Arizona republican., 1920-03-25
NAVY DEPT. WAS|
 UNPREPARED FOR' VkR. TEST |MONY.
Officer Declares No Plans Were Under Way-Says Daniels Characteristics Made Work Difficult = Senator Contends Against Witness
IRepubIican A. p. Leased wirel

WASHINGTON, March 24-After Captain Harris Laning, former assist ant chief of navigation, had told the senate committee investigating the Sims-Daniels row today that the navy had been without a comprehensive plan for war and that chaos virtually existed, Senator Trammell, democrat of Florida, confronted the captain with a letter he had written to Admiral Sims on August IS, 1918, saying he was mot convinced" that the bureau of operations had erred in it's general plans' and saying also that had some or Sim S recommendations been adopt ed they would have been "disastr
 Senator Trammel contended that Ianing's letter was a complete con tradiction of some of the Sims charges ana also some of the charges in Lam 1ngs statement of today, but Cap tain Laning declared his letter re- fefred to a period in the war later than that involved in the charges by Admiral Sims
 Daniels Made Work Difficult
 Not only was the navy department without comprehensive plan for naval United States severed relations with Germany, but Secretary Daniels dis approved the general plan drawn up by the bureau of operations and submit ted in March, 1917, Captain Laning, today told the senate Investigating committed
 As the result of this lack of prepara- ton, the witness said, the navy de- partment virtually was in a state of chaos the day the United States ent- cred the war.
 Personal characteristics of Secre- tary Daniels often made it impossible to obtain approval of important plans and policies, Captain Laning asserted, as the personal interest taken by him Tn minor affairs, occupied so much time that he never had much left to give us for really important problems"
 Began War Short of Shells
 Captain Laning testified that at the time war was declared, there was not a sufficient reserve of 14-inch shells to refill the magazines of the dread naughts and that the bureau of ord- nance had to obtain the aid of the bu- reau of operations to bring the matter to the secretarys attention impressive ly enough oget authority to let con tracts.
 In a memorandum Admiral Benson gave Secretary Daniels the admonition that without shells for the guns bat tleships are worthless and that they not only can not defend themselves but can not fight to save the coun- try After several weeks delay, Cap tain Laning said the shells were or dered- Other charges made by the witness were that the department in the years immediately preceding the
 
 policies that would prepare the navy for hostilities. that when it was ap- parent war could not be avoided, the department still refused to prepare: that lack of coordination in the de- partment during the early months of the war reduced the effectiveness of American participation and added to- the cost, and that when war was de- clared the department told the country that the navy was ready, when in real n | -a least 100 days to prepare even the lat est ship for active service.
 Read Letter To Admiral Sims
 Senator Trammell. democrat F1ori-I da. read a letter written by the cap tain to Rear Admiral Sims. in August 1918, apparently in answer to a letter from the admiral criticising the de- partment for not cooperating more fully with the naval forces abroad.
 The LaHing letter opened with the convinced" that the bureau of opera tionS had "erred in it's general plans''l and declared that a suggestion made by Admiral Sims earlier that the bat tleships be placed out of commission and their crews sent overseas would if adopted, have proved "disastrous.' The letter continued:
 over there you give us the devil because we don't do all that you want us to do You feel we are failing you. Does 1t help the morale over there or over here to do that? Criti- cisn is easy and just criticism is bene- sicfal, but there is nothing more low ering to the morale than unjust criti- cism and criticism made without full knowledge and thought is apt to be 1njust."
 After reading the letter, Senator Trammell asked Captain Laning if he did not think the letter answered many 1f Admiral Sims charges and some of the criticisms made by Captain Ian ing himself in his direct statement The officer replied that he did not be- Iieve so. that the letter referred to a period much later in the war than that covered by the Sims charges the first six months, and his own testimony.