Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 40, Number 34, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 3 January 1908 — SAYS ERRORS IN NAVY UNFIT IT FOR BATTLE [ARTICLE]

SAYS ERRORS IN NAVY UNFIT IT FOR BATTLE

Expert Declares th* ftoa'sifelf Sjjlng Ships^\r«-Mareljf . Traps. • |n •- a- ..... -3 V . - BELT IS TOO LOW. y . Sa *, ——jyj jv 0& jr 0% gA Defects in Construction Pointed fS&ut and &<***>&& Syst ent' Is Scored. . ■ M. *•’s . , - &bnry Reuterdahl, associate of the Ciftd States Naval Institute and American editor of “Fighting Ships,” is 'the author of a startling article oh “TJmS Needs of \>ur Nat»y”- i th aaiy McClure’s. 4lr„ Rkutfcrd’ahl'B espe»ft»ess on is not disputed and neither is his patriotism. He with President Roosevelt thtijl a navy must be built “and all its training given in time of peace” and w|th this in view he exposes.-' defects In our first-class battle ship* and armored cruisers which all hut make them useless as a efficient a fleet on heavy sea and in real action. Ur. Iteuterdahl’s criticisms appear to he the more amazing on account of the contention that most, if not all of the weak points he emphasizes, will be’ i> acknowledged by sea-going officers, “or, If the reader is sufficiency interested, by the testimony of his own eyes.” His principal points are the following: That the shell-proof armor of the - American battle ships- is virtually below the water line where it will do no good, leaving the broad side of the vessel exposed to the shells of the enemy. That this defect has been pointed out time ni*l again fTfiat other nations years ago recognized it as fatal and now have armor wrapped around the sides of their war vessels from five to seven feet above the water line. That, despite repeated accidents on

board our ships, the Navy Department year after year has approved of plans by which the greatest guns on the ships are directly above an open shaft leading to the. powder magazine. That other nations long since recognized the criminal stupidity of thus endangering the lives of officers and men and have remedied the defect by use of common sense and ordinary precautionary measures. That, without regard to the protests of exgprts, our battle ships have been built so low that If the sea is heavy and ships are in action the sea would ' * wash over the vessels, render some of their most effective guns useless afld practically leave the Ship, to the mercy Of the enemy. The officers in the American navy who command the battle ships and squadrons are toa old; that under existing conditions young men cannot attain command, and that the service is badly crippled as a result. ‘ That there is too much “bureau management” in Washington ; too much red tape in the Navy Department; that American genius Is stifled because of the bureau’s immersion in details, and that with the Secretary of the Navy a civilian, he should hate a board of expert advisers. Other matters are dwelt on, but the foregoing are by far the most important. An afternoon’s-fight on water sealed Russia’s fate in the recent war With Japan, says Mr,ußeuterdahl, and the same may well be true of the next war into which this nation is plunged. The issue is so important and the stake so tremendous that the sea power which is prepared in every respect to meet the crisis will be the victor.