Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-03-13
SIMS NOT TRUSTED
BY NAVY CHIEF; HIS
PLANT TO PR0DERS
Says That Daniels Went Over
His Head in Dealing
With Our Allies.
EVERYTHING WENT WRONG
ny Associated Press 70 Every Evening

ny Associa ted Press 20 Every Evening
Washington, March i3.-Documentary
evidence IN support OF his charge that the
! Navy Department failed TO keep him in
formed n. 10 it's policies and plans va.
presented today by Rear Admiral Sims
to the Senate investigating committee.
Delay and confusion" resulted from
the department failure TO notify him of
important dispositions and movements of
naval forces within the area Of his com
rnapd as well as elsewhere, he said, adding
that the result also was To create in the
minds Of allied officials an impression that
ne wns not supported by and IN the CON
fidence of his government.
Because Of his ignorance of the depart
nents plans the admiral continued, the
allied sdrniralties carried on direct nego-
uations with the Navy Department in
Washington. Allied team work was inn
paired and American interests suffered as
a result he said, adding:
Undoubtedly at times such indepen-
dent negotiations resulted IN direct con
hict with my recommendations
Admiral Sims told the committee the
first ,ntimstion he had that he was not
IN the full confidence Of the department
came soon after he submitted his FIRST
reports from London. He learned then by
accident, he said, that an agreement had
been reached by the Navy Department
and Hritirh and French naval official. in
Washington early in April regarding the
disposition of American naval forcc.
The terms Of this agreement were cabled
To Admiral Ieliicoe hy the British rep
resentstive on April ~. 1917, he declared
The officer also charged that without
notifying him beforehand the depart
rnent arranged with the French naval
st'aehe 20 send 10 or more yachts 20
combat submarines off the French coast:
arranged 20 establish two naval bases in
France; sent naval aviation forces To that
country; dispatched six des.roye-r from
Boston sent hundred cannon 20 France
ON naval eoIliers: started campaign in
the newspapers for North ses mine
harsge. dispatched the Fifth destroyer
auJsdron from 81. Johns TO Queenstown
and sent four additional destroyers from
New York TO Join his forces
Some Of these vessels. he said. arrived
overseas before he knew Of their alloca-
tiop 10 his command In most cases, he
said, he received belaird Information from
French and British sources, bat seldom in
time tn make proper adjustments and az
rangemeuts for receiving the ships.
The admiral declared that while he pro-
tested continually against the depart
nsrt Z failure 70 keep him informed, tho
situation was not remeeiirh
That great confusion existed with regard
10 the establishment of the buses IN France
and that the department itself did not
know what IL wanted was demonstrated.
the admiral said by letter be received
early in August from h officer assigned
to command the Bssd aux base. This
officer, be said, wrote that "the situation
IN France is not clear to me, and that
when he had asked upon being ordered TO
the command Of the base what has duties
were he had been unable 20 obtain any
information
II asked the same question and got the
same answer from all the other heads in
the navy department. the officer said
After waiting about four weeks received
orders to proceed with a party of eight
persons but still no instructions"
A SIMILAR condition existed with regard
to American naval aviation forces sent
abroad Admiral Sims said.