The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-10-05
President Will Request Con- gress to Provide for Swift est and Largest Super Battle Cruisers
ESTIMATED COST IS
 PLACED AT EIGHTEEN
 MILLION PER VESSEL
Information Given Out After Conference With Secre-
 tary Daniels and House Chairman Naval Affairs

Washington, October 4-super- tie cruisers. bigger, faster and more heavily armed than any war craft now afloat or building, to cost s1s.ooo. 900 each will be recommended to Congress as a part of the navy building pro- gramme for next year. Decision on this step was reached today at a con ference between President Wilson. Sec retary Daniels and Representative Pad gett, chairman of the House naval af- fairs committee.
 Plans for the new vessels have been prepared and are being considered by the Secretary and members of the gen eral board
 Just how many of the new type ships will be asked for has not been de- termined. Secretary Daniels said after the conference. Cost of construction of navy craft has risen since the out break of the European war with the consequent enormous demand upon American resources. Dreadnaughts which also will be recommended for construction this winter will cost s1S.- o00,o00 each, 1t is estimated, against $15,Oo0,0o0 for ships now building Part of this increase, though, is due to better hull construction.
 Tue nimber Of ships of eacI,s s,.s.,ss. to be urged probably will be agreed on within few days. Secretary Daniels continued tonight his conference with Representative Padgett and he will see President Wilson again probably this week. The estimates, by law must be in the hands of the Secretary of the Treasury by October 15.
 Contemplated Specifications
 Plans for the battle cruisers, MT. Daniels said contemplated speed of 35 knots an hour. They will be faster than any but the swiftest destroyers. In land terms, they will equal the speed of railway trains making 40 miles an hour
 The armament has not been decided upon, but it probably will be equal to or greater than that of present day dreadnaughts- It is understood some officers believe each ship should carry 12 14-inch. .50-calibre rifles. but if is possible that lesser number of guns may be mounted, or that the new 1s- inch rifle, the largest naval gun vet developed. may be used. In that case probably six or eight big guns would be mounted.
 All the items for the forthcoming navy estimates were considered to- day.
 Secretary Daniels declined to dis close other details of plans. He intl- mated, however, that a building pro- sramme for the submarine flotilla would be urged that would make pos sible an inner line of defense along both coasts. The secretary said that recently. when submarines were at the height of their activity in the Euro Pean war the pendulum of public opin- ion had swung too far in favor of sub marines and that the tendency now would be to swing it too far the other way. The navy plans he declared. would not make either error. He added that the value of submersibIes for the defense of the wide reaches of coast line on both shores hardly could be overestimated.
 Swift Vessels Needed
 Battle cruisers have not been recom mended by the general board of the navy except once. some years ago. Plans have been considered for such ships every year, however. and tenta- tive designs prepared. The ''mission'' of the navy as 1t is 'discused in navy war college problems always has been regarded defense of the United States. With efforts being made to foster the merchant marine, however. and with the Monroe doctrine to up- hold and the Panama canal to defend. the officers think that the time has come when the navy should be given the same tools to fight with that pos- sible enemies might have.
 Recent maneuvers it Is said, have brought out sharply the need of both swift scouts and fighting ships. For the present. however, 1t is thought the cruiser destroyers can fill the place of specially designed scouts, although later many high speed light cruisers will be sought to round out the navy. 1