New-York tribune., 1916-02-26
Admiral Winslow Says
Methods of Naval Educa-
tion Are All Wrong.
DANIELS REJECTS
SUBMARINE BIDS
Will Ask Congress TO Divert S3,.
600, 900 Funds if Vessels Can't
Be Built in 20 Months.

Washington. Feb. % The United
States navys whole system Of govern
ment and operation. from education OF
officers to questions OF ship and gun
construction. was sharply criticised be
fore the House Naval Committee to-
day By Admiral Cameron McRae Win
slow. commander in chief Of tre Pa
cifc feet. Without radical changes,
the admiral declared. a fully efficient
fighting force comparable to the Brit
ish navy could not be produced in fifty
years.
Admiral Winslow declared the sys-
tenn Of education AZ the Annapolis Ma
al Academy was wrong. He urged
restoration Of the old grade Of mid
shipman in the feet Boys should en-
ter the service at from fourteen to six
teen wears Of age, he said. spend two
wears in preliminary schooling ashore
then 20 10 sea TO acquire the sea
habit" before completing their eduea-
tion ashore.
The polytechnic education now given
midshipmen at the academy was utter
In unsuited, the admiral declared 10
the training Of men TO handle ships AT
sea He could see no value 10 be
Nained from making all navy ofhcers
eXperts in higher mathematics, ana
thought constructors, engineers ana
ordnance experts should be trained as
specialists and never be called On 70
command ships.
Promotion by Fitness.
From the lays boys entered the
academy. he said. system of selection
should be applied 10 govern Iromo-
tons. eliminating men united Tor tne
daring. nerve-racking tasks that would
be encountered in war. lie added that
fellow officers should determine these
qualifications, and that plan Of this
sort was being worked out by the Navy
Department. He declared that some
thing might be accomplished II iew
captains or commanders were set ASIDE
and trained for flag officers. the men
best fitted 10 be selected for actuai
commands. ~.
REPRESENTATIVE Fred Britten. Chi
cago Republican member OF the NAVai
Affairs Committee, opened up the teen
hjcal end Of the armed merchant snip
question by asking Admiral Ninslow
how large a gun q merchant vessel re-
ouired to defend itself from submarine
attacks. Admiral Winslow's replies IN
dicated that a very small gun would
sink an undersea boat. Mr. Brtten
then asked the admiral If he did not
believe a merchant ship armed with a
small gun was a warship. The ad-
miral refused 10 be drawn into that
question, saying he was not an inter
national lawyer.
"The President is the best judge OF
that question" said Chairman Padgett.
"All right" retorted Representative
. Britten; then let the President eX-
plain it,"
Admiral Winslow told the committee
that the Pacific Coast needed more
navy yards, notably a big shipyard
on San Francisco Bay, as waterfront
and channel limitations at Mare Island
precluded the development Of that yard
for uses Of a modern fleet. The Puget
Sound yard. he thought. also should be
equipped promptly 10 handle big ships.
The number of submarines necessary
10 defend the Pacific Coast shOJld be
determined az the Navy War College,
the admiral said Four shore bases for
submarines would be sufficient. he
thought. but more than forty-elght
boats probably would be required.
Schley To BE Begun Soon.
Replying 10 an inquiry by Repre-
sentative A. =. Gardner as to the rea-
sons for the delay in building the sea-
going submarine Schley, Secretary Dan
iels wrote to-day 10 Chairman Padgett
Of the House Naval Affairs Committee
that the vessel would be completed on
contract time. in March. 1918. The
contract was let 10 the Electric Boat
Company on March 10, 1915, and work
has not yet been begun.
The Secretary said he had been in
formed by the builders that, IS the
Schley was an entirely new type and
much larger than anything built before,
nearly year had been consumed in
experimentation and drafting, but that
work would be begun soon.
The Electric Boat Company were low
bidders on two more submarines Of the
Schley type. Their bid provided for
the delivery Of the two vessel. in
thirty-one and thirty-three months, re
spectvcly Secretary Daniels told rep
rcsentatycs OF the company to-day that
he could not consider awarding ? con-
tract on those terms. lie believ. the
two submarines should be completed
in twenty months at the most. He said
that If the Electric Boat Company
could not construct the two submf rnes
IN reasonable time he would refuse to
award the contract and would ask Con-
QTcss 20 divert tho QDprODrlafiOn OF