The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-10-25
Efficiency Now the Keynote and Mistakes of Spanish American War Will Not Be Repeated Promotion By Merit Now.

By Merit Now.
 (By Hon. Josephus Daniels. Secretary
 of the Navy.)
 In no particular has the navy shown more marked improvement under the Democratic administration of the last four years, as compared with the Republican administration of many years previous, than in it's efficiency. While the public has had glimpses of the radical improvement in efficiency from time to time, the greater part of the reforms in the efficient operation of the navy have been done quietly with no attempt at publicity, and radical changes have been accomplished with so little fric- ton, which is in itself test of the highest efficiency, that the outside world is even to-day unaware that anything remarkable has been accom- plished. It has known, in a general way, that our fleets are better equip ped, that our res erves of ammunition supplies have been increased without corresponding increase in the esti- mate. that our organization has been made more military, that our man.
 
 of immense value to thA practical education of our personnel. that our shore stations have been converted from monuments of prodigality and wastefulness into efficient industrial units where our battleships can be built, repaired and overhauled more economically than at any private yard and that, in spite of the in crease in our fleet and increase in the personnel, the taxpayer is to- day paying practically only the same amount or even less for maintenance of the navy than he was called Mpon to pay when the fleet was smaller, both in men and ships, under Repub- lican rule. I
 From time sto time the press has noticed that we have saved a million dollars here or half a million dollars there by more efficient and economi- cal methods, but the aggregate of many million dollars that have been saved in the last four years while, at the same time, the fleet has been bet ter equipped, has not been generally known; nor is it possible to state the gain in efficiency during the last four years in the Navy, both. af1oA and ashore, in terms of money. It will only be in our time of trial when the navy is called upon as the country's first bulwark of defence that this country will appreciate and valuate the work of the last four years.
 We may roughly divide the func- tions of the Navy department into the f1eet-the actual ships that will do the fighting, should the time ever come-and the shore establishment. which must be equally efficient to keep the fleet equipped, ready for the high seas at any time, and on par in material and men with that, of any other navy in the world. Each of these two great divisions may be fur ther divided into personnel and ma terial. Thus in the first division there are the ships and the men who man the ships. and in the second division the shore stations and the men, main 1y civilian, employed therein. Of course, the most important. of these is the fleet, and the most important thing in the fleet is it's personnel.
 What has been done, then, : in re- gard to the efficiency of the person. nel? In no department perhaps was the inefficiency of previous adminis- trations more marked than in it's
 
 the Spanish-American War the ma chinery for moving and directing the fleet practically broke down and a temporary Board of Strategy was found necessary, which hastily con- ceived, imperfectly organized and un- trained to it's duties, was charged with carrying out functions and directing the manoeuvres of the fleet which should have been taken up by the regular organization and would have been so done had the regular organ ization been efficient for the task. One might have thought that this les- son would have resulted in improve ments in the military organization of the fleet. Such, however. was not the case. While our naval officers, from that period until the present administration came into power. feel ing it properly their duty to call at- tention to conditions, urged this plan, that plan and the other plan, for proper military organization, their pleading fell on deaf ears and noth- ing was accomplished. It remained for this administration to create the Division of Operations and a Chief of the Division of Operations who ranks in the Navy next to Admiral Dewey, organized on a strict military basis in accordance with the best military practice of the greatest navies in the world, and, by this act, for the first time, the military organ ization of the Navy has been made as it should have been made years ago, the first consideration and been given the position of highest author ity under the Secretary and Assistant Secretary. What this means can be appreciated by any man of military though it is doubtful if the general public can grasp the full significance of the tremendous change effected or what it means to the safe guarding of our country. There will | be no need of any Board of Strategy | or any nasty reorganization of our | fleets or their personnel should the ! test ever come again as in the Span 1 ish-American War.
 Efficiency in personnel has been promoted by abolishing the archaic system of promoting officers by seniority and adopting the system of promotion by merit. To make man l Admiral because of seniority made for mediocrity. and some men with out resource or initiative were pro- noted who will never become Rear Admiral Now that merit has re- placed seniority. This new method l of promoting efficiency among the officers, secured by the Wilson admin