The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-05-19

The amount carried by the Naval
Appropriation bill passed by the House
of Representatives on Thursday is $780,
ga, 215.77. The Departments estimates
amounted to 1921 sos, 1882. OF this sum
$13, ESQ. 900 is for the increase of the navy,
one battleship of the British Dreadnought
class, three torpedo boat destroyers and
81, ZOO, 900 worth Of ~-subsurfaoe, sub
mersible or submarine boats" being the
programme. The D~readnought is a
monster of 10000 tom displacement.
Japan is building a battleship Of 10, $50
IONS displacement. Germany has in
creased the tonnage of some of her ships
heretofore authorized to is, 900 tons each.
The Russian-J japanese war convinced the
naval experts Of the world that the big
battleship must be the principal weapon
of marine ~oombatants, and the effects
of the lesson may be seen wherever ma
tional ships are building.
Leaving out of consideration all YES
sells more than twenty years old, except
such as have been rebuilt or rearmed,
all vessels authorized but not begun,
all transports. golfers, repair ships,
torpedo depot ships, converted merchant
vessels, yachts, vessels of less than | 200
tons, except torpedo boats, and all tor
pedo boats of less than fifty tons, the
tables prepared at the Office of Naval
Intelligence show the strength of the
eight greatest marine Powers last fall:
oRRAT BRITAIN.
Built, ,,.."... 1873, sss Building "m..... 2s4, $50
FRANCE.
Built ..,....... 6l9,67j building. ""...... 1871. SIS
GERMANY.
Built .....,..... 466,0s4 Building "",,...., 1el as
UNITED STATES.
Bullt........... $685. 81 Building u."..... sis, rs
JAPAN,
Built......,...,. SILL Building ""...... loo. 7lO
ITALY,
Bullt.....n..... ce6.5 2s Bull ding "......... $500
RUSSIA.
Built ,..,......... :li,Cl building .......... lI .Osi
AusrPIA,
Built .....,...... 1g:,756 Building .,........ II. 200
Were the vessels now in course of
construction all completed, the order in
which the Powers stand in this table
would be changed by the transposition
of the positions of Germany and the
United States and Of those occupied by
Russia and Italy.
Comparing the personnel Of these
navies, it is shown that the United
States, with 1870 commissioned officers
of all ranks in the seagoing corps, has
actually fewer than any Power except
Austria, which has s5l, and in proportion
to tonnage stands at the bottom of the
list, having only l,95 commissioned
officers to each 900 tons of her warship
tonnage built and building. Great Brit
ain has 2.52 officers to every 1000 tons,
France 3.5s, Germany 3.4s, Italy 400
and Austria sol. 1t is not practicable to
give the proportions for Russia and
Japan, owing to the conditions created
by their recent struggle.
In midshipmen and cadets the United
States leads all the nations a V Great
Britain, both absolutely and relatively,
with l,054 in the service, or 1.49 to each
700 tors. In nothing is the tremendous
size Of the British navy shown more
impress;Vely than the figures of her
enlisted men. OF these, exclusive of
marines, she has 81, 2G3, but there are
only 40, 90 men to each 1000 tons, while
the United States with $1,000 men has
62,70, Germany with IS, lib has SO. IL,
and France with So, 1853 has 65. 10.
Great Britain and the United States
ire the only Powers that maintain
aboard ship enlisted men other than
bluejackets, and by Great Britain all
marine Officers are to be replaced grad