Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-07
NEEDS OF The NAVY SET OUT
Secretary BOnaparte to Forward his An
nual Report to Congress.
TWO NEW BATTLEsHPs RECOMMENDED
Legislation Asked to Punish Discrim-
inatiOn Against Enlisted Men by
Owners of Amusement
and other Places.

port Of Secretary Of the Navy Bonaparte
was submitted to congress today. 1t is In
part, as follows:
This general board has been the object
OF much unjust and unreasonable criticism,
owing, II would seem, partly to the eNag-
gerated expectations which its organization
aroused, and perhaps, TO a not very nap
PLY chosen name. II it had been styled
THE War Board, for example, much
moro accurate idea would have been con
veyed of it's appropriate province. Expert
ence has shown that some agency Whlcn
shall, in time Of peace, mature plans Lor Ell
possible contingencies, and in time OF war
or whenever active service on a consider
able scale is required Of the navy, shall
its operations, is now quite indispensable TO
the efficiency Of navy Of the size or ours.
The general board has discharged these
duties to the entire satisfaction Of the de-
partment, and though, fortunately. no op-
portunity has yet been afforded to test It's
efficiency in actual warfare, experience. IN
connection with minor active operations has
been most instructive as 70 its value.
The Naval Academy.
The enactment Of the statute authorizing
the Secretary Of the navy to dismiss mid
shipmen from the academy and regulating
the punishment and procedure in cases OF
"hazing" has had salutary effect. 1t has
port Of the department to deal nationally
and effectively with "hazing' and other
| breaches of discipline, and it is believed
that the aforementioned practice Is prac-
| tically IL not wholly extinct at least for
the moment Moreover the action Of the
department in holding out the opportunity
for early graduation as an incentive to
hard study and consequent high marks In
the present graduating class, seems to have
promoted worthy and sensible ideas among
! the undergraduates on this subject To
maintain discipline and inculcate whole
some military spirit among young men
| chosen as the midshipmen are, and coming
| as they do from all sections of the coun-
! try and all classes of our population, is no
] trifliun SIX fg "a al A.
| cation to the department, as well as Of
credit to the present Superintendent and
| academic board that conditions in the
academy have improved so notably within
! the past twelve months.
Enlisted Personnel.
In my last annual report 1 described
as altogether at variance with the facts
an impression which prevails in some QUAR-
| tiers and seems to be deliberately fOsIeIed
! by certain agencies, that il is difficult to
! obtain recruits for the navy by reason
| Of an aversion to military service on the
! part of our population. 1t is true that the
navy was not then and is not even now,
! recruited to its full strength, as above d
! by law, but, as explained in that report.
| this fact is due to the stringency Oh its
/ requirements and not to the lack OF ap-
f! plicants, only one out of every thee Or
| four Of the latter being accepted as re-
| cruit. A further reason for its being be-
low its standard in numbers was then,
in my opinion, the insufficient attention
which had been given to recruiting.
During the past year greater pans. have
! Dben taken 10 duNeTIlSe the merits Oh the
! navy, and the results have been, on the
! whole decidedly gratifying. AS shown III
the report of the bureau Of navigation,
there has been a marked gain in numbers,
and there is good reason to suppose that
| before the end of the present fiscal year
| the navy will have reached its legal limit
| OF strength. In view of these facts and
| Of the urgent necessity for more men 10
! properly man ships which must 90 into
commission within the next twelve months,
l hope the congress will accord the increase
of strength requested by the bureau OF nav
| igation
| A years experience has strengthened the
! conviction expressed in my last annual re-
I port that assertions from the navy al
though much more numerous than they
should be- constitute an evil of only SUI
l am happy to say that the earnest pro-
tests made by the president, the depart
! ment and prominent officers against in
! dignities inflicted on enlisted men by an
| insulting discrimination against the uni
| form they wear, have caused a very graf
opinion on this subject. This has been
rendered more emphatic by the Indignation
! aroused as a consequence of gross out
| RACES upon our sailors on the part of the
police force OF two or three localities
/ feel that the department is entitled TO the
aid OF congress In It's efforts TO secure a
proper respect for the uniform and proper
/ consideration Cor the men who have de-
voted themselves to the service of Their
! country, and l hope, therefore, that a law
may be enacted constituting such conduct
/ a crime, when committed by a public car
Tler OF lnnkeepeft or the proprietor, man.
I ager or employe of any place of public re-
sort or amusement. The moral effect OF
! the enactment Of such a statute would be
probably sufficient TO render prosecutions
under 1t extremely infrequent.
BattIeship Designs.
In accordance with the proviso at
| tached to the last naval Appropriation
! bill, the plans for the battle ship author
! lied by the said bill are, simultaneously
/ with this report, transmitted to the con
! gress These plans were selected by a
] board of officers, under the presidency
I of the assistant secretary, after a very
/ careful consideration of various designs
! submitted by different naval constructors
in the United States and one in England
and by the board on construction OF the
department The type of vessel selected
has length of $40 feet. In the language
NOR and as powerful armament as any
! known vessel of its class; il will have a
speed which is believed to be the highest
practicable for vessel of this type and
class, in the present state of knowledge;
IL will have the highest practicable radius
of action, and can be built within the
limit Of cost fixed by the act OF congress "
This plan, therefore complies In all
respects, In the Judgment Of this highly
authorization, and the department has
had no hesitation in approving the report
Of the board.
Increase of the Navy.
In my last annual report 1 stated tina
tine aggregate OF our battleships, armoret
I cruisers, and cOast-def tense vessels built
building or authorized would seem sc
eCrdlng to present indications, sufficient L
] prOVide contingency within