The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-08-01
AMERICAN NAVY
 10 GET TOGETHER
 NEXT JANUARY
Greatest Array of War Yes sels in Nations History Will Assemble in Pa.
 cific Off Panama
By hssnciated presx


 aShington July 3l.-The greatest con- centration of sea power in the history of the American navy will result from the Junction of the reorganized Atlantic and Pacific fleets off the Pacific coas next January, under plans now being prepared by naval operations The great naval spectacle probably will be staged in the vicinity of the Gulf of Panama
 Officials of the navy department sa the proposed mobilization will in no sensa result in grand" maneuvers. No eff fort will be made to concentrate all of the nations naval strength, and only ships regularly in commission with trained crews will participate. The exer- c1ses and drills will be simple and mainly of competitive nature includ ing unofficial athletic competitions be- tween representatives of tn two fleets and of individual ships. The main object of the mobilization will be to give off cers and men an opportunity to com Pare notes and meet for a few weeks 3of gcCd-natured rivalry.
 sAdniial Henry B. Wilson, commanders in7ehief of the Atlantic fleet, will be senisr officer of the combined force, with Admiral Hugh Redman, chief of the Pacific fleet, second in command.
 The maneuVers will be uniuue in many
 
 the first actual mobilization of the bulk of the new American navy. Before the war the forces were always more or less scattered and shortage of several types Of vessels, particularly of destroyers, submarines, light cruisers, aerial forces and fleet auxiliaries made it impossible to concentrate a well-roundedout fleet, although the major portion of the battle ship force met each winter at Guanta- namo, Cuba, for target practice and drills.
 During the war the shortage in most types of small vessels, notably destroyers and submarines, was overcome, but the entire fleet was never mobilized, due 70 the use of practically all light craft in the war zone, the detail of cruisers to escort duty and the fact that con siderable portion of the battleship force was on duty abroad much of the time.
 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 sup ported by a reasonably adequate numbe of destroyers and other light craft. Sub- marines will be available in abundance. together with sufficient naval aircraft for all tactical purposes and a fully roundabout fleet of auxiliary vessels. The total number of vessels to partici- pate will depend on the progress of re- tFultlnS, dS many SnlpS are III TeStINS now for lack of crews, but it is probable that Admiral Wilson will command at least 300 vessels 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 floating fortress disnlaees 5000 tons, carries twelve 14- inch guns and is propelled by electric turbines. The Tennessee is attached to the Atlantic fleet. sister ship. the California, probably will not be com nleted in time to join Admiral Rodman's force before the maneuvers.
 A comparison of the ships available for | next winters maneuvers with the naval ! strength available for a similar concen- 1 tration ten years ago affords some strik- | ing contrasts. January 1, 1910, the latest | hattleshfp in the navy was the New Hampshire. authorized by Congress in ] 1904, construction started in 1905 and com- pleted in 1908 A comparison of the New 1 Hampshire and the Tennessee follows:
 New Hampshire Length 450 feet; l breadth. 76 feet; draft. 27 feet: displace- ment. 17700 tons; speed. IS knots: main battery. four 12-inch guns and eight g. inch; secondary battery, twelve s-inch, four submerged torpedo tubes, 9-inch i,