New-York tribune., 1921-02-24
Senator King
Upholds Borah
Plan to Disarnl
Comprehensive Minority Re-
port Attacks Navy Gem
eral Board for Reliance
Upon Great Battleships
For "Three-PIane'' Idea
Asserts Present Program
Will Entail Expense to
u. S. of $500, 100000

From The Tribune's Woshsngton Bureau
WASHINGTON, Feb. 23.-In q COM
prehensive minority report from the
Senate Naval Affairs Committee. Sena-
tor King, of Utah, Democrat, supported
the borah resolution for a temporary
suspension of the naval building pro-
gram until it can be ascertained what
constitutes a modern fighting navy
Senator King aligned himself with the
views of such naval men as Admiral
Sims, Fiske, Fullam and others who
have come out for a three-plane navy
of modern type. At the same time, he
criticized the enormous expenditures
for naval purposes and urged that steps
be taken toward disarmament or reduc-
ton of armaments.
Senator King is the only member of
the Naval Affairs Committee to take
this stand. However. there is ;strone
backing for it in the Senate. The Sena-
tor, speaking apart from the report to-
night, said there would be pronounced
opposition to the Naval Affairs Com.
mittee program and that the naval bill
could not pass this session. Among
other things, he will fight the project
for new naval base at Alameda, Cal
which looks to "scrapping" Mare
Island.
Senator King criticizes the report of
the Navy General Board which upholds
strongly the great battleship. He called
the general board report "reactionary
and says:
Emphasis is laid upon the fact that
the battleship is the basis of sea power:
that it is paramount, and that nothing
that occurred during the world war has
served to change the opinion of the
general board as to the vital impor-
tance in war of the battleship.
"a careful review of this report
leads to but one conclusion, that bat
tleships constitute the principal unit
of sea power, and that we must con-
tinue their construction in increasing
numbers, notwithstanding the enorm-
Gus cost. Giant dreadnaughts of more
than $4,000 tons and costing tens of
millions of dollars are to be butt; but
the board comedies they are impotent
cr at least inadequate. without battle
cruisers costing still more, and also
various other types of surface craft
submarines and airplanes.
"a one plane navy, the report is
compelled to admit, is incomplete and
1t discusses torpedo carrying air craft
and bombing planes and submarines
md comedies them humble place as
auxiliaries of the battleships, but as
have indicated, does not ascribc tc
them that important place in nava
warfare which the facts demonstrate
that they occupy
Treating of naval expenditures anc
what the general board program il
this respect means, Senator King il
his report says:
'In the hearings before the Senate
| committee, one of the admirals whc
was a leading member of the genera
beard, stated that the cost of the cap
ital ships would be $45 100000 each
Upon this basis the ultimate cost 0,
the seventeen capital ships will bt
S765, 900, 900. When we add to this
vast sum the cost of scout cruisers
torpedo boats, destroyers, submarines
transports, fuel ships, tenders. gun
boats and auXiliaries, it is certain thai
{ the further cost for the completion OF
he 1916 naval program will exceed
! 81 600, 100000