New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-05-12
Our Laggard F atrol Flee,
By A. Fredericks

It is more than three months sine. =.
United States severed diplomatic r.l,a,.'
with Germany. II is more than month a..
Congress decided that a state Of war sri,,.,
and still there is delay and woful ls,k :,
efficiency in getting out patrol feet to rv,,,
the coast.
The Navy Department has placed 4.
ders for the building Of some $50 nat,
boats or so-called submarine chaser, VII,
are 70 be 10 feet long each and 20 h.v.
speed Of about seventeen miles. OF thes. -.
are 10 be built in some Of the navy YARD, :.
that it is reasonable 20 expect that thew VI,
be ready some time this year. OF the o,h.,.
many have been ordered OF concerns a..
have little or no plant; in fact, contract, q.
building some have been awarded 70 irre,,..
s.be concerns that have been organized ov.,
night and who since obtaining the con.r.,.,
have been trying TO find reputable boat bu;1.
ing companies 10 take the contracts OF The,
hands or to build the boats for them. III,
very safe to assume that not 50 per cert !,
be built outside the navy yards will be e,.
ished this year, or any other year, for TIA,
matter.
Yachtsmen Enrolled and Waiting
In the mean time the Naval Training Asa.
citation and other committees largely cor.
posed Of civilian citizens have been stirn,,
Up enthusiasm among yachtsmen and men ,,.
gagged in fishing on tugboats and other craf,
to enroll in order to handle this feet Of d.
troll boats. About $500 have been enrolled /,
the Cd Naval District, which extends fro,
New London to the Delaware .Capes, and se.
eral hundred more have been enrolled in o,hc
naval districts These men who have yolsr.
teered their services have been told in mar,
instances that they will be sent for VII,
wanted. and that will be when the boats .,l
their guns are ready.
We have in this country about 1000 yacht,
powered with gasolene engines ranging !,
size from 80 to $50 feet in length and seyer,l
hundred steam yachts. The yachtsmen r,.
asked TO let the navy use these yachts q,
patrol work, and in response 70 this reqsss
more than 200 yaehtsmen offered their W.
sells. Some very periodically gave tie,
yachts, and have offered to defray the COS
Of strengthening them so that they can
mount guns. Others have offered to sell or
charter under varying terms, and their o.
fers have been placed on file.
Of course, many of the vessels 50 offered
ere not fitted for the work required Some
too, are structurally weak and win have to
be strengthened before they can mount guns
To determine which vessels would be Of use
it was necessary to inspect them, and several
inspectors have been appointed to visit tn,
many yards where the yachts are stored, loos
them over and report. Some are rejected at
once. Others are found TO be suitable for TIE
work, and the inspector has 70 state VIA
work is necessary to fit them for outside duty.
Now. it should have been an easy matter %
inspect these yachts had some system beei
adopted. but instead of system every mas
seems to be working out his own idea.
Wasteful Inspection
In one yard near New York fourteen bosn
all over sixty feet in length, have been ofere
by their owners to the government, and tn
is the way the inspection and surveying a
being done: One morning recently an lnspe'
tor arrived at the yard and asked for a ee''
tain boat which he had to examine. The boat
was pointed out and he did his work. This
yard was on the Long Island side Of the
Sound. When he finished his work ne IN
CURED how to get TO Greenwich, and was tod
that he would have to return to New ion
and 90 out on the New Haven Railroad, and
that it would take about two hours TO reach
his next boat After inspecting the Green
wich Yacht this man said he had 10 20 70
South Brooklyn for a third. The next morn
ing another inspector visited this same yard
surveyed one boat and left and so it has been
going on, one boat day. instead of one man
clearing up one yard and then reporting to
the authorities.
A few yachts have been accepted and
strengthened. but are now waiting for their
guns, and when these will be ready no one
knows.
In the mean time the submarines are De-
stroying merchant vessels in a way that
appalling. The British have a large fleet
patrol boats, but not large enough to p1H
all the shipping lanes. France and ltalyr''
have patrols, but to curb the submsn'a
many more are needed.
Why can't Mr.. Daniels or his aids IN M
Navy Department systematic things so tn'.
the boats that are now available can be iittsa
and commissioned promptly? Arc they ~ait
ing until some German submarine attacks me
coast and the coastwise shipping? That Ter
many can get submarines through the block
EIDE has been shown by the us and me
Deutschland. If two or three similar SUD
marines should visit this side Of the Atlanta
the loss in shipping would be tremendous. =
little system is needed to get the boats out
and Standardization would give this countrys
feet of patrol boats in very few months