South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1918-12-20
SENATE ASKS
INFORMATION
ON HUN SHIPS
indication is That Proposal
to Sink Surrendered Fleet
Will Meet Opposition in
u. S. Congress.

WASHINGTON, Dec. 20.-Press
dispatches from Paris saying that
the American peace delegates. with
British support. will urge the sink
ing Of the surrendered German war
ships as the solution of the problem
of their disposition. led TO initiation
Of Steps Thursday in the senate 20
obtain an official statement OF the
facts and TO wide discussion in naval
circles. At the state and navy de-
partmeEts no information was avail
able. Sec'y Daniels repeating his pre-
vious statement that ne had never
heard the suggestion officially. while
at the state department IL was said
that so far as known there, no such
project was included in the Ameri-
can peace program.
The first published suggestion that
the ships be sunk came from London
several days ago, but even before
that. il was learned. this had oc-
Cured TO some naval authorities hero
as one way Of settling a veXing prob
lem
Admiral Benson. chief of naval
operations. and designated as naval
adviser to the American peace dele
CATION. has been in Europe some
time. His views worked out with
Vice Admiral Sims and officials of
the British admiralty and the
French minister Of marine. will have
great weight with the American del
egates on naval questions arising at
the conference, but there is nothing
here TO indicate What conclusion he
NAV have reached on the disposition
Of the surrendered craft.
Paris Prompts Lodge.
There were many indications to-
DAY that a proposal TO sink the ships
would meet strong opposition in
congress. The Paris dispacch
prompted Sen. Lodge to introduce
today a resolution calling on the
state department FOR information as
to whether American delegates are
advocating destruction OF the enemy
ships and IL so, by what authority.
The resolution was left on the table
without discussion and Sen. Lodga
may touch upon the subject in an
address ne announced today he
would deliver in the senate on Sat
urday
While the impression has been
given that the navy department
proba bly, would not look with favor
upon sending the German ships TO
the bottom, some officers pointed to-
day TO practical obstacles TO absorb
tion OF the surrendered vessels by
the allied and American navies
They said that owing a. differences
in design and equipment between
the capital craft OF the German
fleet and those of any other naval
power. the military value of the
ships TO the victors is far from as
great as might be thought. The
German ships were built. il was ex-
planned. on theories that differ fun
damentally from British. American.
French or Italian ideas of naval
construction.
Only in the case of the most mod
ern German dreadnaughts or battle
cruisers. one officer said would the
extensive reconstruction necessary
TO make them part OF homogeneous
I fighting fleets be justified
Might Become Trophies.
AS a peace time element of the
navies Of the associated powers
some officers were inclined TO think
that the chief value of the majority
OF the surrendered capital craft
would be as trophies OF the victory
to be pointed 20 as an object lesson
TO any other power that might be-
come swelled with ambition for
world conquest.
1t was recalled, however. that
some OF the Spanish ships sunk by
the American fleet at Santiago in
1898 were raised and used by tho
American navy, and that also Japan
made similar use OF Russian ships
captured in 1904 after rebuilding
them
At the outbreak of the world war
CT eat Britain Communicated a num-
her of warships building in England
ard Scotland for Turkey and other
foreign countries. including some
south American republics, and these