Douglas daily dispatch., 1928-03-18
Fifteen 1O,OOO-tOn Cruisers
And One Aircraft Car
rier Provided
BIG REDUCTION.
President Given Power To
Suspend BuiIding-If
Agreement Reached

WASHING t ON, March, II t9 =
Strengthening of the American navy
by the construction of Is new 10000
ton cruisers and one aircraft carrier of
1s, 800 tons was approved today by the
house. The cost of the proposed ships,
exclusive of aircraft equipment, has
been estimated at $2740OOO00
The house action came with passage
by a standing vote of 287 to 81 of the
Butler bill to authorize the building of
the vessels. The measure now goes TO
the senate.
An unsuccessful effort was made by
Representative Blanton, Texas dem
ocrat, to obtain record vote on final
passage. Under house rules this is
possible only by the consent of one
fifth of the members present and less
than that number supported the
Texans motion.
The bill as passed carried an amend
ment by Representative Sproul, repub-
lican, Kansas, to request the president
to urge the necessity for a further
international conference for naval
arms limitations It also would give
the president power to suspend any
or all of the construction in the event
of such an agreement being reached.
Another amendment, sponsored by
Representative DalIinger, republican
Massachusetts, was written into the
measure to provide that half of the
ships must be constructed in govern
ment navy yards.
The cruisers, the largest that can be
built under terms of the Washington
naval pact, would be laid down at the
rate of five a year during the fiscal
years 1920-1931, inclusive. The air.
craft carrier, less than half the size of
the carriers Lexington and Saratoga,
would be started prior to June 80, 1880.
! The measure fails to propose a def
mite completion date for any of the
vessels but the naval committee which
drafted the program argued that the
provision that the secretary OF the
navy annually submit estimates to the
budget bureau to carry on the con-
struction would insure building of the
ships and prevent them from becom-
ing only a paper fleet"
The bill also would direct the secre-
tary of the navy to submit to con-
gresS by December TO- next, specifica-
tions and the estimated cost of two
salvage ships for use in submarine or
other ship disasters.
Supporters of the bill argued that
the program represented the original
American proposal to the unsuccessful
Geneva naval parley; that it was de-
signed to meet the needs only Of the
American navy and was not competi-
tive with the naval building programs
of other nations.
Twenty of the 81 members Of the
naval committee concurred in the
statement that completion of the 16
ships will would leave the United
/ States second to Great Britain in sea
power.
Opposition to the program was head
| ed by Representative McClintic OF
Oklahoma, democrat on the naval
committee, who sought unSuccessfully
| to provide for the construction of IL
submarines in place of the cruisers
and also by Representative Laguardia,
a New York republican, who argued
that there was no danger Of war with
in a generation and that the ships
would outlive their usefulness without
ever firing a shot in battle.
The naval program approved by the
house represents material reduction
over that proposed by Secretary VIII
bur and represented at the time of its
submission to congress as in line with
the fiscal plans of President Coolidge
In its original form the program pro-
posed 25 cruisers, five aircraft carriers
nine destroyer leaders and 80 subma-
rines. The estimated cost was placed
] at $740,0OO,o00.