Cresco plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1913-1945, 1916-05-26
Issued on Friday of Each Week
Fixing the Blame for Navy Decline.


American navy reached its highest rant
and it's greatest efficiency as lighting
fleet during the administration OF for
mer President Roosevelt, and it begar
tn decline in relative numbers and ettici
K ency when the Democratic party oD
I tanned control of the national govern
ment.
These facts were pointed out today
by the navy general board, in report
to Secretary Daniels, signed by Ad'
nairal Dewey. The boards report was
made in response to request for IN
formation presented by Congressman
Butler of Pennsylvania. The board
\ also indicated that the navy began to
decline most rapidly when the Demo
cratic party in the sixty-second and
sixty.third congresses, refused to carry
out the boards recommendation for the
building program. h .s-s1
Since 1910, when the Democrats OBJ
tanned control of the house, according
to the board, the navy has fallen from
second place to third or fourth in guns
and ships and to sixth in personnel.
Up to date nothing has been done by
the administration of President Wilson
or the Democratic congress to stop the
decline and bring the navy back to
second place. The board pointed out
that the adoption of the administra-
TONS five year program would not do
this, although it stated the work could
be done in three years if congress was
willing to appropriate sufficient money
and authorize an adequate building pro-
gram.
With respect to Mr.. Buffers request
for information concerning the ability
of the United States to bring the navy
back to second place in period of three
wears the general board said that the
whole matter depended largely upon
the willingness of congress to make ap-
preparations. Howard County Times.
The attention of our readers is d.
rected to the following from the Du-
buque Telegraph Herald, an article
which effectively refutes and disproves
the charges made by partizan republic
can papers concerning the responsible
ty for our decline in naval strength.
Critics of Secretary Daniels have
loved to place on his shoulders the blame
Tor our fall from second rank as q
naval power, insisting that our retro
Rression has been due entirely to his
maladministration of affairs since he
has come to office, of his pacifist no.
tons and his refusal to advance the
navy by opening certain navy yards and
keeping open certain others that were
NECESSARY to maintain the height of our
power.
Unfortunately for these critics the
general board of the navy, called upon
to explain our naval needs and their
causes, has made report to congress
which deals very explicitly with the
causes of our loss of position among the
naval powers of the world and gives
exact dates. This report declares that,
on basis of displacement of ships in
commission we fell behind Germany in
1911. On the basis of displacement of
ships built and building we fell behind
in 1859.
Now it happens that in 1909, on
March 4, to be exact, William Howard
Taft became president of the United
States, and nominated George Won L.
Meyer to be his secretary of the navy.
Before March 4, 1909, Theodore Roose-
Welt was president and his secretary of
the navy for that time was Truman H.
Newberry. In 1909 George Won l..
Meyer was still holding the portfolio of
the navy. Josephus Daniels, on whose
head has been much objurgation, was
not considered for the post of secretary
of the navy until 1918. Before that
time the damage had been done-and
no attempt made to undo it.
Posing now as an ardent militarist
and ''navalist," Colonel Roosevelt may
find it convenient to fix positively the
date of. our retrogression some time
after March q, when he retired from
Office, thus to save his political face by
placing the blame for laxness on Presi-
dent Taft. But let US consider the SUBJ
ject more deeply than mere surface
scrutiny.
A navy does not disintegrate in a
single month, or single year. Neither
is it possible to build q navy in that
time. Therefore long before 1903,
sometime during the Roosevelt admin
istration, at least, it must have become
apparant to navy men, and secretaries
of the navy and presidents as well, that