
selected by the Secretary. who also is
to have the power to remove any one