The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1921-11-20
U. S. SCRAPPING
OF BATTLESHPS
TO BE COMPLETE
Naval Experts to Leave
No Trace, Under Plan
of Sec'y Hughes. .

HThe feet a American warships
which Secretary of State Hughes has
Recommended be 'scrapped'' will be
so Aompletely broken up If the pur-
pose of the conference is carried out
that no parts Of the vessels ever
again could be used on a lighting
ship.
Naval experts are going ahead
with tentative plans for "scrapp ng
the $4,000 tons which would be
Americas contribution toward limi-
tstion. although they have not re-
ceived any instructions to do so.
f"when these ships are scrapped
they will be destroyed entirely,
every part of them, so that no part
could ever be put together aga n
for use on a war vessel. and so COM
pIeteIy that IL would take from
three to five years in which to re-
place them" one naval construction
expert in the Navy Department said
IN outlining the navy's conception
Of "scrapping" yesterday.
Method Not Determined.
whether the vessels will be taken
cut into the Atlantic and sunk or
made the targets of army and navy
ar bombers, or whether they will
be completely broken up and the
metal in them salvaged. has not been
determined. Navy Department off,
cials are proceeding. however. on the
understanding that the ships will
not simply be dismantled and their
guns and machinery stored for fu-
ture use on other vessels. Such a
course. in the opinion of naval ex-
perts, would be in v olation of the
yUhn1a nf tho HUGHES MIA
Strong opposition to sinking the
warships is already being voiced
by navy officials and by members
Of Congress who are charged with
the duty Of drafting the naval ap-
preparation bills. When the time
comes for actually "scrapping" the
war fleet. il is probable that Con-
gress would intervene should there
be any disposition to sink the ships.
Naval construction experts esti-
mate that more than 100000. 600
was paid by the Federal govern
ment for the metal and furnish
ings that went into the war yes
sells scheduled to be "scrapped."
This metal. IL sold as junk. would
mean the salvage of a considerable
sum
Britain SaIyages Metal.
In scrapping the DreadnouCht
last week the British government
salvaged practically all of the
metal. The vessel was dismantled
completely. the guns, armor plate.
machinery and most of the hull
were broken up and the metal Will
be melted up and used again for
other purposes. The brass. or
which there is a large amount ON
every warship, was removed from
every part of the ship. The fur
nishings, including furniture, lights
and similar articles, were sold I'M
der contracts that stipulated that
they should never again find their
way into a vessel of war. When
only the skeleton of the hull re-
manned, dynamite was used to make
the destruction complete.
In following that plan the Brit
fish government was not concerned
with the spirit of the Hughes pro-
2osal. since the orders for destroy
ING the Dreadnought were issued
before Secretary Hughes make his
proposal They were fulfilling an
agreement with the British ship
workers, which requires that every
thing that goes into a new war
ship shall be newly constructed
especially for that warship.
Ford Offers Considerable.
The recent offer OF Henry Ford
to purchase all the scrapped vessels
from the United States, Great Brit
ain and Japan. therefore. is being
regarded seriously by naval ex-
perts. The Detroit business wizard
however, is only the first Of many