The Washington times., 1921-01-09
Had He Kept Ground, Expert
Says, Allies Would Have
Won Without U. 6
Continued from First Page.)

and woman in the country could
understand them and ought to know
them. The principles OF naval STRAIT
egy and tactics have not changed
since the first battle at sea. Only
the methods of applying these prin-
ciples and the implements of night
ing change from one generation to
another.
SEES NOTHING OCCULT
ABOUT THE NAVY.
"The enemy knows the principles
and is as well posted as we are upon
the ever-changing details. Why
should we not be allowed to discuss
freely with our employers, the Amer
lean public, all that the naval au-
thorities of other governments al
ready know"
THAT is the first sense / have
heard on that subject" said the law
yer. "In my brief experience at sea
during the war l didn't see anything
occult or sacred about the navy. But
your fellow officers don't all think as
YOU do. You have committed the
unpardonable sin in suggesting that
laymen can know anything about
naval matters.
Last winter down South / sat on
a friends porch, just as you are sit
ting on mine tonight. A captain in
our navy was there, and l began to
talk about the Sims-Daniels contro-
versy. The captain told me at once
that nothing should have been pub
lished about that unfortunate affair.
But, / objected, if the navy really
had no plans for the war should we
not all know it SO that popular opin-
ion would demand better preparation
for the futur?"
Certainly not said the naval
man; the navy should attend to all
of those matters within itself. To
let naval matters become public
only hurts the service, and the pub
lie doesn't understand these things
anyway
"This was too much for me, so l
said: Don't take what ! am going
to say as personal. but always
want to ask, whose navy are we
talking about, anyway? Have we
who pay for it and who depend upon
it for our safety no right to know
that it is we'll run and dependable!
To say that we can't understand
about it is pure nonSC nse, and to my
mind is an excuse to hide something
that wouldn't stand criticism
"At that point" concluded the
lawyer, ''in spite of my be~ging the
captain not to take my remarks IN
l personal way, we broke off friend
~ relations"
"a long time ago | happened to
start reading Captain Mahan's books
upon naval warfare. and | kept at
them because his teachings on how
TO fight are just as applicable to my
commercial warfare as they are to
The kind he wrote about. Then |
walked up suddenly to the terrific
consequences to nations of what Is
done or not done at sea. The facts
scared me, and | wish every Ameri-
ran could know them.
STRATEGY PRINCIPLES
EASILY UNDERSTOOD.
when / get started on this sub
Get" continued the host, Il find it
lard to stop. Let's examine this
idea that the public cannot know
anything about it's navy. Take first
the extremely technical side. There
IS not a wrinkle in battleship con-
struction on which our engineer
friend. Walker, here would not be
competent to advise after study OF
the subject, There Is nothing from
wireless to torpedoeS on which the
members of our great engineering
societies could not be helpful.
"When we come to questions OF
strategy and tactics, the man in the
street with little CduCat on in such
matters can understand the under
lying principles well enough to know
that Nv. y riels has VIOLATED every
rule by dividing the fleet between
the Atlantic and Pacific. and that
when he testified before the Senate
Investigating Committee that he had
formulated "a plan for any war any
where or words to that effect, he
was tall;in~ pure bunk
Here Walker interrupted his we'll
nigh brCathlesS host. Say, Johns
ton, YOU have been flattcring my In
telligCnce and that OF the man in
the street but we started out to cet
the inside dope on the Battle Of Jut-
land. | happened to work with the
Naval Consulting Board during the
war, end for that reason / paid more
attention to the naval aspo Is Of it
than | should have done otherwise.
Just whit really happened at Jut-
land ha hecr uu7'l' ~ q WIT !
can tell you vh"t would hive h"p-
pencd afterwards had the EnrlSh
destroyed the GcrmCn fleet in that
fgrt.
FIRST. f''rrc world nv h ~ no
int n i, suhm"r'n w"T'".. . in {
merchant slirring.
"SE 'OND. Rus, ia wyuG I've
collapsed.
THIRD, the German line in Bel.