Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1907-07-11
TAZEWELID VA, THURSDAY, JULY H. 1907
NAVAL PROGRAM FOR
FAR EAST KEPT DARK
Heads Of Bureaus Know Little of Plans to
Send Bsttleships TO Pacific COast-De-
partment Operations Fit in Well.

Send Bsttleships TO Pacific COast-De-
partment Operations Fit in Well.
Washington, d. c., July 6.-HeaIs .:
naval bureaus manifest a singular ig-
norance of the plans of the administra-
tion to send the battleship fleet to the
Pacific, Notwithstanding the official con-
firmation of the reports that had been
so frequently denied in the beginning.
These bureau chiefs assert that they
they are engaged only in the routine
work of the department, and that they
are making no unusual preparations for
the great undertaking. They also as
sert that they have had no orders to do
otherwise.
And on the surface there are few
signs of abnormal activity in Washing
ton Many chiefs are away; the naval
general board is scattered; the usual
proportion of subordinate employees are
on leave of absence, and the War and
Navy Departments appear to be in the
usual summer lethargy.
PLANS FIT IN WELL.
But it is undeniable that the plans of
the department workers for this partic-
ular summer fit in well with the exigen-
cies of the moment. In the matter of
coal supply, for instance, it may be that
the movement of this fuel to the Far
East and Pacific Coast, are equal to the
average demands of the naval service.
In fact it is said the coal would have
gone forward before this had the money
been available, which it was not until
the beginning of the new fiscal year.
Then the supply of reserve naval guns
and ammunition and of torpedoes is
found to be much nearer the needs of
the service than it has ever before been
at this season of the year.
ARMAMENT WILL BE READY.
The construction of guns for the new
ships is progressing well. Without doubt
the armament will be found to be ready
by the time the contractors have finish
ed the hulls and filings of the ships.
Headway has even been made in the
fabrication of the great guns for the
two big 20,000-ton battleships, although
the contracts for these have not been
finally signed.
Only the routine expenditures, under
the ordinary heads of appropriation for
construction and repair, and on account
of yards and docks are being made on
either the Atlantic or Pacific coasts, ac-
cording to the officials here.
AS Secretary Metcalf pointed out, one
of the items is drydock at the naval
station at Puget Sound. 1t would not
be surprising if a special effort were
made to dredge out the channel at the
Mare Island navy yard, so as to make
the dry dock accessible to the deep
draught battleships, which it is not
now.
MONEY NOT ALL SPENT.
Last year the Navy Department
found it impossible to spend all of the
money that Congress had appropriated
for the building and operation of a ma
chinery plant in the Bremerton Navy
Yard. That was because the materials
could not readily be had
A more serious difficulty was the lack
of trained mechanics and skilled labor.
AS this is the only dock on the Pacific
coast now ready to handle big battle
ship some special inducement must be
held out by the Department to get
trained navy yard workers to make
their homes in Bremerton. 1t is believed
steps have already been taken in this
direction.
Altogether, Notwithstanding the total
absence of any appearance of furry or
anxiety among the few officials who re-
main in Washington, it is patent that
much useful work is being dene in
quiet way to put not only the navy but
the army coast-defenses In as good con-
dition as the appropriations made by
Congress will permit.