New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-12-09
Naval Officers and PROBES,
sOr CatfCart Tell of
Sea Needs
SINGLE BATTLE MIGHT
LEAVE US HELPLESS
caribbean and Pacific De-
fences Almost Entirely
Neglected

A navy fights with one leg on shore
Professor W. L. Cathcart told the
American Society Of Mechanical Engi-
neers yesterday. and the only sound
leg the United States Navy has is its
sea leg. Our amazing" naval UMPIRE
paredness. he pointed out, neglected
such strategic vantage points as the
Caribbean, and with an Atlantic and
Gulf coast line Of 5000 miles concen-
trated its naval stations within an air
line distance of 500 miles.
A sea-fghting nation could send
every ship of our battle fleets scuttling
through the Panama Canal for safety,
if It did not destroy them utterly. he
said. 1t could seize any one OF dozen
suitable sites. and, Transforming it
into a naval base, harry the coast TO
the north or south. In case OF great
sea battle cripple battleships would
have TO 90 hundreds or thousands Of
miles out of their way TO find dry
dock that would accommodate them.
Stood High in Navy
Professor Cathcart. who has been a
member of the faculty of Columbia and
other universities, was graduated from
Annapolis in 1875, and although he re-
signed from the navy in 1891 was re-
called to become its chief engineer and
assist the engineer-in-chiet during the
Spanish War. He lives in Philadelphia.
His paper which was read at the SEES
sion held in the Engineering Societies
Building, was Endorsed BY Rear Ad-
mirals Bradley A. Fiske and John r.
Edwards. Admiral Edwards considered
the navy's land need so great that, If 1t
could be done in no other way, he be-
lieved one capital ship should be cut
from the building programme and its
cost used to provide naval stations at
Charleston and on the Gulf OF Mexico
Trouble Is Ignorance
at is very unfortunate" said Ad-
miral Fiske, that the American people
do not think there is any danger at all.
Our trouble is ignorance, but 1t is be-
cause few men are doing what Pro-
lessor Cathcart is doing. The people
do not realize their danger any more
than does a baby on The railroad track.
Power and duty always 60 together:
and it is the duty Of every member or
this society to point out TO your Fellow
citizens our danger. and you must
point out what our country must do or
perish" 80.
NAVAL bases suitable for hostile
operations are fairly numerous on our
coast" Professor Cathcart said. For
exa mple. Delaware Bay, Narragansett
Bay. Province town, Mass, and several
others in their present defenceless
state could be seized with ease If our
feet were defeated.
Yards Too Near Together
As to our naval stations on TINS
coast. they all lie within an airline dis
lance Of 500 miles, although our Allan
tic and Gulf coast lines are more than
600 miles long. If an enemy should
gain possession Of these 500 miles OF
coast our dreadnoughts would be home
less unless the feet could fee to the
BAY of Panama, since the yards at
Charleston. Pensacola and New Orleans
are equipped for small craft only. As
10 these conditions, Rear Admiral
Evans says:
"'There is not a drydock owned by
the government or by any one else on
the South Atlantic and Gulf coasts
which will take any OF our superdread-
noughts. There is not a single sta
tonary or floating crane on these
coasts which will remove from or in
stall in a battleship either a modern
turret gun, Scotch marine boiler or