The Washington herald., 1907-07-13
BATTLE SHIPS ARE CRITICISED
Army and Navy League Organ Stirs
Things Up.
Many Allegations Made Not Credit
able 10 the Methods of Bureau
of Construction.

Internecine strife, more serious than
anything the battle ship feet Is likely to
encounter in the Pacific. is developing, ap-
parently, I'm the naval department. Further
evidence Of this came TO light yesterday
when the July issue Of the Navy, the
official organ of the Army and Navy
League, arraigned In severe terms the
defects OF certain Of the battle ships, re-
iteTates charges as TO defects. and adds
others, practically saying the fighting
power OF the battle ship feet is overrated.
and criticizes the "inept and amateurish
manner" in which the proposed Pacific
cruise has teen managed.
Again. the Navy scores the low armor
belt. 1t devotes considerable space TO the
Kearsarge and Kentucky, and declares
their 13-inch guns could be wrecked by
pro1ectiles from a one-poander. which
could enter the turret ports and destroy
the recoil cylinders of the great guns.
II is charged too, that the officers Of
these vessels. soon after their completion
on going to Europe and noting the defects
IN turret construction. built dummy tur-
ret shields Of wood in their anxiety not
10 expose the warships 10 ridiculc.
Many other allegations not creditable
TO the methods Of naval construction are
made.
This attack made by the Navy, follow
ing on the one Of June, has excited much
establishment and Indignation among
many of the naval officers. Probably the
officers most thoroughly aroused over the
attacks are the members OF the Bureau
of Construction. as the attacks especially
reflect on them. In turn. they declare
that the criticisms are fOmented by Ger
tain members Of the general board who
are ANXIOUS 10 get rid OF the Bureau Of
Construction and its board. and to have
a board Of design created.
II is alleged that three members of the
general board are active In stirring up
the attacks. Capt. William J. Barnette.
Lieut. Commander Albert L. Key. and
Lieut.. Commander Frank X. Hi These
officers are declared 20 be ambitious 10
become members Of the proposed board Of
design, and naval constructors say criti-
cisms in tht Navy are tTaceable 10 this
personal ambition together with feeling
against certain officers In the Bureau Of
Construction.
The attention Of Admiral Brownson,
chief Of the Bureau OF Navigation and
Acting Secretary Of the Navy, was called
yesterday to the criticisms. lie declined
10 comment upon them. There is reason
to believe. however, that along with other
high officers OF the service, he regrets the
wholesale criticisms, and does not believe
them justified or as pointing to real facts
as TO American naval strength.
One OF the ablest officers in the Bureau
of Construction, in discussing the attacks.
said they were aimed at the Bureau of
Construction rather than at the naval
service itself.
He added that there were many things
about the warships open to criticism. one
of them was, undoubtedly, the exposed
condition of the big guns on the Ken
lucky and Kearsarge, both old ships. II,
however. this was 10 be criticised, the
man on whom the criticism really should
fall was Admiral Sampson, who insisted
on such an arrangement. This officer ad-
mitted that the criticism was justified in
this case. He did not deny, either, that
dummy turret shields had been built. But
he declared IL was not fair to criticise
defects in these old warships that had
been remedied in the newest warships.
There are plenty Of things 10 criticlse
about our warships,' said this officer
But If one is to criticise. why not take
up the important things-fOT instance, the
superimpOsed turTets? I have seen no
criticism Of these. They obtain in FIVE
OF the battle ships Of the Virginia class
The superimposed turret was a mistake,
but It was not put on at the instance of
the bureau of construction This bureau
cannot be blamed for 1t. and by singular
coincidence one hears no criticism For
the last i've years the warships have been
designed without the superimposed tur-
ret
las to the fighting power Of our ships,
they are equals of the ships CT any
nation in the world 1t must be borne in
mind that in this country there is no de-
feet or questionable feature of coastruc-
ticn that is not freely criticised Abroad
criticism is hushed. If we could know tho
facts, it would be found that the British
Dreadnaught has not met expectations.
I'm no case have we had to give a
battle ship a second trial cruise. In
France repeated trials are often neces-
sary, and in the British navy there has
been more trouble with trial cruises than
here"