Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-12-28
TRIAL OF SIX MON THIS
Surgeon in Command of a
Naval Vessel.
GETTING THE SHIP READY
Efforts to Obtain Sailing Master and
Merchant Crew.
MIR. HALE PRAISES BROWNSON
Declares That He Has Acted With
Courage and Upholds His
Action.
MIR. HALE PRAISES BRoWNsON

The orders assigning Surgeon Charles f.
Stokes to the command of the hospital
ship Relief are expected to be issued very
soon. 1t having been definitely decided by
Secretary Metcalf to detail him to that
duty. With that end in view effort will
be made to obtain a merchant crew and
master for the vessel. No doubt whatever
is felt as to the success of such effort.
In that event the objection TO having a
surgeon in command of naval men not at
tached to the medical corps w4l be OBJ
Waited.
Secretary Metcalf is authority for the
statement that in the unexpected event
that it is found impossible to man the
Relief with merchant crew the enlisted
force of the navy will be drawn on to
fill the complement, and line officer will
be put in command of the hospital ship,
leaving Surgeon Stokes simply in charge
of the hospital on the ship and the hos
pital force proper.
Will Be an Experiment.
Though the ship is practically ready for
service, there are number of things to
be done to put her in the best of shape,
which will take probably until the 1st of
February. The scheme of having a medi-
cal officer command the Relief, with
merchant master ann merchant crew,
Secretary Metoalf says, is to nave
trial for at least six months, and If the
experiment proves satisfactory then the
plan of having surgeons in absolute COM
mand of hospital ships will be perma-
nent feature of naval administration.
Admiral Brownsons REIMBURSEMENT of
his position as chief of the bureau of
navigation, carrying with sit as 1t did the
ex-officio connection with the joint army
alx tatr,
head of that bureau. will result in con-
siderable loss of pay to the officer. Be
ing entirely without duty and relegated
to the retired list, his income will be
diminished in the first place by the loss
of % per cent of the full pay of an ad
miral on the active list. namely $500
year. Also he will longer receive
the allowance to an active officer of his
500 for heat ami light It so happens,
however. that Admiral Brownson Is a
man of independent means and able to
disregard financial considerations in TAX
in the present battle with the staff. AS
a retired officer he will receive S. ,625 a
year.
A Precedent Found.
-SAff officers of tine navy have discov-
cred Precedent fd n placing one of their
kind l&<sommand of a ship. 1t is true
that tins preceds snt was found in the
period of the ciyil war and long before
the )passkge of the naval personnel act
upsh- -wfish the line officers rely to sup
port -tSeff contention. that such assign
ment to command is illegal. The civil war
records show that Ninian Pinkey. naval
surgeon. was in absolute command for
steamboak>Red Rover, while that vessel
Vas employed as a hospital craft during
the days of the war
Chairman Hale's View.
Setater Hale. chairman of the Senate
committee on naval affairs, says regard
ing the resignation of Admiral Brownson:
II think that Admiral Brownson has
acted with praiseworthy courage and
peomptness In tendeSing his resignation.
] have always sustained the staff officers
In their fight for positive rank and com
plete recognition, such as are received
by the<r. peers in the army. and / now
have Dill pending which gives them
such recognition throughout the service.
But in that measure there is precau-
tionary provision against giving them
actual command of any naval vessel.
This is the continuation and an exten-
sion Of the fight between the two branches
of the service. That fight is the crux OF
the present controversy, and because /
think he is right my support is given
reservedly to the admiral as against the
contentious of Surgeon General Rixey. II
may be that on some occasions staff OFF,
GERS have been in command of vessels.
but / know of no instance when such
officers have been given command after
the point was raised and both sides were
heard. I do not believe that the conten-
ton for command by staff officers has
been pressed seriously at any time in the
past Indeed, ] am of the opinion that
the old staff officers would never have
asked for such recognition
In Interests of Discipline.
When asked for his reasons for the posi-
ton taken, Senator Hale replied:
They are entirely in the interests of
discipline. Think what might happen if
the command of the vessels should be
turned over to a chaplain or even to
paymaster, and 1t is just as reasonable to
put the crews of naval vessels under the
charge of those officers as it is to place
them under the command of a surgeon
Evidently Admiral Brownson recognizes
ahis fact, and being man of character
and decision, he did not hesitate to re-
sign his position when, as the active head
of the bureau of navigation, his view of
the law and of the best policy In the in
terest of the service was overruled He
will not lose anything by his manly
course either in the navy or with the
public"