Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-07-05
TO co TO THE PACIFIC
Fleet of BattIeships Under
- Admiral Evans.
GENERAL BOARDS PLAN
Necessarily Subject to Change Accord
ing to Circumstances.
ONLY ONE ROUTE FEASIBLE
That Is Through the Straits of Ma
gellan-The Question of
Coal Supply.
ONLY ONE ROUTE FEASIBLE

Details of the vast movement of the At
lantic feet to Pacific waters have been
theoretically worked out weeks in advance
by the naval general board. But these de-
tails are necessarily subject to constant
change resulting from the withdrawal of
battleships from active commission on ac-
count of having been declared antiquated
or in need of repairs and the substitution
Of other ships just going into commission
and fresh from the builders hands. There
Is in the Navy Department today scarcely
any one authorized to afford any informa-
tioa officially as to the contemplated fleet
movement. Secretary Metcalf is in Califor-
mia, Assistant Secretary Newberry is at
Watch Hill, r. l.; Admiral Brownson. the
chief of the navigation bureau, who Is next
in line has gone to New York, and the act
ing secretary of the navy today is Rear
Admiral Mason, chief of the bureau of ord
nance, who assumes the Office by virtue of
seniority, but can scarcely be regarded as
an authority in the matter of disp osition of
ships, which does not directly concern his
bureau work.
Only One Route Feasible
The opinion of the officers on duty today
is that but one route is feasible for the big
ships, and that is by way of the Straits of
Magellan The route from New York across
the Atlantic and through the Mediterranean
and the Suez canal is open to the objection
that it would bring the big ships almost
into Japanese waters, and the movement
might consequently be regarded as a men
ace, which, Secretary Metcalf has stated
has never been contemplated. The SueZ
route, too, is longer by a thousand miles
than the Magellan route. This according
to the best calculations and allowing for
short visits to ports not on the nearest
sailing route, is about 1900 miles in
length The battleship Oregon covered the
distance from San Francisco to Jupiter
Inlet, Florida, in 1898 in sxty-three days
But she was handicapped by the company
OF the little gunboat Marietta, which was
SC 1rcely able to make more than eight
knots per hour IN the heavy seas of the
South Pacific, and also by the fact that as
precautionary measure tie Oregon was
sent around the West Indies, sensibly
frightening her route.
So the opinion now is that under ordinary
cruising seas, which for the big battleships
means about ten or twelve knots an hour,
and allowing reasonable time for coal
ing, en- route, the Atlantic fleet can make
the passage from New York to San Fran
cisco in less than sixty days.
Admiral Evans to Command Fleet.
1t is conceded that Rear Admiral Robley
D. Evans will command the fleet in this
great movement. He already has had an
extended period Of sea service in command
rank-longer, perhaps. than any other ad-
miral in recent years-but it is known by
his friends that he would like to wind I'D
his active career by safely conducting
around the American continent the greatest
feet Of warships ever gotten together in
these waters, and there is no disposition
on the part of the officials of the depart
ment, who have implicit confidence in his
ability, to deny the officer this request
1t is believed now that the sailing route
Of the ships will be about as follows:
Leaving New York or Hampton roads
just which point has not been decided-in
the early-fall the batteships would prob
ably steam straight to Culebra, where coal
would be taken on. The next stop would
be Rio de Janeiro, and from that point the