Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1914-03-22
Editor Of Scientific American
Points Out the Result of QUE
Policy Of Ignoring the Dan-
gers Which May Confront U.s.
DreadQought's Advent Changes
Naval 0utIook-We Are Now
Behind Germany and Likely TO-
Fall Below Japan and France.


In its current issue the SotsmtesS
American prints an UlUnsim0ttNI 6e~
ticle by its editor OF 'TAe Deceive o.
the U. s. Macy 10 TAird- discs RewA.
Ercerps from the criticize 1oIIosc:
Better than any learned treatise
could have done, the events Of the
Spanish war taught the American
people the value Of q prepondersncs
of sea power. When Dewey cyumpied
UP the Spanish feet at Manila and
Sampson strewed the southern ecssE
of Cuba with the burning wreckagn
of Cervera's squadron, the decisive
influence OF sea power, always Yeoog-
nized by the naval expert, became
self evident even to the man in the
street.
The effect Of this object lesyati
upon the country at large and Ns
| representatives in Congress was i'm
mediate. Proud Of its navy and the
International prestige which followed
upon Its victories, and realizing that
what 1the navy had won a strong
navy alone could keep. Congress lent
willing ear to its technical advisers.
and systematically and most literally
set itself to the task OF building M =
navy that should be equal to heavy
4, responsibilities.
Stood Second.
! Our navy grew. and within half q
dozen years OF the conclusion 81
peace it stood second In strength.
with commanding lead over that OF
Germany. having as it's first fighting
line not less than 20 first-cla batsf
tleships built or under constructed.
to say nothing of eleven armored
cruissrs-ths latter a type which Ja-
pan, not many months before, had
not hesitated to place in the frst line
at the great battle Of Tsushinaa.
In 1905, which found our navy inlI
such commanding position, there
was built in England new type OF
battleship, the ''dreadnought," dss-
tined to work revolution in the rel. I
alive standing Of the nayiss Of the
world, by RELOCATING all existing bat
tleships to the second line.
Unfortunately Congress failed to
appreciate the serious nature Of the
crisis; and at the very time when APP
preparations should have been in.
creased to meet the new conditions
they were reduced, with the result
that our first line of battle (and that
means the navy, so far as the win
ming Of decisive engagements Is con.
cerned) has sunk to the third rank,
with France and Japan pushing us
very closely for pre- eminsncs.
A New Day Has DawRod.
The day has gone when the ability
of a nation to win a great naval was.
can be measured in, terms Of it's ma
terial wealth and it's undiscipiined
courage. The modern development OF
the technical arts. to which this
country has contributed 70 greatly,
has put a heavy discount upon mera
wealth and courage, and has set
heavy premium upon the material in
the telescope sight, the torpedo, the
destroyer and the submarine!
But the man behind the guns? Yea.
we have a good man behind the gun,
but so has Germany, SO has Japan.
The 14-inch riied gun. sending it's
high explosive shell unerringiy to the
mark across five miles OF water, is =
no respecter OF persons.
The stalwArt American gun pointer
at one end Of that FIVE miles and the
puny Jap at the other are toeing the
line In a scratch race, race which
will be won not by Drawn and mus
Gle, not by unconquerable courage.
not by any dreams of glorious past.
but by the steady nerve, the keen eye
and the poise that come Of unremit+
ting training and discipline.
Our Nays Weakness.
To-day, even more than when Ma
poleon uttered his famous dictum ie
is certain that Heaven fights on the
side of the heaviest artillery" and lie
is because the dreadnought carries a
broadside of such overwhelming SUI
periority that no pre-dreadnought
can engage It with the slightest hope
of success.
We shall now give the reasons that
have relegated all but the twelve OF