New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-08-13
THE British Admiralty have chosen
for concealing their warships
L colors exactly opposite to their

colors exactly opposite 10 tiielr
purpose. These navy men have under-
taken a Job absolutely in the painter
field-to-day, when everything else Is IN
the hands of specialists.
At the beginning of the war Protes-
sor ]. Graham Kerr, of the University
ofGlasgow, proposed TO the government
to give up his professorship and under
take the conduct of the bureau for the
annlication of my discoveries to war
needs. Professor Poulton, OF OXFORD,
wrote to General Ian Hamilton urging
that the government take counsel Oh me-
and Professor Herdman, of the Liver
pool University, proposed that the Eng
lish naturalists sign paper 10 tiliS
effect, saving to me "Your book has con-
WINGED US ALL" But neither the Navy nor
the War Department could be made 10
understand that successfully to color
sbins or men years of special study OF
tho science involved in concealing colora-
ton are necessary.
Here is a perfectly absurd (however
disastrous) case. In British waters nine
months in the year they have twenty
cloudy hours to one sunny hour (the
estimate l got from one officer; nifty 10
one. as got from another), and not
nuch better the rest of the time
"fl+bv nine months in the year, and
dirty the rest.
Obviously, then, the British navy
won't . color that conceals their ships
mostly in cloudy weather. There is one
color, and only one that even tends TO
conceal a ship in such weather, and that
color they ur0id with a superstltlous
awe. and choose among the rest, where
one of them, or any combination Oh
them. is as bad as another, achleVing at
best some difficulty in Identification
making their ships, though always
rankH visible, look perhaps like some
group of scows.
All this will be plain to our thousands
of seaside visitors this very summer
after they have read this article and
studied an hour or two the shipping out
on the rim of the ocean on a cloudy day.
Here is a means to turn these thou
sands into a vast force to aid the Allies
by helping break down this fatal error
On a cloudy day place a stick horl-
zontally upon two supports IN sltua-
ton where it will be seen against the low
horizon sky. Figure ~ Upon this
stick fix firmly flat cards of any color
YOU please, not emitting pure whlte
cards. and also cards of the gray, and
Observation-Disclosures, that the
navy use. So affix them that their sur
faces come all in one vertical plane, ana
note which of the cards come nearest to
matching the sky. You will find that on
clo,1dv DAYS the white ones will come Tar
the nearest to doing so and that all the
others will alcayS look much too dark
AGAINST it. Also, while the slightest
Modification of these cards vertlcallty'
slightest revolving of the stick Tor
Ia slight shifting of the atmospheric
Illumination, may complete the etface-
ment of the white card at a hundred
wards or less, no such change OF angle
that leaves any of the other cards any
where near vertical or any change III
the illumination. will in the least degree
diminish the rank conspicuousness OF
all the others. On the other hand' the
white cards can become both winter
than the sky on your facing them more
and more upacard and dark brown on
facing them more and more downward.
Ninety-nine hundredths OF all OF
shin that you see at distance is essen
tiallv vertical, and at the fighting dis
lance of seven or more miles ships seen
even from each others lookout, 100 feet
above the sea, have the sky for back
ground even down the main part Of their
hulls.
Cut out of the blank margin Of this
newspaper the form of cruiser, and
min il flat over A. Figure p Look at