Evening star., 1924-11-11
(Continued from First Page.)

!
| extensive study of the real condi
| ton of the Navy. which was pre-
| pared for a member of the Senate
| committee on naval affairs, and which
Is to made the basis of n congress
| sional investigation. This report,
| thus made available as a court docu-
! nient, emphasizes that the American
Navy is today ''in bad shape" and
that the seriousness of the situation
| was really what caused the Secre-
| tary'S hurried return from the West,
| that the board of strategy is now
wrestling with the problem so that
| the budget may he laid before Con-
| gress.
On this point Mr.. Shearer says:
The British and Japanese naval
! policies demand that we look our de-
fenses squarely in the face. 1t is a
| condition that must be met. We can
| only expect proper national defense
from common sense Congress.
! Emrhasizes "Bad shape"
THE Secretary of the Navy has or
| dered the War College, Newport, to
report on the general condition of the
! Navy. The general opinion of the
| War College is that the Navy is in
| bad shape, many ships being useless
| until necessary repairs are made
| There are numerous other reasons. in
! cluding lack of naval bases properly
equipped; fuel oil tanks, oil in re-
serve tanks and general equipment
| that constitutes fully equipped
| naval base.
The confidential and secret report
is the basis OF the war problems now
! being fought out by the board of
strategy on the war table. The
American feet is shown to be weak
to point of serious and alarming
degree, not being backed up by re-
serves, auxiliaries, supplies. fuel. and
a lack of policy and preparedness.
The problems now being played will
show we cannot handle a battle feet
| in the Pacific. Lack of bases, fully
equipped. will be the reason given.
| Mare Island will only figure as re-
! pair yard for light ships. The pro-
posed Alameda base will never be
mentioned as a possibility, as no move
! is being made to build that base. 1t
! will be shown that to handle the
battle fleet of capital ships for the
Pacific it will be nece ssary to dock
! the ships on the Atlantic and use the
| Panama Canal Zone as an operating
! base. Six hundred to seven hundred
ships or supplies and fuel would be
necessary to guarantee supplies and
| fuel for operations overseas.
/
ment we would start conveys from
Hawaii. Pearl Harbor could only be
used as a repair base in its present
! unfinished condition. There is no
base or harbor in the Pacific equip
ped to accommodate the entire feet
/ in every respect. Floating dry docks
will have to be towed to Hawaii even
| to be used as an advanced base or
repair base. If San Francisco harbor
! 10
take over private shipyards, docks
and mercantile fuel supply and to
equip and prepare as much as pos
sible as an emergency base. Panama
remains the only operating base for
/ the fleet, as the Atlantic is better
equipped to handle capital ships and
the bases better equipped to draw
| from.
Cause of Wilbur's Return.
at is the consensus of opinion that
| such a report was the direct cause
! of the Secretary OF the Navy's return
from the West; that decision must
be made as soon as posslole IN .ilne
| to get the budget in shape to present
to the session of Congress that the
situation is considered serious"
| I'm arguing that the treaties under
! which American ships were to be
| scrapped-and the Washington is the
last of the lot-are not in force and
so this battleship representing $35,-
! 100000 need not be sunk with ad-
| ditional great expense, Mr.. shearer
says:
"Failure of France to ratify makes
two important treaties ineffective and
| valueless, i. e., relating to poison
| gases and submarines, and the one
| concerning the territorial integrity
! Of China and the open door.
| This treaty was the cause OF the
| four-power Pacific treaty among
| Great Britain, the United States,
| France and Japan relating TO tnelr
insular possessions in the Pacihc-
| "The British protest against gun
elevation on 10 American battleships
brings the Limitation OF arms treaty
| in question until there is interpreta-
| ton, understanding or agreement on
| gun elevation or moderizing battle
| ships. The British and American In
| terpretation on the following are en-
| tfrely lifferent: No alterations in
side armor, in caliber. in number or
general type of mounting shall be
permitted.
in the Pacific based on the under
standing that all treaties would be
carried out, ratified and fully lived
| up to.
British Ships Cited.
"The British capital ships Glorious
and Courageous Of 1S.600 tons each,
15-inch guns, are not permitted or al
lowed under the Washington treaty.
| These two ships are retained ana
could be used in case Of war.
"The spirit of the treaty Is In
| question based on the British naval
| program.
'aThe spirit Of the treaty is in ques-
| ton based on the Japanese naval
program, japan having the largest
| naval program in the world.
"All further scrapping. destroying
| or placing out of commission of all
types Of ships should stop until the
| limitation of arms treaty Is proved
to be in force and all treaties are
| ratified and are fully lived up to by
the powers involved.
Naval powers have made changes
and alterations in ships and guns
that are denied by protest to this
country under the treaty.
THAT they (the treaties) are not in
! effect because article TX Of the nine.