The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1915-10-27
Plan TO ECONOMIZE
DANIELS WANTS GOVERNMENT
TO GET MATERIAL AT COST
TO FORTIFY COASTS

Secretary Will Recommend Legisla-
ton to Enable the Government to
Work It's Own Plants-Coast De-
fences on Atlantic and Pacific are
to be ModerniZed.
What the navy expects to do to-
ward preventing private manufacture
ers from reaping excessive profits in
yolyed in the administrations ma
ational defense program was outlined
at Raleigh, n. c., Wednesday by Sec
retary Daniels in a speech at the
North Carolina state fair. Mr.. Dan
iels said his annual report 10 con-
gress would recommend legislation to
enable the government to equip itself
! to build more naval craft, make its
own armor plate and greatly extend
it's manufacture of munitions.
The government has invested
many millions of dollars in navy
yards,'' said the secretary, ''and un-
less this investment is utilized for
new construction much of it is vast
ed. # the government is prepared to
construct naval craft private ship
building companies desiring contracts
| must compete with government
yards. This tends to secure competi-
tive prices and prevent combinations
between private corporations to
| charge higher prices than conditions
| justify.
''Not only must the yards be able
to build ships, but naval establish
! ments should be equipped to manu-
facture a portion of all munitions Of
| war"
In this connection Mr.. Daniels
pointed out that the government paid
so cents pound to private manu-
| facturer a few years ago for making
| powder, but the navy now was max
| ing it at a cost Of about 25c pound.
| Torpedoes and poines, ho said, also
were being manufactured by the navy
at great saving Of money:
''These cases could be multiplied" :"
he added. 'Do not understand me to
advocate any monopoly by the gov
ernment in the manufacture OF NUM-
tions. There are many things We can
buy from private manufacturers at a
reasonable price. The navy, how
ever, should be feee to make large
part of its munitions if private con-
Germs charge excessive prices, as has
sometimes been the case when the
government is shut up to buy from
only two or three manufacturers.
| cit has been ascertained by a spe-
! cial commission that the navy, with
| a modern plant, can manufacture ar
NOR plate for from $3.50 to $3.50, as
against the non-competitive prices of
| S425 to S486 a ton charged in the
last contract Experience in Europe
teaches that the, navy should not
| longer rely upon private manufactur-
ers for projectiles. If congress ap-
proves we will erect a large factory
| which will turn out a large product
] Of fourteen-inch aFmor-piercing
shells,~as we'll as smaller projectiles.
This will insure better shells and bet
/ ter competition"
The secretary particularly directed
the attention of southern farmers to
the lack of ships in the American
merchant marine to carry their pro-
Educe to those who need it and are
willing to pay for it.
what the navy needs and, in case
Of trouble, would need sorely,'s he
added, ARE auxiliaries properly built
and equipped with trained Amerf
cans. A merchant marine with for
eign crews is not an American need,
either for commerce or defense
Before leaving Washington, MI.
| Daniels discussed the plans Of the
| navy department to effectively pro-
| tect the United States. According to
plans, there will be by 1925 q first
| lire Of dreadnoughts and battle cruis-
ers umbering forty-three; a fleet OF
coast defense submarines that would
fringe the Atlantic and Pacific coasts
with an almost solid line Of interior
| defense; a fleet of nearly 17o de-
stroyers and squadrons Of huge sea-
/ going fleet submarines to operate
with the battle squadrons at great
distances from shore.
| General characteristics Of the su-
per-battle cruisers for the new navy
building program, approved by the
general board, contemplated ships
nearly 500 feet long, between 80 and
100 feet in beam and with six tur-
bine driven propellers to make min
imum speed of thirty-hve knots an
| hour. Even the new fleet of scout
cruisers will not equal the battle
cruisers in speed. The former will
be designed to maintain for long
periods a speed of twenty-five knots,
endurance rather than excessive
speed being the object sought. All
! of the new destroyers will make over
| thirty knots an hour and one of the
six for which contracts, were let yes
! terday will make -thirty-two knots.
For the army there would be at
the end OF six years a trained force
of ! 100000 men, including regu-
lar army of 100000 and the pro-
posed continental army and reserves:
a ring Of fully manned coast de-
fenses, equipped with the largest and
most powerful guns yet built, and a
vast reserve of field guns, machine
guns, howitzers and big gun ammuni-
ton In addition, the enormously in
creased capacity Of private munition
plants would give assurances Of am
pie supplies Of small arms and field
| gun ammunition.
| Neither war nor navy department
estimates for the coming year have
| been made public as yet in detail. 1t
lis learned, however, that of the sew
enty-two-million-do increase over
| last years bill to be asked by the
war department s46,000,000 would
go toward reserve material and coast
defense works, the remaining $780,
| 100000 to be used in building up the
new armies, regular and continental.
Part of the s46,0oo.0oo would go
into building and arming the new
forts which Will guard the entrance
to Chesapeake bay.
| 1t is proposed to spend more of the
money in building new forts to guard
! New York. San Francisco and other
great harbors from attack. Gigantic
sixteen-inch rifles will be mounted in
all these defenses of the first class,
where enemy craft with modern guns
would be dangerous from great dis
tance.
Another expenditure contemplated