Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1913-09-18
Cni,IELS INSPECTS
SITE OFFEREDT j,
NEW NAVY STATION
Cabinet Officer Views Jersey
City Waterfront and Is Told
Its Advantages.

JERSEY CITY, Sept. 1s.-Secretary
of the Navy Josephus Daniels today
inspected the proposed site here for
gigantic navy-yard.
The proposed site is at Communi-
paw Cove, off the Greenville shore
within a mile of the Statue of Lib
erty. If the plan goes through it will
mean that the New Jersey yard will
supplant the present Brooklyn sta
tion. The Brooklyn station is so
hemmed in and handicapped by lack
of transportation facilities that it is
now inadequate for modern needs.
On the New Jersey site, 1t is point
ed out. there is greater area, more
convenience and direct touch with
direct railroads..
Secretary Daniels came here last
night and stayed at the residence of
Congressman Eugene B. Kinkead, on
Harrison avenue. This forenoon, ac-
companied by President J. Spencer
Smith, of the New Jersey Harbor
Commission, Secretary Daniels left
in automobiles to inspect the Com
munipaw site.
Others in the party were Richard
G. Jenkinson and w. l.. Saunders, of
the New Jersey Harbor Commission;
Commissioners Fagan, Brensinger,
Hague. Moore and Ferris, of Jersey
City, and the members of the local
Daniels reception committee, fifty in
number, of which John P. Dgan was
chairman.
When the land approaches were
thoroughly inspected the party
boarded at Black Tom dock navy
yard tender and viewed the site from
the water. The boat landed the party
at Pier A, North river, and luncheon
for 100 was served at the Whitehall
Club, Battery place. After luncheon
Secretary Daniels was taken to the
roof of the Whitehall building, from
which he got birds-eye view of both
the Brooklyn navy yard and the New
Jersey site proposed for the new and
larger navy yard.
Hnrbor Boards Report.
The New Jersey harbor commits
sioner's report regarding the Com
munipaw site was made public yes
terday and is as follows:
THE suggestion has been made by
Captain L. S. Van Duser, U. 8. N,
captain of the Brooklyn navy yard,
that 1t may be necessary for the gov
ernment to take steps to improve tho
navy yard now located In New York
harbor, if 1t is to serve the necessary
purposes for which 1t was created
This suggestion, In the form of a re-
port entitled General Consideration
of Navy Yard, Design, Location, Ca
pacity and Maintenance, with Plan
and Description of a Large, Efficient
Yard Properly Located was made to
the United States government. A
resolution by Mr.. McGrath and re-
'orted - & Mr. Fgan, chairman of the
Judiciary committee, was adopted by
the Assembly of the State of New
Jersey on March II, 1913, and con-
Cured in by the Senate March 12,
1913, indorsing the proposed plan to
move the navy yard to the waters
of New York Bay on the shore of
New Jersey. and requesting the as
sistance of the governor of the State,
United States senators and represen-
tatives in Congress and the New Jer-
sey Harbor Board.
Captain Van Duzers statement, re-
port and detailed plans are very COM
plete and his arguments as to the
necessity of taking some steps need
no repetition here, but, being so di-
rected by the Legislature, the New
Jersey Harbor Commission deems it
proper to briefly outline the propo-
sition, not from the particular point
of view of the New Jersey interest,
but in order that such steps may be
taken as to insure against the re-
moval of the navy yard from New
York harbor entirely.
Brooklyn Yard Orders.
1T Is stated by Captain Van DuZer
that the present site of the New York
yard is not only unsuitable as regards
capacity, economy and accessibility
but it Is incapable of satisfactory i'm
provement at any cost. The shape of
the waterfront precludes the possibil-
ity of suitably berthing more than a
dozen battleships at any time Occa-
sionally, when the weather is foggy
10 large vessels can be brought TO the
yard for several days because the
range, which must be seen in order to
clear Diamond Reef, Is obsCured by
the fog. AS this range is not lighted
and cannot well be-large vessels
cannot be brought to the yard after
dark. Even in clear weather not more
than two deep draught vessels can
safely come to or leave the yard in
twenty-four hours. Improved con-
than four This situation Is partly due
to the short time of slack water in
East river partly to the lack of depth
of water abreast Governor S Island
and the difficulty of increasing it but
most of all 10 the strong tidal cur
rents and the difficulty of berthing at
the yard during the strength of the
tide. The depth of water can be ia.
creased-at great expense; but the
other elements of the problem cannot
be much changed.
THE arguments in support of this
statement are detailed in Captain Van
Duzer's report and attention is drawn
to an alternative location in Nara
gansett bay which has been proposed
and advocated. Captain Van Duzer S
recommendation is that the navy yard
be relocated on the New Jersey shore
or Upper New York bay. If the navy
yard In Brooklyn is unsuitable in Its
present condition and incapable of
satisfactory improvement at any cost
it would appear that sooner or later,
with the development of the fleet and
the increased size of battleships the
n [f..l. a