Waterbury evening Democrat., 1906-11-30

TILL the leading nations of the world
 appear to have been seized during v . recent years with . perfect mania for adding to their fleets of lighting ships. Nor has national patriotic ambition In any case been satisfied by mere increase In the number of floating fortresses. Larger, more powerful and more heavily armed warships have been demanded. un- til the sums expended upon new naval craft are such as would have appeared unbelievable . few years ago.
 The United States has not been one whit behind her sister nations In pursu- ing this policy for the upbullding of q powerful navy. If anything. she has been ahead of her European rivals. for. where as some of the old World powers have larger navies than the one to be found under the Starr and Stripes. there Is no government beyond the Atlantic that Is now adding to It's steel-clad warriors of the sea 60 rapidly as is Uncle Sam.
 Time was and not 90 very many years ago. either. when the United States was pretty near the foot of the list of prin. cipal naval powers. but the pheDmenal development of the American Navy dur ins the past decade has enabled the re public to advance beyond Japan. Italy. Russia and Austria. and stand in fourth place in this international contest. Great Britain. with . navy equal to the com bined fleets of any three other nations. would appear to be secure h first place for long time to come: France Is second and Germany third.
 But 10 making this comparison the statistics take account only Of the war. ships that are completed. ready for use. or in commission. If all the vessels build ing for the various navies could be com pleted simultaneously and . new census of fighting strength taken. the status of things would be changed. for the United Btates would then be In third place-and not % very far behind rrance- whereas Germany would drop bac- to fourth place. The secret Of this ls found. of course. in the number of new warshlps Miss Co luubia has under construction. Measured in tons the standard currency of naval and shIpbuildinE psrlance. the united States has under way ct the present time ( considerably greater aggregate of new naval construction than Great Britain. and ss much as France and Germany com bined.
 It s not the number Of new fighting ships rhich Uncle Sam is building. sut their weight snd power that is sending this nation upvard 10 the scale Of naval inpertsnce. To Illustrate. it may be er- piatsed thst there gre 10 the United States Navy something like 20 vexsris ft fer service. sherrss the new ships build he nunber Ices thsn a. yet tbese un- eo1pi>ted men-of-usr. together with the lsfeiy enish-d cr.ft whsrh have ronr Into esunls-ixp daring the past fev uouths. vel rish~qusI in srrrrxate tonnssr the ccspie cf hsndrtd armed eraft which spA h<f6 oar riskts on the high sess after fks rIc-e ef the psntss-Anerscsn Was.
 Tke Unitet states siike to oost other aggressive n.tsoas is frnly con@ated ts fke pss'cy sf bsisdfns rsrssips of rhe b>svtssf ciss< csrrylr< <urs of the srexr- esf psrsr ss1 prstrssed by tbe thicxssr srn<r TNe rsr with syai, tnu<ht oar prcfe<ssc>sl exkti-r ues that the hsrf'e skfp ts esrfly pse<nl-e1f sDo1K su lassI