The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1916-11-19
OUR NEW NAVY.

When the war broke out, our exchanges
closed. cotton could not be sold for four
cents a pound, grain shipments ceased, and
ship sailings were cancelled. Thousands
were thrown out of employment, salaries
were cut-but what's the use of saying
rnore-you know what happened Why?
Simply because the sea lanes were closed.
But suddenly wheat started 1t did not
drop to forty cents, as was predicted, but
vent to 81, $1.25; then to $50. then to
81 .65, then to $185---and is still rising.
The upturn in cotton was just as pro-
nounced. 1t reached the pre-War levels,
passed them, set a record, broke that, set
another, broke that, until it has now
reached the miraculous figure of twenty
cents, passed it, and gives promise OF
reaching the twenty-five cent mark. Why !
Because the sea lanes wr opened.
1t was the superiority of the British navy
that opened our factories, paid our labor
the highest wages in the history OF the
world, and increased the neutrality-suspicious.
of the United States beyond the power OF
the railroads to deliver.
So much for the Importance of sea
power, and the meaning of our greater
navy building program, which will make
our fleet second only to Great Britain's
These are the ships that the United
States is to get under way before July
1919:
10 frst-class battleships, 6 battle cruisers
10 scout cruisers, so destroyers, 9 feet sub
marines, 80 coast submarines, and Ii auxil
larry vessels.
For some of these, the building contracts
have already been awarded; specifications
for others are now in course of preparation
The battle cruisers will be hundred feet
longer than the Woolworth building is
high will travel at almost railroad speed
and will weigh as much as thousnd 35-tor
freight cars. They will carry ten 14-incf
guns, capable of tossing two shells a nlinut.
each smashing distance of eight to twelve
miles The battle ships will be about two
hundred feet shorter than the cruisers, NOR,
heavily armored, slower, and with a heaviei
battery. The cost of these leviathans viii
range from fifteen to twenty million dollars
each, and the cost of each shell will be ;
thousand dollars.
Yet all the shells this fleet could fir,
would not equal one days loss if the Sc;
lanes were closed against our commerce
and all the wealth which the construction
and maintenance of this feet involves woult
be less than the loss to the nation tina
would result from CLOSING the factories
shutting UP the mines, and allowing tn,
crops TO not on the ground.
And fer this we pay a price slightl,
higher than our bill for candy, soft drinks
and chewing gum; less than we spend Of
automobiles; one-half our jewelry bill, one
quarter our tobacco bill and less than on
sixth of what we spend for liquor.
Three hundred and fifty million dollar
is the amount of our navy appropriation 70
1916 Contrast this figure with the annua
luxury spendings of the United States. sum
married as follows by A. c. Laut, in tn
Review of Reviews:
Liquor, $2,200,OO0,OOO; tobacco, $1,000
100000; jewelrv, $8O0000,0O0; motor.
5000 O00 600; candy, soft drinks and chew
ing gum, 1888, 100000.
Without Understanding the importanc
of our armv and the coast defence arm c
the service especially, the fact remains tia
the navy must remain our supreme prote,
ton. 1t is as necessary for the productio
of crops in the interior as it is for the SAT-,
guarding of cities on the seaboard
Let our navy be great and even greater
it will not only be our surest protection
case of international crisis, but it will ais
keep our lanes of commerce open; it wi
mean not only national life, but econom
life and physical life as we'll.