The Wheeling intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1903-1961, 1916-11-20

1NTEhH1H'o'"
-FOUR YEARS WITH THE NAVY
Efficiency Has Been the Goal Of the Navy Department lo w
Four Years
BY JOSEPHUS DANIELS

, navy. was eventually put III charge VI
! This important branch OF the service.
| Target practice answered 10 the new
policy AS a lock does 10 turned Key
! Admiral Fletcher declared thal me
practices and ranges from lh'o"" ~
! 5000 yards were believed 10 rrSlstSV
: the highest scores r~cr maze III ~
! open sea, Captain Sims declared mat
target practice came up 40 per cent.
! Captain PIunkctl declared mat p!Ac'
! lice was improving by leaps anu
J bounds" and his statement Was con-
firmed by the record of the i'hhSHl'
i vania' made within recent days IN
which at a distance Of 10000 yards. or
eleven miles. this great new dread
naught made :, hits out Of l. shots.
g, Giving their services "raiuilouSIE'
. the Naval consulting Board. win
, Thomas \. Edison at ills head. m"
/ mubiliZed American industry Tor Tie
manufacture of munitions in the event
of war 50 that the unsurpassed lac'ii-
| ties Of American manufacturers VIII
: be instantly available.
! In addition TO the achievements men,
| toned others may be briefly recorded,
such as the enactment into law or me
, principle Of promotion by selection TOT
the commissioned personnel in inc
.
. Rear Admiral: the creation OF The Or
| free Of Naval Operations. which. under
! Admiral Benson. the first Chief. has
! brought the NAVys war plans 10 de-
: gree Of perfection never before real
: i2et: the revival of the study Of STRAIT
; eSy in the Naval War College 50 that
"nfficers now think in terms of squad
+ rons and fleets instead Of individual
ships: the appropriation Of nearly So
, n00 900 for acronautics during the past
, three years; The appropriation OF H.
! 600. 900 for government arm0r plate
factory with an annual capacity III ~
I 900 tons; the vast increase in the stor"
ui mines. lorpcdoes. prOjectileS. pow
der and other munitions: the saving,
! by insistencc upon competition and by
! increasing The Nays own manufacture
! ing facilities. Of more than $6.000,0n9
! in three years: the saving of another
! million dollars by the utilization Of
; scrap metal. by the utilization Of col
! Tiers for the transportation OF nitrates
, for powder manufacture, and the like:
| the actual decrease in the cost Of Navy
| rations notwithstanding the immense
rise in the cost Of food stuff since the
European war began. and the actual
saving OF more than $1,000 Il day COM
pairing The cost Of Navy rations With
| lIlt general rise III lOUu SluIlS, me VIZ
, creasing Of the facilities in the larger
navy yards and the equipment of the
smaller navy yards for building at
least some class Of vessel or machn.
cry. thus utilizing the enormous money
investment in these shore stations,
some Of which had been closed by the
previous administration: giving orders
To ship - miles at sea by the use
Of the wireless telephone: the extern
sion and perfection Of the radio ser
vice so that the Secretary or the Chief
Of Naval Operations can get in almost
instant communication with an Ameri-
can ship in any part Of the world;
the deYising of the best 16-inch gun in
existence for the new drcadnauShts:
the first installation by any navy in
the world OF electrical propulsion upon
some Of the new battleships after
thoroughly testing this invention on
the largest Navy collier: the opening
Of The door into the Navy Of civilian
aviators and engineers: The increase
in the number Of chaplains so as 10
provide one for every ship.
The letter stands ont boldly in the
American Navy today, and il spells
Efficiency. Economy and Education,
one and inseparable.