Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-02-01
NAVAL PROMOTIONS.
CHANGE DEMANDED.
Britten Bill Urged to Save
Younger Officers From
Inequalities.
BY REX COLLIER.

beset the present promotion system.
vancement now in use. aggravated by
the increasing size of graduation classes
ut the Naval Academy, are about to
squeeze out" of the line of the Navy
the cream of the younger officer per-
nonnel.
Unless prompt and drastic action is
taken by Congress at this session, ap-
proximately so per cent of surviving
members of the Annapolis classes of
1911, 1912 and 1918 will be forced into
premature retirement within the next
three years, Navy officials declare.
Navy Department Aroused.
While the Navy Department is known
to be fully aroused to the critical situ-
alton confronting commissioned per-
sonnet of the lower grades, it is ap--
parent that Congress as a whole and
the public at large is unaware of the
serious effect on naval efficiency that
present conditions will have, unless
counteracted in time.
Within the next few years hundreds
Of commanders and lieutenant COM
nanders-indispen vertebrae in the
backbone of the line of the Navy
viii be showed out of the service with
out an opportunity for promotion or
appeal
The officers over whose head the
Damoclean sword of an outworn pro-
motion law is suspended have uniIn-
peachable records and invaluable eX-
perience, fitting them for higher
command. 1h
All of them are veterans of the World
cerViPP
aboard battleShipS, destroyerS and sub
marines, usually as heads of depart
mentS or in command of fleet units All
are in their physical prime.
Immediate legislation Is necessary to
prevent the first Of these manifestly
unjust separations Such legislation has
been advocated persistently by the Navy
Department for several years, but al
WAYS the hoped-for bills have been
lest in the legislative scramble on Capt.
toll Hill Remedial measures are pro-
yided for in the so-called Britten bill,
sponsored by Representative Fred Brit
ten of Illinois, which has passed the
Senate and is now pending in the
House.
Showdown Is Due.
Friends of the bill In Congress are
said to be ready to force final show
down in the House very shortly. The
eyes of the Navy are anxiously watch
ing for the outcome.
Up to now the existing promotion
system has operated satisfactorily, as
a rule. It's limits Of fairness have
stretched far enough to encompass all
cases deserving of promotion. A new
and unprecedented condition looms Just
ahead, however.
This year there will be from 80 to
90 commanders and lieutenant COM
manders who viii come before the
Naval Selection Board for promotion.
OF this number, due to irhibitions of
the law, only about rs officers can be
selected The remaining unfortunates
will be forced to retire.
Next year the same injustice viii be
meted out to another group of lieu
tenant commanders, and In the follow
ing year group OF commanders and q
still larger group Of lieutenant COM
manders viii feel the ax--unless Con-
gresS tnterveneS.
To understand this situation. ii is
necessary to look back q few years TO
conditions at Annapolis.
Beginning with the class OF 1907"
Q naval officer explained yesterday, the
Naval Academy classes became about
twice as large IN number Of officers
graduated as the classes previous to
: the classes prior to 1907 had in round
numbers about 100 members, starting
with the class of 1907, the size Of the
classes was increased to approximately
200 at graduation. Under the present
law there have been enough vacancies
IN the upper grades to take care OF
classes of the size of those prior to
1907. Hence, up to the present time
6nere has been no congestion. IS
Congestion Foreaecn.
However, because of this change In
the. size Of classes beginning with the
class OF 1907, 1t was foreSeen five years
ago that under the present law there
was going to be congestion about the
time the class Of 1911 came up for pro-
motion to the grade of commander.
The Bureau of Navigation made ex-
haustive studies of this matter, with the
result that the Britten bill was formu-
lated and presented three or four years
ago. Under this bill there is progress
sive and material wedding out in all
grades in order to create an efficient
low Of promotion and retain on the
active list Of the Navy those best fitted
for service"
Under present conditions, 1t was ex-
planned, promotion Of officers has been
such that only those who had some blot
on their records were passed over.
There were SUFFICIENT vacancies to allow
promotion Of the great majority of ON
GERS eligible. All have come up for pro-
motion well in advance Of the time
limit prescribed by law for automatic
retirement of officers not regularly pro-
NOTED.
Now, however, the upper grades are
congested with officers from the large
classes beginning with that of 1907, so
that officers of the younger classes are
effectually blocked from further ad-
vancement. During the next three
years, when the classes Of 1911, 1912
and 1913 come up for promotion, this
barrier will operate to send into retire
nent nearly two-thirds of these worthy
younger officers, although their services
are needed most urgently by ~ Navy
These men continued in tn service
with .the natural expectation that they
would have the same fair chances of
promotion as others before them have
had. Meme dreamed, on entering the
service, that an inequitable law would
rear itself in front of him at the peak
of his naval career to threaten disil-
lusionment.
Would Be Corrective FOR 20 Years.
The Britten bill. it Is said, would
result in a moderate proportion Of pro-
motions for these classes, and there
after in d normal flow of promotions
for the next 20 years, at least.
Unless this or some similar bill is
passed, the situation that now con-
fronts the Navy will be repeated when
the Naval Academy classes graduated
since 1920 get to the grade of lieu
tenant commander. Those classes were
greatly increased in size over prior
classes, and their promotion Is going
to be blocked Just as the classes Of
1911, 1912 and 1918 are blocked.
The prospect Is q demoralizing one.
1t is situation regarded by Navy