The construction of storehouses, railroads, barracks, repair-shops, ordnance plants, and terminal facilities in a territory so extensive as to be some 3,000 mi. apart, has been going forward rapidly. It has been necessary to interchange officers with our allies for the purpose of comparing data of various sorts and insuring the maximum amount of coöperation between this country and the nations allied to it. With regard to the reorganizations recently effected in carrying on the work of his department, Secretary Baker called attention to the following steps which have been taken: (1) The creation of a War Council of elastic membership to take a large supervisory view of all questions of supply and organization. The members of this council being free from the drudgery of detail administration work, can give the government the "highest value of their talents and experiences"; (2) The reorganization of the machinery of the Ordnance Department in preparation for the new phases of its work; (3) The reorganization of the Quartermaster General's department to handle problems tremendously greater than those ever before encountered by it. tion of labor and generally to prevent all avoidable evils which might result from the speed and magnitude of the new operations. Secretary Baker commended the manner in which these duties had been carried out and accomplished in a manner as satisfactory as possible. Taking a complete view of the situation, he stated that the demands made by the initial rush of preparation had been met in a satisfactory manner, and that great work had been done in the expansion and reorganization of the various technical sections of the department upon the lines recommended and made essential by the principles of industrial management and of efficiency. On the whole, Secretary Baker's defense of his department's work was aggressive. His statement met fairly and openly the criticisms which have been passed upon his department, combated them fearlessly, and showed wherein steps had been taken to insure the War Department's pursuing its tremendous task, which has as its aim the successful termination of the war. He stated his willingness to entertain criticism that would be of a constructive nature, and the manner in which he has reorganized various phases of his work goes to prove his desire to meet any such suggestions more than half way. The War Department has faced a tremendous task; undoubtedly mistakes have been made; there may have been matters in which more speed could have been attained; but, ac The purpose of the Council of National Defense was, according to the War Secretary, "A reconciliation of conflicts and a survey of the national needs and resources." He stated the purpose in organizing the general Munitions Board and its successor, the War Industries Board, as: (1) to assign priorities as among the sev-cording to the Secretary of War, with eral departments of the Government and the allied governments in their demands upon the industries of the country; (2) to advise as to supplies of materials and labor; (3) to advise on questions of price; (4) to secure industrial and labor coöperation; (5) to avoid enhancement of prices, confusion of industry, exhaus the selection and training of our army in this country, the substantial size of the force now over seas, and the manner in which the great army it is necessary to maintain behind the lines has been organized, a task has been accomplished whose magnitude has been unheard of in the history of the world. THE NAVY The Secretary of the Navy has announced that more than three times as many men and nearly three times as many ships are in service as when war was declared, and that 787 vessels of various classes, estimated to | cost $1,150,400,000, have been contracted for or actually begun during the current year. Of them, the larger number necessarily must be small vessels, such as submarine chasers and patrol boats. It is believed and averred, but on no official authority, having been commenced. If ready that the construction of battleships now they would be extremely useful has been slackened somewhat in order in convoying transports because of to concentrate effort upon destroyers their high speed, strong battery and and other vessels urgently required the four airplanes each is to carry. for the anti-submarine campaign. No light cruisers appear on the proFrom the Navy Department emanates gramme of construction. the encouraging statement that "The American Navy will lead the world with its destroyers within eighteen months". This expectation would seem to be justified if one may credit a newspaper dispatch which says that a contract for forty has been awarded to one shipbuilding firm alone. (See also XX, Aeronautics.) Increase in Ships.-New destroyers are to be of a recent design. They will have a speed of 35 knots and improved sea-keeping qualities. Over 1,200 yachts have been offered to the Government for employment. They vary from the large steamer to the tiny power boat 40 ft. in length. Some are donated outright, some are held at moderate prices, some for charter, and others "at fancy prices". How many of these have been taken over has not been made public. A special type known as "submarine chasers" has been developed by our Allies. They are swift motor boats, armed with 3-inch guns, and either 80 or 110 ft. in length. Experience has proved the greater value of the longer craft. Some 135 of the 110-ft. class are building with all speed at our navy yards, and 200 more are under contract. Less is known of the types and numbers of submarines about to be added to the list beyond the letting in May of contracts for 38 of the 800-ton class. Naval opinion tends to discourage sacrificing the construction of destroyers in order to build under-water boats; nor is that opin1on wholly at one in the question of type of submarine. Congressional preference seems to lie with the smaller coast defense