Evening star., 1940-05-26

cape Horn, and OF providing absolute
dependence on any foreign power.
The following survey, in many re-
spects soberly disquieting, is founded on
interviews with responsible officers OF
the Navy and recent testimony of its
chieftains before Senate and House
Committees. Obviously significant is
bill now pending in Congress, which was
introduced last January at the instance
OF the Navy Department. 1t provides
for restoration of the Presidents war
powers as granted on March 4, 1917
To begin with, the battle efficiency OF
the American Fleet is believed high, and
Its morale intrepid. Among the navies
of the world, that of the United States
ranks for the moment second to the
English fleet alone. 1t perhaps excels
Great Britain's seaforce in enterprise Of
scientific research and readiness to un-
dertake new departures. In respect to
gunnery it Is thought to surpass all
rivals
$4,837 1888 for Decade.
Since 1882, the Navy Department has
spent So, 3,408 920, ,761. Its regular and
emergency budgets for the fiscal year
1940-41. plus special appropriation
under the Presidents message of May
16, amount to total of Slab, 756, ,728
for the coming year, and for the decade
a grand aggregate of $4,882,677, ,489.
OF 371 combatant vessels which the
United States now has in commission,
PIT are overage under the terms of the
1880 London Treaty, which set the period
after which superannuation is permitted
at 26 years for battleships, 20 for cruis-
ers, 16 for destroyers and 13 for subma-
rines. Overage compliments in the
American Navy include out of
is battleships, 2 out of 10 light cruisers,
154 destroyers out of 218 and 68 out
of IS submarines.
The Navy Department remains ada
trine espoused 20 years ago. This is the
supremacy of battleship over airplane
In statement before the Senate Appro-
priations Committee few weeks ago, the
official judgment was voiced by Rear
Admiral S. M. Robinson, chief Of the
Bureau of Engineering. You have one
country today" said he, which has a
preponderance of battleships. That
country controls the sea. You have an
other country which has preponder-
ance of aircraft, and it is a blockaded
country"
On the first of this month the Regular
Navy, the Naval Reserve and the Marine
ITO oiYN1onnc
of which 33 were experimental and 430
were rated as obsolete or obsolescent.
The Navy proper could then muster only
$500 service planes. including cargo and
training ships. They were unequlpped
with armor for pilots and anti-leak
tanks.
Age of Battleships.
None of our commissioned battleships
has seen less than 16 years of service
and 10 are 20 years old or more. Reck-
oning from the dates on which active
service began, their ages are as follows:
West Virginia and Colorado, 16 years;
California and Maryland, 1S; Tennessee,
10; Idaho, 20; New Mexico, 2l Missis-
sippi, %; Arizona, Pennsylvania, Okla
homa and Nevada, %; New York and
Texas, 26, and Arkansas, 27.
Not for two years to come, unless
drastic measures OF expedition are taken,
will the United States have in service
single battleship with a tonnage exceed
ing 80, 400, speed better than 21.5 knots
and armament more powerful than eight
16-inch guns The speeds of the battle
ship squadron, in knots are given thus:
Oklahoma, New York and Texas, 19;
Arkansas, 1872; Nevada, 20; Pennsyl-
vania, Arizona, Tennessee, California,
Colorado. West Virginia and Maryland,
21, and Idaho, New Mexico and Missis-
sippi, 215. Tre Navy Departments view,
it should be aoued, is that speed is less
important than armor plate.
The standard displacement of the
Arkansas is $4,000 tons; of the New York
and Texas, $1,000; Oklahoma and Ne
vada, $4,000; Maryland, 3l,500, and West
Virginia, $1,000. Only two ships, the
Idaho and New Mexico, attain 33,400
tons. The Colorado, Maryland and West
Virginia alone mount 16-inch guns. The
main batteries of all the Others with one
exception, consist of 14-inch cannon.
The Arkansas bears dozen 12-inch guns.
BY 1912 and 1943 Japan is expected to
complete four new superdreadnaughts
of more than 10000 tons each, three tur-
rets of nine 16-inch guns and speed in
excess of 30 knots. They were laid down
secretly in 1888 and 1899. Great Britain
has had in service for 20 years the battle
cruiser Hood, with a tonnage of 42,100
and speed of 80 knots. France is add
ing to her navy this summer the battle
ship Richeiieu, of $4,000 tons and 30
knots
Washington Soon to Be Launched.
The last battleship launched in the
United States was the West Virginia, on
November 10, 1921. The next, after an
interval of 1872 years, will be the coun-
try's pioneer 35,000-ton dreadnaught,
the Washington. which is to take the
water June l. Under current schedules,
she will have speed of % knots and a
main battery Of nine 16-inch guns. The
Washington will not be commissioned
before the end of 194l, nor enter the line
earlier than the spring of 1912.
Her sister ship, the North Carolina
viii be launched June 13 and begin serv-
ice in 1912. The keels Of four other bat
tleships of the 35,000-ton class were laid
between July, 1889, and February, 1910
Tvhev were the Sollth Dakota Indiana