Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1911-10-15

Ssr-.-s-. 4 is good to have business men
MK at the head Of Uncle SANS
great Institutions. This Is es-
- pecially so Of the government
WN&1t departments. Our national
W expenditures are now about
M,W0,OOo,OoO a year. and according. to
senator Aldrieh, whether the money is
1Operly handled may mean a saving or
foss of more than S1OOOOOo q day.
y Take for instance. the United states
navy, with whose chief have had a
long talk this afternoon. Its expenditures
during the last five years have been up
ward OF N0,OO0OOO a month, or more than
Sl2OOoo,OOO a year. It is building battle
ships which cost 100000 or 100000
apiece and its schemes of potential war.
fare afloat necessitatc the employment
and handling OF more than $1,000 men.
Such a department needs good bust
Y ness man at rs head, and that, IL Is be.
Nved, we have In Secretary Meyer. Born
ora Boston family which was largely in
terested in business, he was educated in
the Boston schools, and after graduating
from Harvard began a business career
His first employment was outside his
relatives. He wanted TO start at the bot
tom and make his own way without fear
or favor; and he did this so well that in
the course of two years he was able to
take place in his fathers business and
hold his own. ........ .
To show something of Secretary Mey-
eFs business connections, he is trustee
for the Provident institution for Savings.
director Of the Old Colony Trust COM
pany and Also of the United Electric Sc
cuTities company All these are. of Bos &.
ton. He is also a director of the Amos
keag cotton mills at Manchester n. H.
one OF the largest institutions of the kind
in the world, and he has other business
interests of many kinds. He has learned
by personal experience how great cor
porattons and factories are managed and
also how TO handle men and money so as
TO bring forth results. II is this ability
which forms the keynote OF his work in
the navy. and II Is this business sense
( which will be found running through the
conversation which follows.
Our Navy is American.
H1t was by appointment that | met the
Yseoretary in his home facing Scott Circle.
and our talk was more in the shape of a
chat between business men than cut-and-
dried interview. The secretary has the
overflows with ideas respecting il and
D., how it may be improved.
Ny first question was as to what Uncle
sans navy is doing for his American
children. The secretary replied;
The navy Is doing a great deal for
\ Uncle Sans children. 1t is not only
pilding ships to protect them but through
iNHrgAnization and training It is doing
~ tn
About twenty years ago a large propor-
tion OF our bluejackets were foreigners
To-day all but about per cent of them
are American-boTn. We do not pick our
sailors up from the wharves as was done
in the past bun we are now going out
over the union and gathering bright,
active young men from every walk in
life. II used to be hard TO get Americans
70 enlist. Now We have only to advertise
for volunteers and we get them The
popularity Of the service among our new
men began with the trip OF our fleet
around the world; that stirred their
imagination. They began to take a world
view Of affairs and they are now glad
TO come
Forty Thousand DIueiackets.
Il suppose you are referring To the
rank and file OF the navy?"
Yes. mean the sailors. the Bluejack-
cts. We have 47,0OO Of them and they are
as fine fellows as can be found any
where. ! will put them up against the
men OF any country or any nation. The
most Of them come from the farms they
- young men of from Il TO n and the
average is a man of high Intelligence and
more than ordinary ability In the first
place, he must be physically sound and
must have certain height and weight
the examination fixes that. As soon as
we get hold Of him we begin his develop
ment. We teach him how to handle him
self, how TO stand straight and walk
straight; he learns cleanliness and order.
And tf he has taste for mechanics he
sets an Industrial education; he learns
how to handle machinery and TO do cleo
trical work. We study him individually
TO see what he can do best. Three months
after he ehlists we usually put him on
batueship or cruiser and his time Il
spent with machinery, electricity and gun
firing he has to do with all the require
ments OF the great floating machines
which the man-ofwsr Is; this gives him
trade. as il we're. and IL he leaves the
service he has no trouble I'M getting a
place In the private Work shops OF the
country, His training makes him an in
du2rial asset TO the nation. II also
mixes him man and a patriot"
"Nou speak Of machinery. Is this not
rev sphere for the ssilOre''