The Washington times., 1908-03-02

Iamed by the committee, Commander
Sims declared that the protection az
9Orded the men on battleships during
gun fire was totally inadequate.
Even with the automatic doors which
have been installed IN some Of the am
munitiOn HOSTS. he said. there was QCn-
ger of exploding powder.
The witness said that such confus ng
statements had been made TO the cen
mittee regarding the tCrrets of battle
ships that he wished to draw a word
picture of actual conditions as they
would exist land as they had existed on
one or two Occasions). should an acci-
dent occur.
with some exceptions there is an
opening from the bridge clear down 20
the handling room" said Commander
Sims. Men have fallen down that OPP
ening and had their ncCks broken. The
gun breach rests very close 70 the
ammunition hoist. II there is Ignition
at the gun the burning powder falls
down into the handling room. where the
handling room crew is suffocated- II
another charge is going up, that IS ig-
nited, and the turret men and Officers
are killed. These are the dangers which
confront US during target practice"
Regarding the armOr now on ships IN
the navy. Commander Sims said that
Il was the consensus Of opinion In the
navy and he was Of the same belief.
that the water line belt Of armOr was
Most ships do not set IN the water
where they are designed to set" said
Mr. Sims. THE statements which have
been sent TO Congress by Admirals Con-
verse and Caps are unsatisfactory.
The figures given do not show how low
the ships set in the water and the fig
ures omit actual conditions. The e
ports are erroneous
Senator Tulman asked II witness
meant that the water lines Of our ships
were theoretical. and Commander Sims
replied that they were.
a. TOR a q Z .
opinion of the witness, the armor plate
should be raised. Commander Sims said
that the armOr belt should be placed so
that the ship would be protected when
she was fully loaded.
To illustrate his statement that the
United States ships DC not rest in The
water at the designed line, Commander
Sims stated that the battleShips OF the
5000 miles. with their water lines any
where from zero 10 one and One-hat
feet below where they should have been.
This condition existed, he said, when
many of the shirs had almost exhausted
their coal bunkers and 1T was MIG and
tuck for them 20 make port"
Commander Sims said that this infOr-
nation was conveyed TO him in a letter
from an officer Of the fleet who also
expressed his alarm because the bot
tom Of the armor belt could frequently
be seen.
The witness was then asked II a shell
could pierce that portion Of the ship
which showed occasionally below the
armor belt.
He replied that a she'll would not
plunge beneath the water. and that
therefore. the ship was safe from at
tack In that quarter unless the unpro-
tected portion showed so constantly
that kae enemy could aim his guns
at IT,
Senator TiIlman asked If a ship could
not be sent 10 the bottom BY means
of an explosive shell striking such an
unprotected part. Commander Sims re-
piled that he did not know. No one
would know, he said. unless expert
ments We're made. No such expert
ments were being conducted by this
Government, but the witness was under
the impression that a man named Isham
was experimenting with some such eX-
plosive.
Suppose the experiment should prove
successfu12' asked Senator Tillman.
"If Isham is right the jig would be
all ND with our navy" replied Com
Inander Sims.
Rear Admiral Caps. chief constructor
OF the navy, here expressed the opinion
that Il was time 10 clear I'D some ques-
fions OF fact and he and Commander
Sims proceeded to get themselves into
q hot argument. Several times there
after Rear Admiral Caps attempted to
cross-exan.in the witness. but each
time he did so the witness launched of
on new tact and forgot that a Ques-
ton had been asked,