New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-05-26
A Characteristic Apology.

The issue of veracity between Rear Ad
miral Bradley A. Fiske and Secretary
Josephus Daniels has now been adjusted
in manner thoroughly characteristic of
the administration of the Navy Depart
ment under its present head.
Admiral Fiske, at that time Aid for
Operations, delivered to the Secretary in
November, 1914, an elaborate memoran-
dunn on American naval policy 1t was
pigeonholed and would probably never
have been permitted to see the light Of
day again if the Senate had not recently
called on the Secretary to produce it The
latter Transmitted it reluctantly and told
the Senate that he had never seen or read
it, and had not even known until recently
Of its existence. The admiral took eXcep-
ton to this statement and requested the
Senate to authorize committee to eX-
anime into the truth Of it.
An investigation was being considered.
But now in an indirect and grudging man
ner Mr. Daniels has indicated that he is
willing to retract his assertions to the
Senate and to admit that Admiral Fiske
was right in saying that the memorandum
was shown to him before it went on file.
This apology is not made in an open and
manly manner, either to the admiral or to
the Senate, but appears in the form of a
report to the President inserted in a let
ter written by the latter to the chairman
of the executive committee of the Ameri-
can Defence Society
Mr.. Daniels was naturally taken aback
when the Fiske memorandum was called
for. Its publication was bound to put
him in the unenvable position Of having
totally ignored a remarkable forecast of
the political and military developments Of
the European war so far as these were
likely to affect American interests. Ad-
miral Fiske, as a student of war, foresaw
with remarkable clearness the dangers
ahead-dangers arising from our inabil-
ity to keep clear of foreign complications.
He wrote:
During the next five years we must
expect a great number of causes Of
disagreement between this country
and other countries and periods Of
tension between this government and
others; periods like that preceding
the Spanish war, needing only a cas-
ualty like the blowing up of the Maine
to precipitate conflict In my opin-
ion, as your professional adviser, and
in the opinion of every naval officer
with whom | have talked the United
States is in danger of being drawn
into war, and will continue to be in
danger for several years
Admiral Fiske was right. We had the
Lusitania Massacre and the Columbus,
n. NJ, raid. and we are likely to be many
more times on the verge of war. But Mr..
Daniels was at that time living in fools
paradise of fancied security. He believed,
with President Wilson and Secretary
Bryan, that people who talked as Ad-
miral Fiske did about the necessity of
military preparation were merely "ner-
vous and excited" In that supercilious
mood memorandum like Admiral Fishes
must have seemed TO him a mere annoy
ance and there is no reason to doubt that
It made only the most casual impression
on his mind.
If Mr.. Daniels's mental balance had not
been upset by the Presidents sudden shift
three or four months ago to a belligerent
advocacy (for the moment at least) Of
real preparedness, he would have told the
sequences. lie would have said that he
had no time in 1914. or even in 1915 TO
listen to the idle chatter of nervous and
excited" naval experts-that he knew OF
mo place more suitable than department