The Washington times., 1924-05-10
US. NAVY Gould
NOT Be SURE.
OF VICTORY
Small Additional Appropria-
ton Would Overcome De- /.
i. ficiencies of Fleets
By WILLIAM. HARD.

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In this, the concluding dispatch
on the condition of our Navy, there
win be a summary of that condi-
ton and there will also be few
observations on the Nays human
factor. its officers and men, its
personnel s
optimiSt can, be imagined taking
directly contrary views. The pess.
tmist sometimes fills the country,
and tries to fill Congress, with
fright by remarlxing as follows:
Sailors and gunners in the
British. Navy enlist for twelve
years. They become experienced.
Our men enlist for only four years.
Every year in our navy we have
to instruct a great multitude Of
amateurs and ignoramuses. Some
times, in q given year. perhaps 80
Per cent Of our men are new men.
What could they do in battle?"
So speaks the peSsimist, and
there is something in what he
says. Much naval opinion holds
that our term Of enlistment ought
to be longer. -
On the other hand the optimist
can present numerous facts to re.
vive the courage of the> dropping
patriot. There is little doubt that
our Navy does more gun practice
and more fleet practice than any
There is also little doubt that in
fact the record. Of our personnel
In fleet practice is going up.
In spite Of our short term enlist
ments, which we wish were longer,
we do not by any means officially
despair Of landing shells precisely
on our opponents while they are
engaged with presumably some
succesO in landing shells on us.
Constant Effort Used.
Our navy gives the most diligent
attention not only to gunnery i'm
provement, but also to engineering
Improvement as a; whole. Every
ship in our naval fleet is every
day pitting itself against standard
record which it is supposed to
equal in economy in, the use Of
coal or oil per mile Of distance
sailed. Prize money. is given to
the crews Of ships that make the
best showing against these stand.
ard records. g The amount of prize
money per. year Is about SIS, 000
The saving in cost Of fuel for the
fleet this last year has been about
$125,OOO. IL 1T
Our navy, without any doubt
whatsoever, Is continuously, by
day and by night; vigilant both for
Its own efficiency against possible
enemy and for the interests of the
taxpayer who supports it and who
gets from it the international pro-
lection which enables him to- sup
port both it and himself. -
ia hat
the navy to make out that it is q
kind Of tragic joke. It is far, in
deed, from being anything of that
kind. It is Woodworking, quick,
thinking, formidable fighting organi-
cation.
Deficiencies Exist.
We have a good fleet in metal
ana in mon against any cores
ponding quantities and trainings
OF metal and of men in any other
fleet. Nevertheless. in fleet prae.
tice, which Is the peace equivalent
OF battle, we disclose the following
deficiencies which Congress, and
nothing but Congress, can remedy:
1. Certain Of our battleships
cannot shoot to probable battle
distance until the money is appro-
priated to raise the angle Of their
guns.
2. Certain Of our battleships need
armored protection on their decks
against airplanes.
8. Certain Of our battleships need
further protection along their sides
under water against torpedoes.
our destroyers, accompanying our
b@ttleships, need to be supplement.
ed by larger and stronger deStroyers
called destroyer leaders"
3. Beyond the destroyers, and in
between the 'destroyers and the bat.
tleships, In size and in striking
power, we need a larger number of
flight cruisers" to smash the de-
stroyers of the enemy and to be
the fast scouting "eyes" Of our
battle line.
Submarines Needed. ....
8. We, in addition to our coastal
submarines, need further fleet"
submarines to leave the coasts and
to go with the fleet for battle work.
~. We need, for some men, a
longer enlistment term.
8. And finally, we need more citi-
hens In the naval reserve"
The Assistant Secretary Of the
Navy, who has given to the navy
tho same affection and strenuous
attention given to 1t before him by
bis father in the same official posi-
ton, said today:
I'm the last war the United
States navy had approximately
100000 officers and men. At this
time we have in our regular serv-
ice only approximately $4,000 off.
GERS and men. To fight a war cor
responding to the last one we would
therefore have to add more than
100000 officers and men to our per.
sonnet. Meanwhile our naval reserve
IN found to number only about 5000.
The citizen. accordingly, has two
things he can do about the navy.
He can exhort his Congressman to
close up the small gap Of expense
which exists between our navy and
its present deficiencies and our navy
in the perfection which It would
have If those deficiencies were rene.
died by the appropriation Of a small
additional amount of money. - =.
That is the first thing that he
can do. The second thing would be
20 go to the nearest recruiting sta.
ton and take on the slender, but
highly instructive and useful, duties
of belonging to the naval reserve.
copyright Washington Press Servico.)
Mrs. Morgan Endorsed