Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1907-12-16

reaches the Pacific Coast the Navy
Department will have formed another
powerful fleet in California waters.
under command of Rear-Admiral Day
| ton, which will be almost as strong in
| aggregate tonnage and number of
heavy guns as the battleship fleet.
So much attention has been devot-
ed to the prospective dispatch of the
battleships of the Atlantic fleet to the
Pacific Coast that the fact has been
entirely overlooked that plans have
been worked out at the Navy Depart
ment for the rendezvous in Pacific
waters of all of the heavier ships of
the Pacific fleet. These will be aug
mented by the addition of powerful
armored cruisers not now attached to
the Pacific fleet, but which have eth
or been upon special service duty or
Just turned out by Pacific Coast ship
yards.
These facts recently developed at
the Navy Department In connection
with the intention of the Government
to send the heavy armored cruisers
Tennessee and Washington OF Admir-
al Stockton's special-service squadron
to the Pacific Coast as soon as they
have been overhauled at Eastern navy
yards. These two new cruisers have
Just returned to the United States
from Brest, France, en- route from
the international maritime exposi-
ton at Bordeaux. where they repre-
sented the United States Navy.
Three Squadrons Planned
Now the Navy Department has de-
oided upon a further Encouragement
OF the Pacific fleet for the purpose
of making 1t more effective and of
giving 1t a well-worked-out formation
OF squadrons and divisions, similar to
those of the Atlantic fleet, which is
constituted with four vessels to d.
vision or unit of the fleet.
According to the plans being form
ulated for the Pacific fleet, 1t will
consist of three squadrons of not less
than two divisions each. Two of
these squadrons, or four divisions of
the fleet, will be stationed along the
Pacific Coast of the United States,
where there was formerly not sin
gle unit group of ships.
The first of these two squadrons of
the Pacific fleet will be under Rear
Admiral Dayton, who has command
of all vessels in the Pacific. The sec
ond squadron will be under the COM
mand of Rear Admiral William T.
swinburne, and will consist of two
perfect divisions or protected cruis-
,rs. Both of these squadrons will be
in the American coast waters of the
Pacific while the third squadron,
which will be under command OF
Rear-Admiral Joseph n. Hemphill,
former president of the board of in
spection and survey, Will remain in
Asiatic waters, with Manila as his
headquarters.
A Formidable Fleet
| The formation OF the first two
SGuadrons of the new Pacific fleet,
that is, of the two squadrons which
will be organized OFF the coast of Cal
iIornia as soon as the designated
ships can get there, will be as fol-
lows:
New Pacific fleet - Rear Admiral
James II. Dayton, commander in
lChief.
First squadron, under command of
Rear Admiral James II. Dayton; first
division, under command of Rear Ad-
miral James II. Dayton; West Vir-
ginia, armored cruiser, Is guns, 49,
ESQ tons; Colorado, armored cruiser,
Is guns. 1850 tons: Maryland, ar
mored cruiser, IS guns, 1860 tons;
Pennsylvania. armored cruiser, IS
guns, 1860 tons.
Second division, under command
CT Rear Admiral Uriel Sebree-Ten-
nessee, armored cruiser, 20 guns, H.
200 tons: Washington, armored crui-
ser, 20 guns, 1880 tons; California,
armored cruiser, IS guns, 1860
tons; South Dakota, armored cruiser,
lS guns, 1850 tons.
Second squadron, under command
of Rear Admiral William T. Swim
burne, former commander in chief of
the Pacific squadron.
Third division under command of
Rear Admiral Swinburne; st. Louis,
protected cruiser, IA guns, 300 tons;
Charleston, protected cruiser, IA guns
300 tons; Milwaukee, protected crui-
ser, IA guns, 300 tons; Chicago, pro-
tected cruiser, IS guns, 5000 tons.
Fourth division, admiral to be chos-
en-Cincinnati, protected cruiser, IL
guns, 1928 tons; Raleigh, protected
cruiser, IL guns, 1928 tons; New
Orleans, protected cruiser, 10 guns,
1880 tons; Albany, protected cruis-
or, 10 guns, 1880 tons.
The plans for the formation of
these two squadrons of the Pacific
fleet in American home waters are
well worked out in the preliminaries,
~ x1rtlI h.t.