Evening star., 1932-02-02
Amslica S Naval Strength.

Sea" or e. chairman OF the Naval
Affairs Committee. yc-terday told the
cenete and the country that today in
actuGl navel com52t strength we have
very lite superiority End are very near
" on IN equal fc3tlng" with japan. And
get thN United states is authorized by
every tree ty that binds us and Japan
to haze a naval rcnGth in The ratio
to Japan'5 naval strength of five TO
three. Senator Hale was not guessing
at this staten mt of comparative COM
bat serens.h today HiS figures had
been carefully prepared by the Navy
Department shcislS The fact that he
diru'ged is a sad commentary on the
sightcdne~s OF trn American Gov
eminent. The policy has been laid
down at the international naval con-
ferences that our national defense Ee-
Quiremcnts call for Navy equal to
that Of Great Britain and as Ave to
three when ccmp9red to the Navy OF
Japan. And 7uch Navy is what the
country has expected.
The tension in the Far East. due to
the Slno-Japan"se conflict, is making
the American paople think. They do
not want war But they realize that
wav may be thrust upon them. And II
this country should be dragoOned int
war it will be too late to complain
. hot Ch tD
build the Nay up to proper strength.
Naval vessels are not built over night,
or many nights.
This country. so far as our Navy is
concerned has pursued a laissez faire
policy, despite the efforts OF those vino
have looked ahead to the needs for
national defense in the event OF war
The iica has been that war was an
mposSibility; that the bankrupt nations
OF the world, weighed down by the
burden of the Great War, could not and
would not enter a new conflict And
yet, except for the United States and
Germany. these nations have far greater
armamentS than they had in 1914 As
Senator Hole pointed out in his address
to the Senate. the claim has boen made
by many persons in this country that
If the United States does not build
shirS, the other nations will not build
them either: that all this country has
to do is to set a good example. Well,
the Unit9d States has set the example,
and what has followed? Since the
Washington Arms Conference in 1922
the United States has laid down or
appropriated for only So combat ships.
This is over period of ten years, when
naval vessels have come closer and
closer to the stage Of obsolescence. But
What have the other naval powers done?
Great Britain has laid down or appro-
pliat2d for 96 ships of war; Japan has
laid down or appropriated for 1926.
France l52 and Italy 10. Even Of
the 36 vessels which this country has
laid down or appropriated for. six are
destroyers which Congress appropriated
for last year. but which have not been
begun, and three Of the eight-!nch gun
cruisers included in this total may not
be laid down until 1884. 1885 and 1886
under the terms of the London treaty
The United States in 1922 aban-
Coned its naval program, program
that If pressed to a conclusion would
have given this country the greatest
Navy in the history of the world. Since
the abandonment of that program
other naval powers have pressed ahead
with their naval constructions. Unable
to meet their debt payments and in
economic distress these other nations
have still placed national defense and
naval construction first. The time has
arrived when Americans should look
the situation in the eye. And certain
" the time has come for the Congress
to authorize a naval program chat will
give this country the strength accorded
it under the naval treaties entered into
with the other powers.