The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-08-28

I istration added 7,500 to the service; the Taft administration authorized an | addition of 1000 men, of whom only {, 5000 were actually enlisted, while in | the first two years of the Wilson ad- ministration 5,S24 were actually au- 1 thorized. In emergencies the Presi- dent may make the enlistment 87,0OO stead of $500, the maximum exists i ing when he took office. As for off1- cers, where each Congressman was permitted to make one appointment
 to Annapolis when MT. Wilson became l President, under his administration legtslation was effected authorizing
 the appointment of three by each.
 Had this been done under Roosevelt and Taft" says MT. Daniels, there would have been no shortage of off, cers.''
 l .aThe large increase in the person nel~ the Secretary charges, was | necessary at this time because former administrations failed to enlist enough 1 men to man the small number of ships they constructed. There was no or
 ganized naval militia, no provision for a reserve and no civilian training when wilson became President. Pro- vision has been made for these, an 1n- dispensable adjunct to an efficient navy"
 | Target Practice.
 The Secretary of the Navy taxes up a. third major and vital navy ques- tion-target practice. About this sup- feet. which has been the cause or such heated controversy, he says:
 Tt was good up to 1909 at the snort ranges used but had fallen off be- tween 1909 and 1913, to quote Captain
 Sims, an expert in target practice. Admiral Fletcher says the recent
 practices were held at ranges of from 1 1s GOO to 1S,O0O yards, which are the longest ranges at which firing has oc-
 cured in the present European war,
 and it is believed that scores recorded
 are higher than ever before in the
 open sea- Capt. Sims says that the Hast target practice came up about 40 lper cent.
 Capt. Pdunkett. director of target 1 practice, says: The records Of the fall of 1915 indicate that we are ad-
 vancing by leaps and bounds Other
 experts in the navy, including the commander in chief of the Atlantic fleet. give like testimony. and the de-
 termination to make still greater im-
 proyement shows the splendid spirit
 that animates the navy. do not
 claim any credit for this except that
 I have sought the leadership of the
 best equipped experts and given them every opportunity and encouragement
 for practice. and practice. and still
 more practice.
 Secondary Navy Questions. Dealing with what may be called secondary navy questions, but ques-
 tions of great importance to the ser
 vice. Secro tary Daniel, states that for
 every 100 mines the navy had when
 President Wilson took office it now
 has 400; for every 100 torpedoes on
 hand in 1913 it now has 158, and that
 1t has increased the capacity of its
 torpedo works 4s3 per cent, at a saw | ing of more than $1,000 to the nation
 on each torpedo manufactured. l Of the naval aerial service the Sev-
 retary says: ''rhe appropriation by
 the Sixty-third Congress has permit ted the development of naval aero-
 nautics so that an aviation ship is Fnow in the fleet, and the aviation corps has been increased to eighteen machines and 160 officers and men,
 as compared with four machines and
 four officers in March, 1913. The larger appropriations by the Sixty l fourth Congress will insure a larger expansion. Under Taft $61,88S was provided for aviation. Under Wilson $5,217,27S."
 l Powder production has been in- creased at decreased cost, MT. Dan iels points out. and the same applies l to the making of armor plate and pro- | jectiles, while every navy yard has been equipped to build ships under ! the Wilson Administration and the navy now possesses ''the best air. craft guns" and "the best large cali bre gun," in the world.
 MT. Daniels quotes Admiral Dewey's statement that the United States navy has. T think the best General Staffs