Evening capital and Maryland gazette., 1915-08-17
OUR NAVY GUNNERS
WORSE THAN IN 1871
Representative Gardner Says Battle
ship Florida Made Two Hits
Only in 20 Shots.
FAR BELOW 95 PER CENT.
Other Ships Have Bad Records at
Practice---Figures Of Other
ShipS.

American navy is so deficient that in
the spring practice of the Atlantic fleet
this year the seventeen battleships en-
gagged made only 30 hits out of S26
shots fired is contained i'm letter Just
| forwarded to the Secretary of the
Navy by Representative Gardiner. of
| Massachusetts,
The charge, which apparently is
based on Navy Department records. is
the outgrowth of a lively correspond
| ence between Mr.. Gardiner and Mr..
Daniels. provoked by previous asser-
tions of the former that American ma
val gunnery is far below the standard
| required in other navies.
Secretary Daniels wrote Mr.. Gard
iner a letter in which Mr.. Gardiner
was chided for for giving out 'nicom-
| plete information based OH gossip"
| relative 10 the record made in target
practice by the battleship Michigan.
Mr.. Gardiner compared the gunnery
practice of the Michigan for 1911 and
1915. and declared that it corroborated
his declarations made i'm and out of
Congress that craftsmanship in the
navy has greatly deteriorated. Out OF
Sc shots fired by the Michigan last
spring, according to Mr.. Gardiner only
five actual hits are allowed by the
umpire. This, Mr.. Gardiner said. was
far below the number of hits made by
the same vessel in 1911.
Commenting on his statement that
only ninety hits were made out of S26
shots at the individual spring prac-
tice of the battleships this year, Mr..
Gardiner said:
This doesn't sound much like the
80 per cent.accuracy we have heard so
much about" In letter addressed to
Mr.. Gardiner on August 3, Secretary
Daniels wrote that the commander of
the battleship Michigan had made a
protest against Mr. Gradiner's com
parison of the Michigan's shooting this
year with that of 1911 as being mis-
leading and calculated to give an in
correct impression of the present eff
cviency of the ship.
Secretary Daniels went on TO say
that conditions in 1911 and 1915 were
different; that the range i'm 1915 was
1000 yards longer and the charge is
heavier
"In 1911" wrote Secretary Daniels.
the Michigan stood No. | in gunnery
among the battleshpis, and while the
results of this years practice have not
yet been completely computed, her
standing will again probably be high.
| assure you that every effort is being
made to maintain and improve the
gunnery of our navy, and the circula-
| ton through the medium of the press
of information incomplete and based
on gossip,and which tends to discredit
the navy, hinders rather than helps
their efforts"
In his reply, dated August u, Mr..
Gardiner said that he had no desire to
be unfair to the personnel of the bat
tleship Michigan.
L told" said Mr. Gardiner, "how the
Michigan had fallen from her record
of 10 hits out of q shots in 1911 down
TO hits out of % shots in 1915, ac-
| cording to current mortifying gossip.
| You tell me that the figures are not
entirely correct That is a fact The
actual record is even more alarming
than ! supposed. ] find that this
| spring instead of firing only p shots,
| theMichigan fired no less than 56 shots
and out of that large number of shots
only five actual hits.
| When | wrote on June 25 had no
| figures available except those of the
Michigan Since then have acquired
the figures of the individual spring
practice of the rest OF the feet, and ]
realize that many a battleship has a
far worse record than the Michigan"
| Mr. GARDENERS letter shows that in
the spring practice the battleships
made the following records: New
York, II out of 20 shots; Texas, out
of 20; Delaware, 5 out of 20; Arkan-
sas, out of S4; Wyoming, II out Of
81; Utah, out of 70; Florida, out of
| 20; Kansas, s out of 2s; Michigan, 5
out of Sc; Virginia, 5 out of 2s; Rhode
Island, 5 out of 2s; Nebraska out Of
%; New Jersey, 4 out Of Is: Louisiana.
out of 2S; Minnesota, 2 out Of 2s; New
Hampshire, ! out of 2S.
Continuing his letter, Mr.. Gardiner
wrote:
THE above compilation was prepar-
ed for me to show the hits actually
allowed by the chief umpire The table
is subject to a variation on account of
the revision of the scores. which is
subsequently made not by the chief
umpire, who actually witnessed the fir
ing. but by the Navy Department"
The scores made by battleships in
target practice are supposed to be Sc
cret. and much interest is being shown
in the fact that the figures apparently
have been given to Mr.. Gardiner by
somebody in authority.
1.-THE Wouanp a poweFfuI nhoto