Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-11-28
TO RETAIN THE FORCE
Navy Department Plan of Dis
miSsal ReconSidered.
NAVY YARD MEN TO REMAIN
Proposed Discharge of Over Two
Hundred Given Up.
QUESTION OF NAVAL POLICY
Congress to Decide Whether It Is
Preferable to Divide Work With
Private Establishments.
NAVY YARD MEN TO REMAIN
QUESTION OF NAVAL POLICY

The Navy Department has reconsideretl
its plan of dismissing between 300 and
300 employees at the Washington navy
yard about the first Of January. and will
endeavor to maintain the present force
of operatives at least until April I next.
Acting Secretary Newberry late yesterday
afternoon issued the following statement
on the subject:
I'm order to postpone as many of the
discharges as possible for as long as
possible work will be undertaken at the
navy yard which will retain until about
March 81 nearly the present force in the
breech-mechanism shop. gunshop, east
gun-carriage shop. miscellaneous repair
shop. sightshop and erecting shop.
In general discussion of the subject
Mr. Newberry said that any discharges
made between now and the first of April
next will be from shops other than those
mentioned, and the intention Is to keep
many men employed as possible in all
departments of the yard.
Question of Naval Policy.
LAS far as can be SEEN said Mr.. New
berry lin order to get the yard down to
a one-shift-a -day basis, it will be neces-
sary eventually to discharge about $50
men. That's as far as we can look
ahead at this time. Much will depend
upon the dimensions Of the next naval ap-
preparation bill.
1T should be understood and remem-
hered that the question of the size Of the
force to be retained at the Washington
yard is 4 question of naval policy
whether enough work is to be allotted to
the yard to keep the establishment run
ming three shifts a day the year round.
vaf o ntC n pet
whether normal one-shift force is to be
retained at the yard and the balance of
the work to be let under contracts to pri
vate plants. so that the government may
have them as a certain reserve to depend
upon in time Of emergency.
Gun-Finishing Work
The assertion that any large. well
equipped machine shop in the country can
turn out satisfactory gun finishing work is
not in accordance with the facts. Gun An
ishing work is the highest class Of ma
chine work done. 1t cannot be intrusted TO
any but specially trained machinists. That
Is why we have sent our best machinists
from the Washington yard to Bethlehem
and Midvale as instructors of the gun
shop forces maintained there for govern
ment work.
THE necessity of dependence by the
government upon those private plants in
time of emergency might be decidedly les
sened if the tools that cannot be bought
In the open market but which must be
supplied by the government, could be pro-
cured and installed at a moments no
tice. They cannot be. Some of the gun
finishing tools tmachines) at the Wash
ington yard. for instance. could not be
duplicated in less than twelve months.
Dependence in an Emergency.
ct is true that fire that destroyed
the navy yard would not destroy these
machines, but the action of heat and
water would put them entirely out of
The government, then, would
have to fall back on Bethlehem and Mid
vale because they would be the only
shops in the country capable of doing the
work required
This explanation is incidental to the
question of naval policy I have spoken Of:
Shall or shall not the gun work be di-
vded between the Washington yard and
private plants?
Advantage of Competition.
There is distinct advantage to be gained
by letting gun work to private factories.
1t taps the inventive and perfecting ge-
MUS of the country at large Private
plants draw their mechanical forces from
far and wide. and the creative skill thus
gathered together, the mechanical initia
tive is placed at the government COM
mand The field for selection and adop-
ton Of new designs is thus greatly en-
larged. Furthermore, competition be-
tween the private plants and the Wash
ington navy yard serves to stimulate the