The Washington herald., 1914-03-08
SEES DOOM IN
NAVAL DECLINE
Small Fleet Advocates Are
Severely Censored by the
Scientific American.
SHIPS HELPLESS In WAR
Germany. Two Years Hence. Would
Annihilate United States Vessels.
SILLY Talk Scored.


THE United States navy is declining
Under the policy Of the present admins
tration IL is declining at q rate, which. q
maintained for the next four years. vii
place 1t in the fifth position, below France
and japan, and will reduce this Unitet
States from frst class to a second class
naval power" says the Scientific Ameri'
We have on our desk a public docu'
ment showing the relative position in sea
strength Of the United States navy
which is published by the government al
the close OF each year, and is sent out
tor the information Of the taxpayers oil
this country. The document is headed,
ONCE Of Naval Intelligence. Navy De
partment,' and IL is prefaced by the fol-
lowing statement: In order 10 answer
the frequent inquiries Of societies and
persons throughout the country interest
I'd in the maintenance Of the navy and
its relative strength and importance IN
ror,parison with foreign navies. the fol-
lowing information has been compiled.
From its tables We learn that Great Srit-
ain has built and is now building war
ships Of a total tonnage of 81 tons:
that Germany is represented by l.Z-S1S
icns: the United States oy S2l,SH tons:
France by S6. .lS5 tons, and Japan by GG,-
OGe tons
we say that the United States navy is
declining because q comparison OF this
document with these isshed from the
same Office in previous years shows that,
whereas two or three years ago the
United States navy stood second in
strength, with a decided lead oNe-
Germany. and France, and Japan were
so far behind this country as to he en-
tirely outclassed. conditions are so FAR
changed that today the German navy Is
unc-third more powerful than ours in
total tonnage. France is crowdinS us
closely for third position. and in three or
four years time. at the present respective
rates of construction. Japan will have
navy equal IL not superior to our
own
Based on Statistics.
We make these statements unreserved-
ly: for they are based on cold govern
mental statistics. Any one who reads
these lines is at liberty to write to the
Navy Department and secure copies of
this document and probably OF those of
the few years preceding.
The decline of our navy. however, is
more serious-far more serious-than IS
shown by these mere figures of total
tonnage. The building by Great Britain
of the first Dreadnought few years
ago established an entirely new rating
Of naval strength. The all-big-gun
Dreadnought of the future will be the
deciding factor in a naval campaign.
More than ever before. the ship and the
gun will decide the fight. Our gunners
are doing good work in target practice;
but the writer has direct evidence that
il is not better than that in some other
ravies, and not nearly so good as is be-
ing done today in one particular navy.
Therefore. in future seafight the ma
ton that can string out the longest line
of Dreadnoughts. carrying armor-piercins
number OF long-range armor-piercing
guns. will win the fight.
Having this in mind. let us see how
we stand. Great Britain has today
built and is building ~ Dreadnoughts:
Germany. 26; the United States. Il:
France, II, and Japan. 10.
Doomed TO Ruin.
We commend to the attention of
the time Of the nation in foolish talk
about the sin OF building big guns and
ships TO carry them. the following in
disputable fact namely, that if, in
a coupl, OF years time. when all
these ships arc completed, the United
States navy should be sent out by this
same Congress to meet the Dread |
IOuEIl meet Ol GeTUldny IN STAND |
up fight. ii would be doomed, not |
merely to defeat. but to absolute an
To the small-navy men in |
Congress we commend also the con-
tion that. il they dispatched our /,
fleet TO fight either that of France or !
Japan. We should probably win, but at !
a cost of loss in ships and damage to |
those which remained afloat that !
would releEate us TO the third-rate !
at the close of the Russo-Japanese /
war.
The silly talk about naval holi- !
days the criminal expenditure for |
the 'cC"lbination of war !
ship building firms to promote war
scares' TO say nothing of the unctu-
Gus moraliZing of the editorial writer |
" no comes late to his desk aud is hard |
up for subiect--aI OF this and much !
more is due TO Il total misunderstand- !
ing of the purposes of national war
ileet The money put into a country's |
navy is spent for national insurance.
To preserve the peace. prosperity and .
honor of the United States we are at
present investing about ~ per cent
only of the national wealth of this
in our navy. II that a wicked
Does Not Heed ExPcriS.
The present deplurable decadence dates
from the time. Two or three years ago,
when Congress refused to continue the
policy Of building two battIeships a wear
an addition which our naval board had
decided was large enough to maintain
the navy at a strength sufficient 20 meet
It's responsibilities. Ia two successive
years, Congress so far lost sight of its
proper function as to play fast-and-loose
with this recommendation of its naval
experts and cut tine appropriation from
aau6 VAun eeeF