Evening star., 1922-12-13
NAVY BILL CARRIES
$293,SD6,538 TOTAL
Measure Appropriating for
Next Fiscal Year Reported
to the House.
SLIGHT DECREASE SHOWN
Increase in Officer Personnel Allow
ed-Policy Indicated With Refer
ence to Academy Appointments.

Carrying recommended appropria- !;
tions for the Navy Department ana
the naval service for the next hScal
year totalins $293.S06.53s. compared
with s2s4.353,473 appropriated for the
current fiscal year. and 1894. .S03.9s3 as
recommended by the budget bureau.
the annual Navy appropriation bill
was reported to the House today.
Regarding personnel Of the Navy
by Representative Kelley of Michigan,
chairman of the subcommittee of the
House appropriations committee
which framed the bill. pointed out
that September !. 1922. there were on
the active list of the Navy 4."S2 Off
GERS of the line and 1873 officers at
tached to the various staff corps.
making total of $500 officers
The appropriations proposed in this
bin provide for 1870 line officers and
1915 staff officers. total Of 6,6l6 offi-
GERS. or an increase of .5o over the
present number.
Number Of Officers Allowed.
Under existing law the Navy is en-
titled to have 5.499 officers of the
line. based on an enlisted strength OF
l37.4SJ men. On this basis. therefore.
there is shortage today of LIZ
line officers. but on the legally pre-
scribed proportion of line officers TO
men there is an excess of 9i2 line
officers. the committee finds.
Chairman Kelley explained that
by refusing to limit the number Of
|midshipmen. comprising the last grad
uatinE class thar might be commits
stoned. that it was willing there !
For a service so highly technical
this is as il should be. the report
states. the only question being how ]
far the excess should be permitted
to go. Based on past experience. 1t
is the judgment of the Navy Depart
ment that if the present class at the
Naval Academy is permitted to be
graduated and the number OF appoint
ees to the class entering next year
is not curtailed, and such appointees
duction. to become effective the year
following u9cD in the number OF
appointments allowed each senator.
representative and delegate in Con-
about maintain the line of the Navy
around 4.50O. or approximately the
present number, Chairman Kelley
says.
There is no doubt. it is said. that
this is an underestimate unless the
, Navy Department continues Il liberal
policy of permitting officers to re-
sign. because, using the Navy Depart
ment experience figures. it will te
entirely practicable for the line
strength to run we'll above 4,000.
Would Reduce Appointments.
Believing. however. that it is not
the desire Of Congress to continue
course which in the end would give
the number of line officers permis-
sible on an enlisted strength or
137,4S5 or 2.059 in excess OF the legal
/ ly prescribed proportion OF officers
to men now in the service. the COM
mittee is proposing in this bill Il iimi.
tation on the appropriation pay OF
the Navy" which will have the effect
/ of reducing the number Of appoint
ments to the Naval Academy after
the appointees entering next year
! from five to three for each senator.
representative and delegate in Con
gress, but leaving the number who
may be appointed from the enlisted
men Of the Navy undisturbed.
Regarding the enlisted men. Repre-
sentative Kelley's report points out
that appropriations proposed In TINS
bill are on the basis OF continuing
the enlisted strength at $4,000 men.
tive study of the enlisted personnel
requirements when considering the
estimates for the current fiscal year
md reached the conclusion that $1,000
enlisted men would provide adequate
ly for the maintenance of the so
April the House itself. contrary to the
committees recommendation, decided
that $4,000 men should be allowed.
and nothing has arisen during the
few intervening months that would
warrant the committee in proposing
a smaller number than the House so
recently decided upon.
Chairman Kelley cites that Septem-
ber 80, 1922. although the House voted
5000 more men than the committee
proposed, there were but 52,o3S men
with the feet or but 1888 more than
the committee had proposed, and there
were 10.643 men specifically assigned
to shore billets, or but 67S more than
the committee had proposed.
Discusses Matter OF Recreation.
Recreation for enlisted men was
given special consideration There
vas appropriated under this head for
the current fiscal year $4,000. This
amount proposed by the committee was
for a force Of $1,000 men. When the
number of enlisted men was increased
to $4,000 the recreation fund was al
lowed to remain undisturbed. For
1924 the budget bureau proposes that
the appropriation be reduced to $780,
900. In the opinion of the committee
this sum is entirely inadequate for the
meritorious purposes to which the ap-
preparation is applied. and the commit
tee has increased the budget figures to
the level of the current appropriation,
which. as already stated. was deter