The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1917-03-07
National Security League President
In Interview, Thinks Country 10
Weak In This Depart
mont Of Defense.
NEED is GREAT FOR MEN
Many Ships Are Out Of Commission
He Claims and need for Sailors
to Man Vessels 10
Declared.


sent out BY the headquarters of the
National Security league:
NEW YORK, March IA most
timely and comprehensive summary Of
the unpreparedness of this country
for war was made by ]. Bernard Walk
|er, editor of the Scientific American"
who Is chairman of the navy commit
tee CT the Nationa. Security league,
In an interview today.
Mr.. Walker said:
In view Of the fact that President
Wilson Is reported to have asked for
a statement from the army and navy
departments of the present condition
Of our naval and military forces, both
as regards the men and material at
present available and the proposed
plans for enlargement, the statement
recently published by the conference
committee OF the league on national
preparedness Is very opportune. This
committee, Of which Mr.. Henry A.
Wise Wood Is chairman, went very
fully into this question and secured
its data exclusively from official
sources in the war department and
navy department.
1.-THE navy as It exists today Is made
up OF ships In full commission and
OF ships not in full commission. OF
the former we have 224, Of ships not in
full commission we have 127. The
ships in full commission are those
which are fully officered and manned
and are either under orders Or liable
to orders for service without previous
notice. The ships not in full COM
mission are those maintained at q
navy yard and kept ready for use on
short notice. They have reduced
compliments of officers and men.
Under this head are included ships in
commission and in ordinary. which
have compliments OF officers and men
sufficient to enable them to be proper
~ cared for.
Many ships Laid Up.
sShips out OF commission have no
personnel on board and repairs may
be done upon them or not % the de-
partment sees At.
I'm the event Of war. only ships in
full commission would be immediate
ly available, and Of these the most
important elements are the battle
ships Of which we have fourteen. made
up Of thirteen dreadnoughts and one
UTe-OT0aQuUuSuJ, uSSLEOycA5 VI WAiSA
we have thirty-eight, and submarines
which total thirty-eight. Less I'm
portant ships are the armored cruis-
ers OF Which there are three. with
eight second and third class cruisers.
and eighteen gunboats. In the way OF
auxilfaries, we have in commission
only three transports, four supply
ships, twenty fuel ships and about a
dozen other auxiliaries OF the more
important type.
Under the head Of ships not IN full
commission We have thirteen second
line battleships Of the pre-dreadnought
type, thirty-three destroyers. f1ve sub
marines and various vessels OF less
Importance in modern warfare, seven
armored cruisers and seventeen tor
sedo boats OF moderate speed.
"At the outbreak Of war there would
be- an immediate cali for putting all
existing ships IN full commission, and
the secretary of the navy states that
in the effort to do this the navy would
find itself short 93S officers. S,049 reg
MARS, and 1880 reserves, after using
5000 militia and 463 fleet reserves.
He states further that the shortage
will increase for each new ship con-
missioned in 1917 and 1918. and that
the three-year program alone Will
cali for 20 ,127 additional men.