New-York tribune., 1908-04-23
AN EXPERT ON OH NATY.

The observations of Sir William Henry White
upon the American navy are invested with ex-
ceptional authority from the fact that he was
for many years the chief responsible designer
of British warships, and is thus to be esteemed
one Of the foremost living experts in naval con-
struction. They highly gratifying in their
strongly reasoned vindcation of our battleships
against the more or less reckless criticism which
has recently been directed at them, and in their
confident ranking of our navy as the second i'll
the world
Opponents Of naval progress WILL Of course.
catch at that estimate Of our navy as proof that
it is good enough for our purposes and needs no
further expansion. JudiciOuS observers will,
however. note that what Sir William says IS
that our feet is equal to any in the world, ship
for ship, "COmpGring the ships designed at q
giren date. the only far comparison" How
then. do our ships compare in date of design
with those Of other navieS? According TO The
Naval Annual we have II armorad ships which
were launched in 1904, while Germany has only
8 France only and Japan none. For 1908 the
figures are: America, I: Germany. 3; France,
3 and japan 3 For 1906: America. =; Ger
many. 3: France, /, and Japan >. And for a
later date than 1906: America, i Germany, q;
France, 3. and Japan, g. The splendid activity
of our Navy Department three or four years
ago gave US the present enyiable standing of
our fleet, But what will this avail if there be
not maintained a degree of activity comparable
with that of other powers? Our ships of 1904
are not, Sir William White suggests, com
parable with those Which other nations have
launched in 1907 and 1908. They were equal TO
any in the world at that time, but they are not
equal to those which have been designed and
launched since. Their obsoescence would have
been inevitable in any case, but 1t is all the
more marked because since 1905 a great revOlu-
tOn has been effected in naval construction and
entirely new type of ship has been put for
ward. OF that new type, the DreadnOught
type, which is henceforth to be the standard of
naval efficiency the Annual" reports us as hay
ing two, with two more projected, while Ger
many has five actually built or building. As
we have recently shown iD these columns the
building programmes adopted for the next few
years by other countries will give them a de-
cided preponderance over America unless our
naval construction work is maintained on n lib
eraI scale The four battleships for which the
President has asked, and which we believe the
American people desire TO have provided for at
this session of Congress will do no more than
maintain present standing.
If we exult in the present efficiency of our
navy. as estimated by this eminent British au-
thOrity. common sense would certainly seem to
prescribe the maintenance of that efficiency
There would be little profit in attaining a high
rank only 10 abandon it. TO say that because
our navy is now good we will build no more
ships, although others 60 on building. would ne
to say that because are now ia the second
place will let ourselves be SURPASSED and ha
put back to fourth fifth place We do not
believe this natiG2 would approve such fatuous