American Falls press. [volume] (American Falls, Idaho) 1907-1937, 1911-11-30

first English dreadnought was put in commission
American drawn plans for two such vessels, tenta
lively called the Feasible and the Possible. re
posed in dusty pigeonholes in the navy depart
,ment at Washington. They were resurrecteo
later in the light of developments abroad.
Thirty-fve ~sea-going battIeships and dread
Notwithstanding with the Indiana, Massachu
sets and Oregon group. laid down in 1891, and in
Guiding the new So, 000,O 900 dreadnoughts New
York and Texas, yet unborn-may be said to con.
stitute the main line of Uncle Sans sea fight
ers.
The other battleship groups and types. in
chronological succession are 2, Iowa; 3. Kear-
sarge and Kentucky; 4, Alabama, Illinois, Wis
consin, Maine, Missouri and Ohio; s, Virginia,
Rhode Island. New Jersey. Georgia, Nebraska.
Kansas. Connecticut. Louisiana. Vermont. New
Hampshire. Minnesota, Mississippi and Idaho.
After these. beginning in 1866 with the near
dreadnoughts South Carolina and Michigan, come
the present dreadnought series: North Dakota,
Delaware, Florida, Utah. Wyoming. Arkansas.
Texas and New York.
In the meantime. as demonstrated In the mimic
Battle of Block Island this summer, the sub
marines have practically proved the battleships
vulnerable. therefore outclassed and obsolescent
These maneuvers may be said to have borne out
the prediction OF a plank In the Proposed Plat.
form for the American Party, published in 1907:
I'VE desire that the American navy shall be
the most powerful and efficient in the world; but
we consider that new inventions have displaced
or are about to displace the battleship, cruiser.
torpedo-boat and monitor. and therefore hesitate
to make further appropriations for these types OF
fighting craft"
Conservative statesmen in the United States
senate have denounced the vast appropriations
for armored ships-sums estimated In the aggre-
gate at more than 10000. O00-as a bad invest
ment. They have stigmatized the United States
navy as "a lot OF old tubs. more dangerous to
those on the inside than to those without"
Even In England the day of the dreadnought is
beginning to decline. while the submarine-to say
nothing Of the war aeroplane-is yet in infancy.
At this rate. ere long. our congress may hear
the cry Of the armed-peace advocates changing
to Millions for development of the diving-boat:
not one cent more for dreadnoughts!"
The naval men themselves are not slow to read
the signs of coming change.
1t may be only a question Of a very few years
when the general adoption OF a 14inch gun capa-
BILE of shooting with accuracy at a distance Of
fifteen miles will revolutionize naval warfare.
Such a gun IL now in process Of trying-out. and
II 1t proves q success 1t will make all the coast
defenses Of today practically useless.
There Is NO doubt" declares Rear Admiral
Francis T. Bowles. u. s. NJ. retired. that a neet
equipped with the new 14-inch gun OF the latest
type could raze New York or any other seaport
In less than an hour. II seems to me that the
answer to this problem Of coast defense IL made
By the submarine. / believe that the submarine
- going to be taken more seriously every year
By naval experts. II 10 the most deadly enemy q
the tattl6shin' @la