The Pensacola journal., 1920-03-17
Sims CONTINUES
WAR EXPOSURES
Declares a Little Bluff" by Ger.
many in 1918 Would Have
ParalyZed Transportation
DEPARTMENT PLAN WRONG
Admiral Insists He Was Urged
to Approve Plans Which Had
Been Rejected by Allies

Washington, Mar. IA little
bluff on the part of the Germans in
1918 at the critical point OF the war
would have para1yzed transportation
of soldiers and war matAria4s between
this country and Europe, Rear Admiral
Sims today told the senate naval sub
committee.
In formation from authentic sources,
indicating that the Germans were
building two modern battle cruisers for
a desperate hope raid against troop
ship conveys, was transmitted to the
navy department. Admiral Sims said,
and Immediately he was besieged with
ca ablegrams from Washington outlining
various plans of action. all of which,
he testified, We're impracticab1e, al
though such a contingency had been
under discussion for nearly a year and
had been ample time to prepare.
IF the enemy had only known, said
Admiral Sims, '.all he need to have
done would be to make a series of
bluffs, involving little risk to himself,
and we would have done the rest.
Shipping would have been paralyzed.' .
Admiral Sims discussed at length
four plans proposed by the department
for defeating Germany on the sea.
They were:
A protected lane through the danger
zone; the blocking of German ports by
sinking ships in the entrances; mine
barriers of nets and mines of tpyes
then in use mine barriers of mines of
a new type All except the last were
impracticable, he declared and much
time was wasted by the insistence of
the department that they be tried.
The department wished to land a
"solar pIexus blow" against the sub
marine campaign, the admiral said, and
suggested many schemes long before
rejected by the allies. Such a plan
was that of sinking old battleships
and cruisers in the entrance to all
German submarine base harbors. Ad-
miraI Sims asserted, and only after
A had pointed out that the scneme
would require the sinking or 1orty
battleships, forty three cruisers ana SIX
months of preparation did the depart
ment agree to abandon the plan II took
seven months of effort 70 bring the
Washington officials to the final con-
clusion, he said.
On May IL, 1917. the navy depart
ment first suggested the idea of a bar
rage of mines across the North sea
to trap the German sea forces, Admiral
I
the plan because the allies could not
afford to divert the large numbers o1
men and ships and huge amounts oi
material necessary to make the pro1ec'
l a success. he declared and also be-
cause the old type mines then in use
were not practicable for such pur-
pose. Later, when the submarine cam
paign was we'll in hand and a new
type of antenae mine developed in this
country, he approved the idea, he haid
and helped TO expedite the laying OF
the barrage. The result, the North sea
mine barrage, was a magnificent ac-
icompishment, the admiral said, re
Iflecting great credit on the navy anc
the officers and men who were re-
sponsible for the success of the project
Admiral Sims said he particular,
wished to refute assertion widely
circulated" that the department had
proposed and from the first favored
the mine barrage- project and that h
was about the only officer in tbs
navy who had ever opposed it,
The navy department, at the tim'
the United States entered the war Ad
n1iral Sims said. was not very muci
better informed than the general pub
lie of actual conditions in the beIliger
fNo 1-T,1$inna1 IN