class, of which about three times as many as of the "larger fleet submarines" are contemplated. The purely defensive rôle, while strategically wrong, usually wins legislative adoption. Some 10 scout cruisers had been authorized in appropriation bills enacted prior to our entrance into the war, but they are not reported as To aid our Allies in the important work of scouting for submarines, and of patrolling, a number of revenue cutters, to employ the old familiar term by which vessels of the United States Coast Guard used to be known, have been taken into the service of the Navy and sent abroad, together with "dozens" of steam fishing smacks, peculiarly adapted to the purpose of sweeping the seas around Great Britain for mines planted by the Germans. The former are armed powerfully enough to engage a U boat. A special design for a "combination mine sweeper and sea going tug" of 1,000 tons has been prepared at the Navy Department. Some 24 are to be built at once, deliveries to begin "within six months" or in March, 1918. It is known that our destroyers in British waters have been reinforced by quite a detachment of small, swift craft such as yachts, which, like the revenue cutters, perform well the duties of patrolling and of scouting for U boats. At the time of this writing, at least one engagement between an American destroyer and a German submarine has officially been announced. It resulted in the undoubted destruction of the latter. It is gratifying to be able to refer to the admiration expressed by the British Admiralty "for the efficient and seamanlike conduct of the officers and crew of this destroyer". On the other hand, one of our destroyers was torpedoed by a U boat on Oct. 19, one man being killed and several wounded. The destroyer arrived safely into port for repairs. Official and unofficial advices speak in high terms of our destroyers as being prepared, on arriving at Queenstown, to accept the arduous duties confronting them, as well as of their staunchness of construction and freedom from engine trouble while actually employed in the stren uous service to which they are assigned and in which their officers and men are acquitting themselves so creditably. So far as is given out to the public, the Arizona is the only new battleship added to the fleet. Some eight others are more or less approaching completion with six more in contemplation. Six enormous cruisers of 35,000 tons displacement, 35 knots speed, and armed with 10- and 14-inch guns, are authorized. Possibly some are in process of construction under contracts already placed. A bold step in engineering has been taken by the Navy Department in the adoption of the "electric drive". Steam turbines generate the current for electric motors on the propeller shafts. This novelty was so successful in the collier Jupiter as to encourage the Department to install it on the largest men-of-war ever designed. Of other vessels, ante-war appropriation bills authorized the construction of four fuel ships, one supply ship, two ammunition ships, one hospital ship, one repair ship, two transports, two destroyer-tenders, and one fleet submarine-tender. Of these the present status has not as yet been published. sels caught in our ports by the outbreak of the war have been seized by the Government. Such of their machinery as was damaged by their crews under orders from Berlin has been or is being repaired. A number of these ships have been turned over to the Navy and rechristened, a procedure not in harmony with historical precedent: Heretofore, captured vessels habitually retained their old names under the new flag. (See also XX, Ship-Building and Marine Engi neering.) Since all our newest vessels from dreadnaughts down are oil-burners, the question of maintaining a supply of this fuel has assumed national importance. Private interests are seeking legislative permission to extract from certain Government reservations petroleum held for the exclusive use of the Navy. The Secretary of the Navy has strongly urged Congress to deny all such demands. Whether or not all speculators will succeed in their selfish move to cripple the Navy remains to be seen. The bill in question will doubtless come up at the next session of Congress. Charleston, W. Va., has been chosen as the site for a government armor plant for which $11,000,000 have been appropriated. The trim and natty appearance of Aircraft.-Aviation is receiving men-of-war in time of peace has van- marked attention on the part of the ished under the necessity of disguis- naval authorities. Airplanes and ing them in time of war by painting seaplanes in great numbers are bethem in irregular streaks or blotches ing acquired, and men to operate them of various colors-camouflage, in are in training at Pensacola. A large short. air station is developing at Cold Spring Harbor near Cape May. Seven subsidiary stations are to be established on the Atlantic Coast and as many on the Pacific Coast. The value of the airplane in detecting the presence of the submarine, while less than some enthusiasts claim, is great enough to warrant its construction on an extensive scale even if it were not almost indispensable in "spotting" the fall of shot and in controlling the fire of guns at long ranges. (See also XX, Aeronautics.) Since naval airplanes must on occasion descend to the surface of the water or rise from it, they take the particular amphibious form known as seaplanes. Lack of deck space and of an efficient launching apparatus prevent, To provide for immediate wants, two merchant steamers, the Saratoga and Havana of the Ward Line, have been acquired and are now fitting out as hospital ships. Each is to have about 300 beds and to be supplied with every possible modern appliance for the care of the sick and wounded. In this connection it may be stated that the health of the Navy is excellent, the only diseases giving much concern during the war being those of the respiratory