The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-06-04
HALLS NEW NAVAL ERA
GREAT LESSON IN RATTLE OF SEA
 OF JAPAN.
Giant ships Lose Friends--Destruc- tiveness of Torpedo Vessels, shown In Fight, May Rev.
 olutionixe Policies.


 tiveness of Torpedo Vessels,
 shown In Fight, May Rev.
 olutionize Policies.
 
 Waiter weliman's Washington Letter to Chicago Record Herald. Now that the smoke of the greatest naval battle of modern times has cleared away. and the secretiva Japa- nese arc lifting the veil which has hitherto concealed important facts. 1t becomes apparent that the naval de- veiopment of the nations Is to be vastly changed as a result of the les sons taught by the little brown men of Nippon. Some of these lessons may be thus recounted:
 First--It is not so much big navy a nation needs to maintain Its sea power as 1t Is a navy of moderate size, but of the very highest possible effi- cheney.
 Second--This means that the per- sonnel Is of more importance than the ships and armor and armament--"the man behind the gun" Is the firss con- sideration.
 Third-The great floating fortress called a battleship is going down in the scale of relative importance. and the little torpedo boat is coming up. So much is this true that 1t Is already well-nigh assured that the future na- val policy of the United States will be the building of few if any more Dattle- ships and the construction of a largo number of torpedo boats and destroy CTS. There is also possibility that the submarine is coming to the front. that the French have been on the right track in that line, though as to this more light is needed.
 Now that most of the facts have come out, naval men and government officials, from President Roosevelt down, are more than ever amazed at the results attained by the Japanese. The men of Nippon are now the naval leaders of the world. The experts of all countries are sitting at their feet. Incidentally the American navy is at fault and liable to severe criticism be- cause 1t has not sent men to the Far East to study the action on the sea and to profit thereby. Some other na- tions have been forehanded In this and have gained a distinct advantage over the United States.
 Perhaps the most astounding fact involved in the war is this: Since the outbreak of hostilities the Japanese have neither built nor bought war ships, yet their fighting line Is now stronger than 1t was at the beginning of the war. In other words, they have taken from their enemy more m tom mage, in guns, in actual value, than they have lost from all causes during the war. And meanwhile they have annihilated the naval power of their enemy. Such an achievement as this eclipses everything known to naval annals.
 According to ohicial statements made today In Tokio. the Japanese have lost since the war began one battleship, one cruiser, two gunboats and i've tor- pedo boats or destroyers. All but three of these craft, and these small boats belonging to the torpedo fiotilla, were lost in the series of blockadcs at Port Arthur. Not one was sunk, destroyed or captured by the guns of the Russians. unless the three destroy CTS lost last Sunday and Monday fell before the gun fire of the foe. Mines and accidents account for all the cas- ualties, with the possible exception of these three. In other words, the Jap anese navy has practically wiped the Russian navy of the face of the wa ters. The Russian navy, mines except ed, has inflicted mere trivial injury and loss upon the Japanese. It is not sur prising that naval experts the wocld over sit in amazement when they com template the achievements of the Japs. For the one battleship they have lost the Japanese have gained from the Russians two first-class modern battle ships, one of them as fine a ship of the line as there is afioat. They now have possession of two coast defense ships which the Russians were kind enough to sail into Japanese waters as a con- tribution to the fighting force of the | Mikado. They have captured one good cruiser. one valuable special service ship and at least two and probably several more destroyers. The>balance. | it readily will be seen, is heavily in | favor of the Japanese. Their navy Is | stronger now than 1t was when the war broke out. The Russians have played nicely into their hands. The ofice of naval intelligence today | issued a statement showing in detail
 the effect of the war up to date upon | the naval power of the comb atants. | When hostilities began Russia had nineteen first-class battleships, with a | tonnage of 230,000. Now she has sev-
 en such ships, with a tonnage of only S2.Oo0.
 Eleven coast defense vessels, with a tonnage of 65.000, have shrunk to sew en, with a tonnage of 43,000. Armored cruisers numbering seven at | the outbreak of the war, with 59,0OO tons, have dropped to three, with 31, 900. | Cruisers of above 5000 tons number | ing six when the war started, with 40,- 900 tons, are now only four, with 30,000 tons
 Of fourteen smaller cruisers, the Rus | sians have lost three. and would have | lost more if they had sent them to the | Far East. Of forty-one torpedo boat destroyer. they have lost at least eight. and of eighty-five torpedo boats they have lost at least three, and probably more. The naval intelligence office in- cludes only craft known to have been lost.
 The awful total is a loss of thirty three fighting ships and reduction of tha total tonnage of the Russian navy