Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1920-09-09
NAVY TO STAGE
BIC MANEUvERS
Atlantic and Pacific Fleets to Be
Combined in Great Sea
Spectacle.
ADMIRAL WILSON IN COMMAND
Not Intended to Concentrate All Of
Nations War Strength and Only
Vessels Regularly in Commission
Will Partic!p pate.

Washington greatest concen-
tration of sea power in the history
of the American navy will result from
the junction of the reorganized Allan
tic and Pacific fleets off the Pacific
coast next January under plans now
being prepared by naval officers.
The great naval spectacle probably
will be staged in the vicinity of the
Gulf of Panama.
Officials of the navy department say
the proposed mobilization will In no
sense result in grand" maneuvers. No
effort Will be made to concentrate all
Of the nations naval strength aud only
ships regularly in commission with
trained crews will participate. The
exercises and drills will he simple and
mainly Of competitive nature, includ-
Ing unofficial athletic competitions be-
tween representatives of the two fleets
and of individual ships. The main
object of the mobilization will be to
give officers and men an opportunity
to compare notes and meet for few
weeks of goodnatured rivalry.
Admiral Wilson Senior Officer.
Admiral Henry B. Wilson, command
er-in-chief of the Atlantic fleet, will
be senior officer of the combined force,
with Admiral Hugh ROdman, chief Of
the Pacific feet, second in command.
The maneuvers will be unique in
many respects, chiefly in that they will
afford the first actual mobilization OF
the bulk of the new American navy.
Before the war the forces were always
more or less scattered and a shortage
of several types Of vessels, particularly
of destroyers, submarines, light cruis-
ers, aerial forces and fleet auxiliaries.
made it impossible to concentrate a
we'll rounded out fleet. although the
major portion of the battleship force
met each winter at Guantanamo, Cuba,
for target practice and drills.
During the war the shortage in most
types of small vessels, notably destroy
ers and submarines, was overcome, but
the entire fleet was never modified,
due to the use of practically all light
craft in the war zone, the detail OF
cruisers to escort duty and the fact
that considerable portion Of the bat
tleship force was on duty abroad much
Of the time.
viii Set New Mark.
The january maneuvers Will set
new mark In American naval progress.
For the first time in the history of the
new navy the battleship fleet will be
supported by a reasonably adequate
number of destroyers and other light
craft. Submarines will be available
in abundance, together with sufficient
naval aircraft for all tactical purposes
and fully rounded out fleet of aux
iliary vessels. The total number Of
vessels to participate will depend on
the progress of recruiting, as many
ships are in reserve now for lack of
crews, but it is probable that Admiral
Wilson will command at least 800 YES
sells of all types.
The most modern Of dreadnaughts
to participate in the maneuvers Will
be the great Tennessee. The last word
in naval construction, this great float
ing fortress displaces $4,000 tons, car
ries 10 14-inch guns and Is propelled
by electric turbines. The Tennessee
is attached to the Atlantic fleet. A
sister ship, the California, probably
will not be completed in time to join
Admiral Rodman's forces before the
maneuvers.
Comparison Affords Striking Contrast
A comparison of the ships available
for next winters maneuvers with the
naval strength available for a similar
concentration ten years ago affords
some striking contrasts. January 1,
1910. the latest battleship In the navy
was the New Hampshire, authorized by
congress in 1904, and completed in
1908. A comparison Of the New Hamp-
shire and the Tennessee follows:
New Hampshire-Length 450 feet;
breadth, 76 feet; draft, q feet; dis
placement, 1900 tons; speed, IS
knots; main battery, four 12-inch guns
and eight S-inch; second battery, IL
3-inch, four submerged torpedo tubes,
9-inch armor. Propelled by triple ex-
pansion steam engines, developing 49,
600 horsepower; crew, 1850, including
marines,
Tennessee-Ninteen hundred and
twenty. Length, 900 feet; breadth, 81
feet; draft, 81 feet; displacement, 3d.
300 tons; speed (contract). q knots;
main battery, twelve 14-inch guns; two
submerged torpedo tubes; propelled
by electric turbines, developing $4,000
horsepower; crew, 1900 men, including
marines.
Eighteen Dreadnaushts Available.
Eighteen single caliber gun ships
classed as dreadnaughts will be avail
able for the January maneuvers that
were not completed in 1910. They
have a combined displacement Of 445,-
600 tons and a combined gun power of
112 14-inch guns, eighty twelves, 226
5-inch and twenty-eight 8-inch.
A comparison of total battleship
forces available in 1920 with 1910
shows that this year there are Is
dreadnaughts and 10 predreadnaughts,
excluding the Oregon class, against %
predreadnaughts in 1910. including the.
Oregon class. Most Of the battleships