The Washington herald., 1914-11-01
BIG BATTLESHIP
Still SUPREME
u. S. Officials Say Submarine
Does Not Prove Great
i Vessels Doom.
DECIDE TO GO AHEAD
Want Our Ships Larger. Paying but
.Scant Attention to Their Speed.
Guido the British.
DECIDE TO GO AHEAD
BY ARCHIBALD HURD.

London. Oct. 3L-Neither words nor
acts have convinced the responsible ma
val authorities Of the United States that
the submarine has doomed the hattleship
to extinction, nor do they agree with
those who would warn the nations
against putting too many eggs In one
basket" ntheir opinion the great bat
tleship still holds the seas as the su-
preme arbiter. of the destiny OF maritime
powers. This after two months OF naval
warfare during the course of which the
submarine has achieved no slight sue
cess. The work which the British navy
is doing-and hopes 20 do-in calculating
naval problems leaves the Americans
cold.
Orders have been placed for two bat
ueships, just as Though the submarine
had never been. heard OF. The construc-
ton Of these two vessels. with one other
to be paid for partly out of the money
paid by Greece. for the two obsolesCent
ships she acquired this spring, was, it is
true, authorized in the last session OF
Congress.
Gain Information Desired.
1t was anticipated. however. that the
placing of the contracts would be de-
layed until the constructors now in Eu-
rope studying naval events-or rather
awaiting naval events really worth
study-had gained all the information
obtainabIe bearing on matters Of design.
Not at all. The naval authorities have
decided to forge ahead and put in hand
at once the building of all three battle
ships for which they have received au-
thority; the third is to be laid down in a
government yard.
They have determined not to wait for
the Ong-anticipated battle in the North
Sea, convinced. apparently, that when 1t
does come Il will still lesVe the battle
ship mistress of the sea. despite destroy
ers, submarines. Zeppelins and seaplanes,
all of them carrying deadly armRments.
But even more remarkable than this
decision is the fact that the new battle
ships are to lick creation in size and
power. but not in speed. They will dis
place something approaching twice the
amount of water OF our original Dread
nought, completed only eight years ago.
The tonnage OF each OF these mastodOns
will be no less than 5000. whereas our
name ship of the new era was OF only
1880 tons.
L. :. ships Larger.
This one comparison will convey some
idea of what American naval officers
think of the arguments advanced in favor
of ships Of moderate dimensions
They have built battIeships small and
battleships big. and they declare: Give
us battleships bigger. submarine OF no
submarine"
The increase in displacement on the
other side OF the Atlantic has far out
stripped anything that our own naval
authorities who have the credit OF intro
ducing the Dreadnought, have proposed.
II was only by sheer good fortune that
We got the first DreadnOuRht ahoat.
The Americans had realized the develop
ment was inevitable. had had a design
prepared and were waiting for Congress
to say yes when Lord Fisher sailed
in, laid down four ships. built them with
great secrecy and thus obtained a lead
which we have never lost. Thank God
for our food. cheap food, and the British
navy" Credit ought to be paid to the
American Navy Department for its fore
sight 1t Just missed the distinction Of
being first in DTeadnought construction.