The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1916-02-20
ARMY AND NAVY
BILLS DUE IN
THREE WEEKS
ENTIRE PREPAREDNESS FIGHT
WILL REST WITH MILITARY
AND NAVY connITTEE-cLARK
FAvoRs PLAN.

Washington. Feb. -e.-Commit;ee
bills 10 increase the regular army 10
between l59 .000 and 2"1. 600 men and
proposing a definite scheme to- fed
eralizstion Of the National Guard III
der militia pay act. probably will
be before both houses Of congress
within three weeks ! building pro
gram for the navy. however. will 10,
be ready before May. although Chair.
man Psdge-t Of the house committee
urged the members today 70 speed
Up examination Of witnesses
The house military committee vi,
begin vorE tomorrow on the militia
liberalization bill. and if strong
measure is produced influential mem.
bers Of the senate committee say il
viii be accepted b. the senate. The
senate committee continued work TO
day on its bill for the regular army
increase. Major General Carter, re-
tired. and officers from the war col.
lege, were aiding in drafting the meas.
ure.
The house ways and means com.
mittee. to which will be allotted the
task Of finding money TO meet in.
creased military and naval e1pendi.
lures, has taken no steps as vet. The
increases needed have not been esti.
mated.
Fight Up 10 Committee Heads.
II now IS understood that the lead
ership in the preparedness fight in
the house will rest with the TWO com.
mittee chairmen, Representative Hay
Of the military committee and Repre-
sentative Padgett Of the navy commit
tee There has been some talk since
Speaker Clark has come out strongly
for preparedness tha< he would en-.
gineer the whole matter. II was sta
ted positively tonight. however, that
while the speakers aid was counted
on, the committee chiefs would lead
their own forces.
The naval committee struggled
again today with the problem Of sub.
marines. Rear Admiral Grant, chief
of the fotillas, repeated his state
ment that 1S3 underwater boats with
30 reserve craft were needed.
Galloway Questions Admiral.
Representative Galloway Of Texas
questioned the admiral as to the rela. |
tive strength of the American navy
among those of the world Admiral
Grant said he believed the German !
as well as the British navy was con-
stronger.
There is today" he said, "one |
power that has enough navy TO land |
on our coast even if We had the 1S3 |
submarines and our present fleet"
And only one?" interjected Rep
resentative Kelly.
Il think only one, agreed Admiral
Grant
And YOU think it would not be nee.
essary TO build a navy as large as
that power?" asked Representative
Galloway
The admiral assented, and to Rep
resentative Callaway's demand to
know why he thought so, said:
The relation between the countries
IS pretty close. Ny personal impress
sion is there never will be war
between this country and the power
have in mind"
Every maneuyer the department
has worked out, Admiral Grant said,
has shown the need OF battle cruis-
'rs and scouting craft Representa-.
i've Galloway sought to show that a
was a useless element of
, fleet in water where submarines
urked but the witness did not agree.
Admiral Grant thought Great Brit
lin, Germany and France now had
more than one hundred submarines
ZACH in commission as against thirty
even in the United States navy. Rus
ia and Italy also had added to their
lotillas. he said, and had big building
Programs.