Evening star., 1915-12-11
PLEA FOR FUNDS
FOR COAST GUARD
Annual Report Shows the Need
for More Ships and Bet
ter Stations.
SOME CRAFT NOT FIT
FOR FURTHER SERVICE
New Stations Also Needed and Laws
to Correct Existing
Evils.

The varied humanitarian and util-
| ltarian activities of the coast guard
over the fiscal year 1914-15 are de-
scrlbed in the annual report, just made
public. These activities range over a
wide scope of saving life and prop
| erty at sea. along shore, on the rivers
OF the interior at time of flood, fire
| fighting, and enforcement of neutral
! lty, navigation and other laws, MAIN
/ tanning the international patrol for the
| protection of fur seals in Alaskan
waters, the international ice patrol in
northern waters of the Atlantic, OBJ
servations Of bird life, and, in con-
junction with the public health service.
maintaining a hospital ship to carry
medical and surgical aid to American
| fishermen on the Grand Banks of New
foundland.
| The depletion of the fleet by the fail
| ure of Congress to provide adequately
| Tor the upkeeD of the service is the oc-
! caslon for recommendations for in
creased efficiency by construction of
new vessels. The report continues:
| For four years 1t has been regularly
| urged that new vessels be authorized
.one for the Pacific coast and one for
New York harbor. The vessel for the
! Pacific coast is intended to replace the
Perry, which was wrecked in the vicinity
Of the Pribilof Islands in 1910. During the
past year the service sustained a further
loss IN the Tahoma, which struck an un-
! charted reef south of the Aleutian chain
in September, 1914, while engaged in pa
| trolling those waters in the enforce
| Inent OF the International convention
| for the protection of the seal herds.
ne loss of these two vessels has
| seriously curtailed the activities of the
coast guard on the Pacific coast, and
J the service is now obliged to undertake
| the enforcement of the scaling conven-
| ton with but one cutter. 1t is, there
| fore, imperatively necessary that two
| new vessels be provided for this i'm
portant work, involving as it does the
fulfillment of international obligations.
Seven hundred thousand dollars should
/ be provided for the construction of
| these two vessels.
THE old cutter Manhattan now limps
| along with worn-out hull and nlachin-
| cry, performing in an inefficient man
ner the important duty of regulating
| the anchorage of vessels in the great
est American seaport. Since first rec
| ommending the replacement of this an
| tiquated craft, now over forty-two
years old, the cost of ships has SO far
advanced that it will be necessary to
provide an appropriation of $685. ,000,
| instead of the original estimate of
| $4,000
| "a new harbor cutter to replace the
| Hartley at San Francisco is urgently
| needed. Inat vessel was Dullt IN 1919,
and has been in service for forty years.
| Her wooden hull is rotten. her machin-
cry antiquated and in very bad condi-
| ton, requiring frequent repairs. The
| boat is not worth rebuilding. 1t is
| recommended that an appropriation of
| $4,000 be provided to build or purchase
| a suita BILE cutter to replace the Hartley.
| The recommendation for cruising
cutter to cost s350.oo0 for duty in the
| waters adjacent to the Panama canal
| is renewed. Such vessel. as before
pointed out. would be of great assist
ance in aiding vessels which may be
in distress, and in boarding them for
the purpose of enforcing the naviga-
| ton laws