The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1912-06-04
PLAN FOR MAKING
TWO ADMIRALS
WOULD MAKE FLEET COMMAND
ERs ADMIRALs AND FLAG
OFFICERS VICE ADNiIRALs.

Details Of the naval appropriation
bill, recently passed by the house Of
representatives have been received at
the naval station here. One of the
features most interesting to naval Off
GERS is the plan it contains for creating
two admirals and two vice.admirals for
the navy.
This will be done without increasing
the number of flag officers now in the
navy and without numbering up the re-
tired list, already very large, with adj
ditional officers of high rank.
The bill provides for un admiral to
command each one Of the two fleets of
the navy, the Atlantic battleShip fleet
and the Pacific armored cruiser fleet;
also for vice admiral for each of
these fleets. Each admiral will re-
ceive $4,000 annually, each vice adj
miral $4,000. The rank of admiral
is to be held by the commander in chief
of the two fleets so long as the flag
officer in command Of the fleet holds
that command. The moment the com
mander in chief of either fleet is de-
tached from that command and as
signed to any other duty or station, he
will cease to enjoy that rank or to
draw the pay of admiral, which will
automatically go to the flag officer who
takes his place in command of the fleet.
Should the admiral in command of the
fleet retire while in command, he will,
under the proposed law, retire as a
rear admiral
The rank of vice admiral, it is pro-
posed, would be handled IN the same
way. The officer in command of the
second division of the fleet, who is
second in command, will be entitled
I to the rank of vice admiral and pay at
the rate of $4,000 annually so long
as he is serving with the feet as second
in command The moment he is de-
tached from the fleet he would again be-
come a rear admiral and draw the pay
of one, which is $4,000 for rear admirals
of the upper nine.
Under this arrangement the members
of the house naval committee believe
they will meet the necessities of the
situation without creating permanently
the rank of admiral or vice admiral,
and without increasing the burden of
the retired list, say local naval officers.
More important, in their opinion, is
their belief thats the plan proposed by
them of allowing the rank of admiral
and vice admiral to be held by the
commander in chief and second in COM
mand of the respective fleets only while
they are filing such duties with the
fleets, will provide for the promotion
of rear admirals to command either
feet by selection.
AS it is now, only the highest rank.
ing rear admiral can be placed in COM
mand of the fleet, if other rear admir-
ais or relatively high rank are in com
mand of any of the divisions OF
squadrons of the feet. The officer in
command must outrank the subordinat,
flag officers IN the fleet. Under the
vice admiral and admiral provision il
will be possible for the secretary of the
navy to assign any rear admiral, even
the one latest created, to command
either fleet or to act as second in com
mand, because the temporary right tc
admiral to outrank any rear admira
the higher rank of admiral or vice ad
mIral would enable such younger real
in the feet.