The White Pine news. [volume] (Ely, Nev.) 1906-1910, 1908-11-27
Naval Men are
High inPraise
of Our Ships
LETTERS READ AT BANQUET
HIGH OFFICERS OF THE NAVY
ASSERT THAT OUR VESSELS
EQUAL ANY OF THEIR CLASS.

CHICAGO. Nov 26.-Critics of
the navy who condemn war ships
because of minor defects were pub
licly answered at a banquet of the
United States Naval Alumni of the
east. Six rear-admirals sat at the
banquet board at the Auditorium no.
tel and letters scoring recent critics
and praising the navy We're read
from Admiral Dewey. Rear-Admiral
Schley and Rear Admiral Evans. I he
rear admirals present were: Wash
ington l.. Capps. chief Of construe-
ton in the navy: Albert Ross. VIII
lard H. Bronson. Francis j. Higgin-
son. French +. Chadwick and James
II. Dayton.
Rear Admiral Caps. after allud-
ing briefly to the development of bat
tleships and declaring that the YES
sells of this country we're fully abreast
of the times, said Il shall refer You
10 the opinions of three of the most
distinguished admirals who have
ever commanded fleets in our or any,
navy Each of these opinions was
written in response to a request.
Rear Admiral Capps then read the
letters.
Admiral Dewey's letter said in
part OF the battleships designed
during the past few years | have spo-
ken and shall continue TO speak in
the highest terms. The feet of bat
tleships now going around the world
are of the older type and some Of
them have lived half the life, as COM
monty estimated. or a battleship in
the first line Battleship building is
one of the most progressive of mod
ern arts. and old ships are not equal
to new. but the vessels which have
recently been received with such
marked consideration in South Amer
lea. New Zealand, Australia. Japan
and China are the equals of foreign
vessels of their date of design and
completion and often their superiors.
There is probably nowhere IN the
world today a fleet of sixteen battle
ships of greater fighting strength
Admiral Schley's letter said. in
part: Il am wholly out of sympathy
with those critics who find nothing
good in what exists a dnwhose pol
icy appears TO be destructive rather
than constructive. | have watched
this discussion in the press and peri
odieals with interest born OF a life
time of service in every class of ship
ping under the flag and | am salts
fled that it proceeded from spirit
of consciousness that overlooks the
/ fact that no such thing as "a perfect
ship floats the seas now. nor is il
possible to create one. no more than
] 10, ,augfl,lo - n
y take exception 20 much of the
adverse criticism today because the
fact is withheld that many of the
minor defects adverted to were Incl
Geat 10 the time and type when those
vessels were constructed. and they
are common TO "A large percentage of
the war vessels of every other power.
But the inference sought to be es-
tablished that our ships are inferior
in their class to those in foreign ma
vies is unfair. untrue and unpatriotic.
One has only TO glance over some OF
the foreign vessels TO discover that
there are some critics who seem TO
think that all IL rot we'll IN these
matters on their side of the ocean
Only last summer | met an English
man who wanted to know all about
this 'insurreetion, as he called it.
going on in the periodicals over ouT
navy He volunteered the informa-
) ton that we had the best ships In
the world and II was a pity we did
: not know It.
Admiral Evans letter said. In
: part: after an experience with oul
| fleet which few men have had | an
convinced that our ships. taken as q
whole. are equal to or superior tC
those built by any other country. Oh
: course, our first ships are not the
} equal of the last foreign ships, anf
no sane man would expect them tC
he but date for date of design they
are the equal of any, except in The
case of our latest designed ships
where the great superiority of ours
is beyond question. As fighting ma
! chimes our designs OF the last few
years show great advantages ovel
anything proposed abroad. | hay,
made ii my business TO study the re
cent criticisms of our navy published
in various magazines and papers. ant
| have no words with which TO tel
you how unjust, misleading and sill,
they are. If ever the results of tn,
Newport conference become know
think you will find that a ma iorit,
of officers agree with me"
[ the new year. The mines are look
! ing well and since the election man,