The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1919-03-12

New York, March 1l.-Secrets of
camoufage for the protection of Am
erican ships and coast defenses were
disclosed last night by authority of
Secretary of the Navy Daniels before
the New York section Of the American
Chemical Society, in the Chemists
Building, No. so East 41st street, by
Macmillan Toch, the first camoufeur
to enter the American service.
Although this was unknown to thu
American people," said Mr.. Toch,
there were hidden Notifications
along the coast in the gardens Of
private residences. Ambrose channel.
which leads from the sea into the
harbor OF the city Of New York, was
protected by mortars with q radius Of
twelve miles These mortars were
placed in private gardens, often two
and onehalf miles from the coast.
The spaces in which they were con-
cealed were plots Of about 100 by 300
feet. They were thickly covered with
concrete. The foundations for these
bases frequently were twelve feet in
depth. There were usually three pits
in which were located mortars.
12.Ineh Guns in Gardens
my work consisted in camouflag.
/ ing by covering the parapets with ar
tificial honeysuckle, morning glory
and ivy, which were changed as the
season advanced to conform in hue
with the surrounding scenery.
ITO the aviator there was little or
no evidence of the location of these
batteries, for trailing from the para
pet over the pits where the mortars
were concealed was foliage of various
kinds. The range finders were con-
cealed among the trees at the side
and there was plenty of ammunition.
The army was prepared to hurl from
shells, each of which weighed 1900
pounds.
"By direction of Mr.. Daniels, early
in April, 1917, the navy department,
in connection with Admiral Frederick
R. Harris, found it important to dis
guise the very important yards and
docks along the Atlantic coast, to pre-
vent them from being sighted and
plotted by enemy raiders. 1t was
known to the navy that the raiders
Wolf and Moewe, were prowling the
South Atlantic, and the Wolf carried
sea plane that had radius Of 100
miles, used for scouting purposes.
81 was commissioned to make trip
to Pensacola and to Key West, with
power to act upon my report, and
lower the visibility of these two i'm
portant stations. Pensacola was
probably the most important station
J in the service of the Government be.
cause it contained the hangers of oil
the dirigibles and the great hydrogen
plant. The secret service of the
navy believe that the northeast Of
Cuba was probably the place where
the German raiders and U-boats re-
ceived their supplies.
1T is common knowledge at present
that Cuba contained among its in.
habitants more German spies and
propagandists than the United States.
In Havana were very many rich Ger
man firms who were VIGOROUSLY aid
| ing the Central Powers. Before the
middle of June both Key West and
Pensacola were very thoroughly cam
outraged, and no attacks were made
on them by U-boats, which could not
detect them. They were indistil-
guishable five miles off shore.
THE Shipping Board, in conjunc-
ton with the navy, found it advis
J able to adopt methods for lowering
the visibility of ships, and the import
ant information on this subject which
the public ought to know, is that il
anybodys thinks that a ship can be
lowered in visibility to a point where
it becomes totally invisible, he or she
is thoroughly mistaken. No ship
however thoroughly it may be camou
tagged can become invisible against
the rising or setting sun.
1.-THE total effect of ship camouflage
is one of distortion end not of the
lowering of visibility, and ship prop
erly camouflaged becomes so dis
torted that it is impossible to tell its
correct direction within twenty-five
degrees. This | determined for my,
self, having spent day at sea in one
of our submarines, in which the cam.
outraged ship Parthenia accompanied
us, and in five range-findings oper-
ations. mistakes in calculation and in