Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1908-01-02
THE NAVY 'WAR''
Admiral BrownSon's Resignation
Brings to the Surface
Smoldsring flame.
REFUSED 70 OBEY ORDERS


Washington, Dec. 26.-Nct since the
day preceding the passage OF the per
sonnet law ten years ago has the feel-
ing between the line and stan OF the
navy been SO acute as It Is now as
the result Of the refusal OF Admiral
Rrownson to transmit orders from MS
superior officer, the president OF the
United States, assigning a naval sur
geon to command vessels In the navy.
The case OF the personnel act, 1t was
Mr.. Roosevelt, then assistant secre'
tary Of the navy, who acted the part
of pacificator and succeeded in bring
ing the two warning factions together
In support Of the legislation wnicn
for a decade past though make-shilt'
has served to maintain peace between
the two factions Of the navy. In the
present instance, however, the enorts
Of the president to reconcile the sur
geons and the line officers has failed
and 1t is probable that the whole con
troyersy will be threshed out on It's
merits In congress. This is much de'
precated by conservative officers IN
both line and staff, as likely 10
prove prejudicial to the navy's inter
est as a whole for they believe tnat
in order to succeed In securing from
congress the four great battleships,
the cruisers, scouts and submarines
which form a part Of the years naval
estimates, in addition to securing leg
islation that will better the lot OF
naval officers personally, the navy
must present united front, which
cannot be done II just at the begin
ming Of session, line and stan are 10
engage In a fierce strife.
AS this whole controversy threat
ems to occupy the attention OF the
public for some time to come and per-
haps to figure to some extent in the
proceedings Of congress 1t may be
proper to state the difference between
the line and the staff, about which
the public mind Is more or less con-
fused. In brief, it may be said that
a line officer is one whose soul duty
is to fight the ship, when the stan Of
flcer Is one who either provides the
means for the line officer to do SO
or acts under his direction in carry
ing out his general orders. Thus the
engineer when Of the staff looks close
" after the machinery and starts and
stops 1t when called upon to do SO by
the line officer; he has nothing to
say as to where the ship shall go or
at what speed or when II shall move.
| Likewise the surgeons aboard ship
look after the health Of the crew In
time Of peace and heal their wounds
in time Of war but they have nothing
to do with the movements Of the ship
| to which they are attached, and the
same rule applies to the paymaster
and to the constructor who builds
the ship navigated by the line officer.
1t developed Thursday that year
ago when the Relief was put into
commission the decision was reached
| to assign a naval surgeon to command
the vessel in the event that 1t were
manned with merchant crew and
master But in the event that the
ship was manned with a naval crew
then a naval officer Of the line would
be assigned to the command. A naval
surgeon in command would have abb
solute charge just as physician
would exercise supervision of hos
pital on land, without, however, in
terferring with the work of navigat.
ing the vessel Surgeon Stokes viii
be assigned to the command Of the
Relief, II the crew and master are
chosen from the merchant marine,
which, while not finally decided, Is
understood will be the case.