Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-12-15
NOBEL PRIZE AWARDS
Secretary Hay Would Have
Been Honored Had He Lived.
REORGANIZATION OF NAVY
The President Will Urge It in a
Special Message.
CAREFULLY PREPARED PLAN
Problem Of the Chicago Drainage
Canal Being Considered by the
Waterway Commission.
BY WILLIAM E. CURTIS


BY WILLIAM E. CURTIS.
Written for The Star and the Chicago Record
Herald.
The award Of the Nobel Peace Prize to
President Roosevelt will meet with uni
versal approval. The fact that It has been
awarded to him was known in st. Peters
burg last summer. and / mentioned it In a
letter from that city at the time. The prize
is awarded by a committee Of the Nor
wegian parliament OF which Bjornstjerne
Bjornson the famous author, was chair
man last year. The other prizes for physics
science and literature are awarded by COM
mittees of the Nobel Institute, which has
its headquarters in Stockholm, and the
medical prize by the Charlotte Medical As
ISOLATION Of that city.
It - interesting to know that Secretary
Hay would have received the Peace prize
last year II he had lived. It had already
been awarded to him at the time Of his
death. He had been nominated according
to the rules of the award by the faculties
Of law In Harvard, Brown. Yale, Columbia,
Princeton, Pennsylvania, Western Reserve
and Chicago universities. Each nomination
was made separately, but in uniform terms
and each was accompanied by q brief, as
required by the regulations, setting forth
the reasons what Secretary Hay had done
during the previous year to promote the
peace Of the world. 1t is no longer
secret that the award was made to him
unanimously. Those who were interested
in the subject, having applied for a return
Of the papers after his death. were request
ed to leave them In the hands of the COM
mittee for a little while longer because it
had not yet been determined whether, under
the terms of/Alfred Nobers will a prize
could be bestowed upon a man who was
no longer living. The question received
earnest consideration, and the legal ad-
it was not possible. Then the prize was
awarded to Madame Bertha Won Suttner,
an American authoress who In 1905 wrote
a notable book, and presenting able argu-
disarm and discharge their military forces
and depend upon arbitration for the set
uement of their disputes. She argued from
an economical as well as a moral stand
point.
In 1904 the prize was bestowed upon the
Institute of International Law of Client;
in 1903 it went to William Randall Creamer,
the English agitator who has spent his life
in promoting arbitration; in 1902 it was d.
vided between Eli Ducommun and DIR.
Charles Albert Gobat of Switzerland. and
In 1901 1t was divided between Frederick
Passy Of Paris and Jean Henry Dunant of
Geneva.
Naval Reorganization.
The board appointed by the President in
August, 1906. to report plan for pro-
noting efficiency and economy in the navy
has reached conclusion and has submitted
a series of recommendations to Secretary
Bonaparte. He has approved them and
passed them up to the President. who will
send them to Congress with special mes
sage next week. Representative Foss,
chairman of the naval committee of the
HOuSa has pr0uiSed n introduce 70
carry them into effect and put 1t through
during the present session If possible.
The recommendations of the board include
plan for automatic promotion, SO that
officers will remain in the lower grades
sufficiently long to enable them to obtain
that experience and reach that maturity
necessary to fit them for the responsible
ties Of command and flag rank; and, at
the same time, advance them SO that they
will reach the rank of captain and admiral
before the retiring age. Promotion Is now
SO slow that an officer receives no training
for feet command, and Is retired almost
Immediately after he reaches that grade.
AS taken from the navy list, the average
age Of rear admirals on July 1, 1905, was
sixty years and eight months; of captains,
fifty-seven years and nine months. and of
commanders, ffty-one years four months.
Under existing law. on January 1. 1910, the
average ages of men in these ranks will
be respectively, sixty years eleven months,
fifty-seven years eleven months and fifty
one years nine months, and the same aver
age will be maintained Indefinitely. Con-
gress has authorized a considerable in
crease in the number of midshipmen at the
naval academy, who, upon graduation, will
be promoted to ensign and later to lieuten-
ants. But no provision has been made for
a corresponding increase in the upper
grades, the result being that the lower
grades will become SO congested that a
midshipman, now in one of the lower
classes at Annapolis, may possibly not be
promoted to lieutenant until he is be-
tween forty-fve and fifty years of age.
Plan Worked Out.
This being the situation the board has
carefully worked out a plan which will
provide sufficient number of officers of
each grade to serve the requirements of
the service af1oat and ashore, and permit
Of such promotion as will enable all officers
to- reach the rank of command before they
have passed the age of their best capacity.
1t Is also economical, and, according to the
calculations submitted. will cause an ac-
years Of about 100000. It proposes:
1. An active list of 1900 officers below
flag rank.
q Three vice admirals and twenty-one
rear admirals on the active list.
Captains to constitute per cent of the
whole number; commanders. per cent;
lieutenant commanders 10 per cent; lieu
tenants and ensigns, 68 per cent.
T. Vice admirals to have the rank, pay and
allowances given to lieutenant generals Of
the army and to retire at the age of sixty
four years.
IS. Vice admirals to be named by a board
consisting of the five senior flag officers,
from the active and retired list.
g. A reserve list of officers for shore duty
to be made up of captains who have passed
ffty-five years Of age. commanders who
have passed forty-eight years of age, lieu
tenant commanders who have passed forty
four years of age, and neutenants who have
passed thirty-seven years of age without
promotion.
T. Offlcers in grades from which elimina-
ton for the reserve list is or may be au-
thorized by law, will be permitted to sub
NIT applications for transfer, and the board
authorized to make the list of reservations
will act first upon the list of voluntary ap-
plications, having due regard for the es-
pecial fitness Of officers and the efficiency
of the service.
A record is to be kept Of the fitness of