Los Angeles herald., 1907-12-27
MAY AFFECT ADDITIONS TO
FLEET
AFFAIR PREJUDIcIAL, OPINION OF
OFFICERS
Department Must Present United
Front to Secure Appropriations
and BIckering Will Not
Aid Plans
By Associated Press.

day preceding the passage Of the person.
mel law ten years ago has the feeling be-
tween line and staff Of the navy been SO
acute as it is today as the result Of
refusal of Admiral Brownson to trans
NIT orders from his superior officer, the
president of the United States, assign-
ing naval surgeon to command vessel
In the navy.
In the case of the personnel act, 1t was
Mr.. Roosevelt. then assistant secretary
of the navy, who acted the part of
pacificator and succeeded in bringing
two warning factions together in spite OF
the legislation, which for decade past,
though makeshift. had served to main-
tain peace between the two factions in
| the navy.
! In the present instance, however, the
efforts of the president to reconcile the
surgeons and the line officers has failed
and 1t is probable that the whole contro-
versy will be threshed out on its merits
| in congress-
| This is much deprecated by conserva-
tive officers in both line and staff, as
| likely to prove. prejudcal to the nayy's
interest as whole, for they believe that
| in order to succeed in securing from con-
gress the four great battIeships the
cruisers, scouts and submarines which
form part of the years naval esti-
|
that will better the lot of naval officers
personally, the navy must present a
united front. which cannot be done IL
just at the beginning of session. line
and staff are to engage in fierce strife.
Physicians Heard
! Through the published statement of
| Surgeon General Rixey, the merits OF
the doctors side of the ease in this in
stance have been clearly set forth. Line
officers believe that in common fairness
they should also have a hearing.
But they are in an embarrassed posi-
| ton In that respect. Admiral Brownson
preceded his resignation by cold, clear,
| logical presentation of the reasonswhy
! We objected to the assignment of a
pl Ysician to command naval ship even
| though that vessel were exclusively de-
voted to hospital work. The statement
was submitted to the president, end not
! withstanding the staff has had its say
1 in print, applications at the White House
| for this letter are met with refusals.
Now it is clearly impossible for Ad-
miral Brownson or any of his line offi-
GERS to make public copy of the letter
without incurring the risk of a court
martial on charges of disrespect toward
their superior officer, the president Of
| the United States. so they can only look
| for a change in the executive mind or for
the congressional investigation which win
| develop all tht facts
| 1t may be stated In the absence of the
text. of Admiral Brownson's letter that
| his objection to the execution, of the
presidents order to place a surgeon in
command Of the hospital ship Relief was
| two-fold.
Believe Subordination Bad
| In the first place, like every line off,
| Ger, he believed that the subordination
of any line officer. no matter how low
! In grade, TO a. staff officer on shipboard
was bad policy and subversive OF naval
discipline. But stronger objection in
| his mind was that the proposed action
was clearly illegal inasmuch as 1t is for
bidden by law or naval regulation to as
! sign staff officer to command ships 1t
is only fair to the staff side to state that
this is debatable ground and that it
would not be difficult to construe the
naval laws and regulations in either way
| So it is not to be doubttd that when the
| subject comes before congress for con-
sideration the lawyers in that body Will
furnish material to support either con-
| tention.
| There were no developments today in
the controversy, owing to the absence
| from Washington of the president. Adj
miral Brownson reinquished his position
as chief of the bureau of navigation yes
terday, and the duties of the office were
discharged today by Commander Cam
chief of the bureau.
| Commander Winslow was not desig-
mated nor appointed chief of the bureau
as the result of recent events, but signed
all Of his mail as acting chief.'
Sections Terms
Now that the legality of the presidents
proposed action in the matter of assign
ing staff officer in the person of Sur
geon Stokes to command the hospital
ship Relief has been called into ques-
tion, 1t is proper to state that the re-
lance of the line officers is upon a pro-
vision In section seven of the naval per-
sonnel act of March 3, 1892 That section,
among other things was designed to
clear up doubt that existed as to the
right of staff officers to assume the title
of line officer of a corresponding grade
in the matter of pay and emoluments
and length of service Up to that date
staff officers had enjoyed what was
called relative rank" with which they
were not satisfied; SO in section seven
the word relative was stricken out SO
that all sections Of the revised statutes
which. in defining the rank OF officers
In positions in the navy, containing the
words relative rank" were amended 80
as to read 'the rank Of" etc.
To this provision the following inn
portant qualification was attached: But
offieers whose rank is so defined shall
not be entitled in virtue OF their rank
to command in the line. or in other stan
corps"
Engineers Barred
Line officers understand this to mean
that no surgeon or engineer II there
shall ever be again commissioned en-
gineer or paymaster or constructor, shall
be placed in a position on board ship
where he may command the movement
ffanrfls.raoH ~ ..eanrs.I a~uue