New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-08-29
Vessels in Full Commits
sion Not SO Numerous
as Secretary Alleges.
SHIPS COMPANIES
OFTEN MILlTIAMEN
Obsolete Units, Dating from
Presidents Harrison and Cleve-
land, Dragged Out of Limbo.
1Rr r,i,r,nh 70 ne rrihune.l

lBy Telegraph TO The Trihunel
Deuvers, Mass, Aug. 2S.-ln attack
ing Secretary Daniels's assertion that
fifty war vessels in full commission
have been added to the navy during
the present administration, Congress
man A. P. Gardner pointed out here
to-day that every new vessel so far
put into commission since Mr. Daniels
became Secretary of the Navy was pro-
vided for by Congress prior TO Presi-
dent wilson's election. Mr.. Gardner
also contended that several obsolete
vessels were included in Mr.. Daniels's
list.
Secretary Daniels has just issued
IN Washington, and has repeated IN
Boston, an exceedingly adroit state
ment in which he declares that the
American navy has been increased by
ffty war vessels in full commission
since March, 1918, when he became
Secretary of the Navy" said Mr.
Gardner. "To judge by the headlines
and the press comments, the public
thinks that this means fifty new ships
added to our commissioned strength.
II means nothing of the sort.
"Of course, there have been some
rev ships added. but, on the other
hand. old ships authorized in the time
Of Harrison and Cleveland have been
dragged out and put to various pur-
poses. They are not. however, in full
commission in any proper sense OF the
word For instance, the Secretary says
that in his time the increase in the
number of battleships in full commits
sion has been six. The fact is that
instead of six, there have been just
two new battleships commissioned in
Mr.. Daniels's time, the Texas and the
New York, both of them provided by
Congress during Secretary Meyers ad-
ministration.
Kearsarge and Kentucky.
1.-THE rest Of his six ships are made
up as follows: To begin with, there
is the Oregon, provided in President
Harrison's time, which the Secretary
has dragged out of limbo and put IN
commission for show purposes in San
Francisco. In his list he includes the
Kearsarge and the Kentucky, author
lied in the time of Grover Cleveland.
These two ships were laid up in ordi
nary. but Mr.. Daniels unearthed them
and put them in full commission, as
he calls it. The fact is that they are
largely manned by naval militia men
and are not in full commission in any
reasonable sense Ct the word
Then, there ar the old Missouri
and the Wisconsin, which Mr.. Daniels
has taken out of the reserve feet and
put in what he alleges 10 be full COM
mission The fact is that they are
part of the Naval Academy practice
squadron and are largely manned by
naval cadets. None of the above list
is with the battleship feet and none
of them is in full commission in any
reasonable sense of the word.
Meanwhile, the Idaho, which was
i'm full commission when Secretary
Daniels became Secretary of the Navy,
has been sold to Greece. This ac-
counts for all six battleships which
the Secretary claims TO have added to
our battle feet in full commission.
Some Resuscitated Monitors.
NEARLY half of the increase Of YES
sells in full commission is made up of
submarines and of the old monitors
which have been resuscitated for the
purpose Of acting as travelling black
smith shops and gasolene tanks when
the submarines make their runs. Alto
gether, there are twenty-four subma-
rines and monitors added 10 the fleet
in full commission, according to the
Secretary, every one of them, by the
way, provided by Congress long before
Mr.. Daniels's time.
81 have not yet been able to dis
cover which of these submarines are
broken down, but l notice that one Of
the number which the Secretary in
cludes in his list is the F-4, which
now reposes at the bottom Of the sea.
Furthermore, the Secretary, for some
unknown reason, has transferred from
reserve into full commission the old
submarines Grampus and Pike, au-
thorized in McKinley's time and now
rechristened A-3 and AS. Our sub
marine fleet can certainly make
brave show-on paper.
"The fact of the matter is that the
whole business is pretence. 1t is use
less to have lots of vessels in full
commission if they are entirely under
manned, as is the case in many in
stances. In the Atlantic battleship
feet alone Admiral Fletcher, the com
mander in chief, has definitely an
nounced that the shortage amounts to
5.2l9 men and 339 officers.
Secretary Daniels, moreover, has
unfairly compared winter conditions
with summer conditions"