The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1907-01-18
ROOSEVELT SAYS
KEEP UP NAVY
Urge, That Two First-Class Bat
tleships BE Built az
Once.
NO INCREASE OF WARSHlPS
1t Is Necessary to- Turn Out at
Least One Ship a Year to- Keep
Up Present Standard.

WASHINGTON. January --Presii.r,
Roosevelt has written a letter To- Chair
man Foss. OF tle Naval Affairs Commit
tee. urging that an appropriation should
Dee made at once for two frSt-class battle
ships OF the maximum size and speed. ana
Wfn primary batteries ain OF twelve
inch guns The letter states that ln addf-
zion 10 the hattiesniu provided for las.
ttar ~ tho Dreaduourht class anothe,.
should Dee provided for this year without
iai- The President also urges the build
ing or torpedo boat destroyers
1T must be rrUern bered. " th. preside q.
says that am not asking FOR any in
crease ln the navy. because unless We.
can provide at the rate Of "a battleShfn
Per year. our navy viii 20 backward
Moreover. am advising that our money,
o. spent economically. In has been n
waste OF money % provide such ships
as the sinEle-turret monitors. and while
the cruisers, and especially the great
armored cruisers serve some useful NM
poses. Z would nevertheless have bee,
INFINITELY better 70 have spent th.. none,-
"-itn actually was spent on them ia the
construction OF frst-class battleships our
great aTnored cruisers are practically as
expensive TO build and maintain as t,at
uesMps and yet. taking the battlesbin
aH around for the purposes for which /,
navy is really needed. It's superior4f,- IN
the armored cruiser Is enormous.
Strength in Battleships.
'l thoroughly believe in dovelopi~.- and
bHildinS au adequate number OF sibr,a-
rines. I believe IN building torpe-io-boat
destroyers. there must be a few fas-
scouts and 90 course. various auxiliary
vessels or different kinds But the
Strength of the navy rests primarily lpon
lts battleshius. and in building tqlasso bat
teships it is imperativciv r,e,essar-,-
from the standpoint alike Of efficiency and
economy. that they should be the very
orst 81 their kind Ia nay judgement we
are not 70 De- excused II We build any
htttlcshlp inferior To- nose now being
nNllt ov other nations ] should bo glad
"a limitation could DE put hv an inter
national agreement 20 the size OF battle
ships hereafter 20 b. built 7 have found
however. that IT. viii undoubtedly be inn
practicable To- secure any such agreement
in lle near future. In the nrst-class
navies generally these big hattleships
have already been built or are now build
ine We cannot AFFORD 70 fan behind
and We shall fan behind n We fail TO
build fir7t-class hattleshins ourselves.
Unless we intend TO 20 on building up
tho fleet we should abandon every effort
10 keep the position which We now hold.
whether in the Pacafc Ocean or fin
American waters generally. Our justifi-
cation FOR UNFOLDING the Monroe doctrine
and FOR digging the Panama Canal must
rest primarily upon our willingness TO
build and maintain flrst-class fighting
fleet. BE il remembered moreover. that
such fleet is hv far the most potent
guaranty Of peace which this nation has
o~ can ever have"
The President then gives az length his
reasons FOR The belief in the advantage OF
hattes1lDs Or large displacement with