The Washington herald., 1920-11-27
Amy Engineer Chiefs Re
port Tell, Baker Coast
Protection Is Lacking.
PROPOSES WATERWAY
Interior Route From Chesa-
peake Bay to New York
Would Avert Blockade.

A defense of the naval bases and
forts with armament able to with
stand the most powerful navies Of
the world should be pushed to COM
pletion with the greatest speed"
Mai. Gen. Lansing II. Beach, Chief
of Engineers, said in his annual re-
port yesterday to Secretary of War
Baker.
Proper provision has not yet been
made for an efficient seacoast de-
fense Of our important strategic
areas and naval bases because of a
lack of sixteen-inch guns and howit-
zers, according to Gen. Beach. who
recommended that no additional
armament of less caliber and power
be installed at points whose defense
lis absolutely vital"
Gen. Beach also made recon-
mendation of a deep waterway be-
tween Chesapeake Bay and Della
ware Bay. thence to New York har-
Dor and Long Island Sound, as a
means of defense of immense
value"
Would TAwart Blockade.
This interior waterway would
make 1t practically impossible for
the combined hostile fleets of any
two of the leading powers of the
world to blockade our navy sue
cessfully, and therefore would have
the effect of multiplying the power
Of our fleet. The Hrst and most
important step in this development
would be to give the Delaware
Chesapeake Canal a navigable depth
sufficient to enable the feet to pass
between the two great bodies of
water-Chesapeake Bay and Della
ware Bay"
1T is an accepted fact" Beach's
report continued, that our shores
less our own navy Is either destroy
ed or effectively blockaded within
our coast line. The first essential
OF a successful defense requires. as
never before, that our important
naval stations shall be Adequately
defended against any probable ma
val attack. So long as our great
naval bases-such as Narragansett
Bay. the Chesapeake, Guantanamo.
the Panama Canal, and San Fran
cisco - are made safe against any
probable naval attack, and SO long
as our navy itself remains intact.
no enemy will venture a landing in
strength upon our shores. Should
small raiding forces be landed. they
can be readily met and defeated
by our mobile army.
Efficiency of shore Guns.
The war has once more demon
strated the overwhelming efficiency
of guns on shore as compared with
guns on ships, so taat what is really
necessary for our important harbors
and naval bases Is not the installa-
ton of as many guns as an enemy
could bring against those positions.
but rather a minimum of the most
powerful weapons sufficient to pre-
vent any except the most foolhardy
enemy from risking his ships in
an effort to reduce the fortifica-
tons"
Beach says no incidental projects
should be allowed to interfere with
this work. especially at outlying
American positions such as Oahu, in
the Hawaiian Islands. and the Pan
anna Canal, "the defense of which
is of vital Importance to the United
States and the neglect of which at
this time may result in future dis
aster."
Gen. Beach's report follows that
of Mai. Cen F. W. Coe, chief OF
the coast artillery OF the army, who
emphasized that anti-aircraft de-
fenses must be developed along the
coasts. Because of the development
of aircraft security and immunity
from aattacks can never be guaran-
teed to the same degree as in the
past. he said. pointing out the pro-
hibitiye cost of absolutely adequate
protection.