Connecticut western news., 1917-03-22
NAVY RUSHING
 PLANS FOR WAR
Eight Hour Day Suspended In
 All Yards.
50 PATROL BOATS ORDERED


 Baker and Daniels After Details of
 Sinking of Three More American
 Merchant Ships Come ln-Recruiting
 For Navy Is Also Speeded Up.
 Aggressive steps to put the navy or the United States in readiness to fight submarines under any conditions have been taken as an answer to the German defiance conveyed through the destruc- tion of the American ships Nigilancia, City of Memphis and Illinois.
 Under the personal direction of Presi- dent Wilson, Secretary of the Navy Daniels instituted drastic measures to put the navy in shape to meet war coR- ditions, which Washington is convinced are imminent Naval preparedness was given an extra ordinary impetus after President Wilson conferred for half an hour with the secretary of the navy. This conference followed close on the heels of a report to the president by Secretary of State Lansing on the latest acts of destruction in the German sub- marine zone.
 After the president and his naval chief had reviewed the situation the following steps were taken:
 An emergency appropriation of $115,- O00,O00 made by congress to enable the president to hasten naval construction in the event of a crisis was made avail able by the president for immediate ie rt Of Inf issue of $150, 0,0O0,00O, part of which is to be used for increased submarine con- struction.
 Sixty "Chasers" Ordered.
 Secretary Daniels ordered sixty "chas- ers"-motorboats 100 feet long and with thirty-five knots speed-built at once at the New York navy yard and an nounced that bids would be opened from private shipyards today for 200 more of this type of craft. It was stat ed that the New York yard will begin the delivery of these craft in sixty days. All will be paid for out of the emergency appropriation.
 Orders were issued by the navy de partment suspending the statutory eight hour day on naval construction, both in private and government yards. Work will be pushed as fast as the mens will labor, with payment of time and half for overtime to be made out of the emergency fund.
 President Wilson authorized the speeding up of Annapolis graduations to provide additional naval officers. The first year class will be graduated on March %, with TIP cadets, and the second class next September, with 1S7.
 Secretary Daniels said the question of communicating shipyards would not be considered so long as the pri- vate ship building plants kept their facilities engaged on government work in accordance with the plans of the de. partment
 Increase Navy Personnel.
 Immediate steps to increase the per sonnel of the navy, however, will be taken at once. Under the law the navy can now be recruited up to 70.OO0 men With more than 5000 men enlisting since the German crisis became acute. there are now more than 60,000 men in the service. Secretary Daniels said that when the statutory limit Is reach ed he will ask that the limit be raised to SO,OOO. AS a matter of course, the naval reserves and naval militia of the states will be callad into service as soon as they are needed.
 Dispatches from consular officers seemed to indicate that all of the crews of the lost Vigilancia, City of Memphis and Illinois had been saved.
 The Illinois was on her way from Londoly to Port Arthur, Tex. She was in ballast. She normally carried a crew of thirty-five men. Her home port was New York. She was built in 1913 at Newport News, Va, and was of 5,225 gross tonnage and 300 feet long.
 VigiIancia a Former Transport.
 The captain, first and second officers, first second and third engineers and twenty-three of the Vigilancia crew were landed at the Scilly islands. The fourth engineer and thirteen men are missing.
 The Vigilancia was formerly a Ward line b8t. The present owners are Walker, Armstrong & Go. of Savannah, Ga, who bought her from the Ward line two years ago.
 During the Spanish war the Vigi- lancia was a transport for United States troops operating between San Francisco and Manila. She was one of the fastest of the transport fleet. She normally carried crew of forty-four. She left New York for Havre, France, Feb. 2S.
 The City of Memphis left New York Jan. g for Havre with a cargo of cot ton. She arrived Feb. 6 at the French port, whence she steamed for Cardiff. She was on her way from there to the United States when torpedoed.
 The lost vessel was owned by the Ocean Steamship company of New