tract, such as measles and mumps, that spread for the most part by throat and nose secretions. Only ten cases of typhoid fever have been reported since this war began. Eighty-seven German merchant ves as yet, the carrying of sufficient seaplanes by men of war, although unquestionably the seaplanes will shortly be an essential part of every ship's equipment. Rear-Admiral Fiske, U. S. N., proposes a special type of seaplane to carry a torpedo and discharge it against enemy cruisers or battleships. His invention, patented in 1912, while not adopted by us, has already been employed by the Germans, who in this manner sank the Gena on May 2 of this year, following the example of the British who thus destroyed four Turkish ships in the Sea of Marmora in August, 1915. Mention should be made of dirigible balloons for the Navy. Some 16 of an improved type are now building. The trial of the first one delivered is said to be satisfactory. These balloons are to be used in patrolling our own coast, but it is not unlikely that they will be sent across the Atlantic. The site of the Jamestown Exposition, a tract of land 440 acres in extent and capable of enlargement by dredging to over 1,000 acres, has been purchased for a fleet base at Hampton Roads. Besides affording facilities for training some 10,000 men, it will be a submarine and aviation operating base. Oil storage and fueling apparatus, supply storehouses, mine, net and torpedo storehouses and fleet recreation and drill fields are included in this broad plan. All radio stations are now placed under the control of the Navy, and diligent search is being made for concealed private wireless plants. The Fleet. The first American officer to lose his life in this war was Lieut. C. C. Thomas, U. S. N., in command of the guns' crew on board the American steamer Vacuum, torpedoed by a German submarine on April 28. His death was the result of exposure after the sinking of the ship. The successful convoy of the first contingent of our troops to France by a squadron under Rear-Adm. Albert Gleaves, U. S. N., has elicited general and official approbation. How much of this same work is still being done, and how well, must be inferred from the immunity enjoyed up to the present moment by the transports carry ing further detachments. The transport service is organized, manned and operated by the Navy. The steamer Antilles of the Southern Pacific line was torpedoed and sunk on Oct. 17 on her return voyage, in spite of the armed vessels convoying her, and more recently the Finland under similar circumstances has shared the same fate. The first loss in action of a distinctly naval craft is that of the patrol boat Alcedo, torpedoed by a German submarine in November, in foreign waters. Unhappily it is necessary to record the death of three officers and several men. The sinking of the destroyer Chauncey through collision was reported on Nov. 21. On Dec. 6 the destroyer Jacob Jones was torpedoed while on duty in foreign waters. A regrettable incident is announced by the Navy Department in the killing by gun-fire from an American patrol vessel of an officer and an enlisted man on board an Italian submarine which failed to respond to the established signal of recognition. It is presumable that some of our anti-submarine craft are operating in the Mediterranean. This presumption is strengthened by the cable report that American sailors have recently been seen in Rome. A brigade of marines is believed to form part of General Pershing's army. That these "amphibious" soldiers will maintain the high reputation of their honorable corps is not open to doubt. Personnel.-Upon Adm. W. S. Benson, Chief of Naval Operations, reposes the tremendous responsibility which his title implies. The Navy is as yet without a general staff. The duties pertaining to such an organization are performed by the Chief of Naval Operations. In all probability he has the counsel and well digested thought of the "General Board" of which he is President ex-officio. He went to Europe in November as the naval member of a commission sent by the President to confer with our principal Allies. From the President's public announcement of his desire to see established a closer Jan. 3, 1918, confirms this statement.— 1 A press report from France, dated ED. Thousands of "expert gunners" are serving in the gun crews on American merchantmen. coöperation on the part of all the powers now engaged in war with Germany it may be presumed that Admiral Benson will return with a well- The Medical Corps has profited by matured scheme for our fleet's taking having at its disposition some 180 a still larger share in the work of physicians and surgeons already enmaking the world safe for democracy. rolled in its Reserve Corps. An unAt the time of this writing nothing known number of other physicians is known beyond the fact that he did have been taken in with temporary go abroad. A General Staff is con- commissions as acting assistant sursidered absolutely necessary by stu-geons. dents of naval warfare; never more so than at present. Such a body is to be found in the admiralties of practically all the great powers. Vice-Adm. W. S. Sims is in command of all our vessels, both regular and auxiliary, now operating abroad in Atlantic waters. His selection for this important duty is universally commended, for the navy has no officer of his rank superior to him in professional capacity and in the rare gift of inspiring those subject to his orders. That he stands high in British estimation is shown by their assigning him to the command of all Allied naval forces in Irish waters during the temporary absence of the British Commander-in-Chief. At the present writing none of our battleships have gone abroad, but sooner or later some are not unlikely to be sent to the aid of our Allies. Adm. H. T. Mayo remains in command of the Atlantic Fleet, to-day twice as large as in peace times, as every battleship and cruiser that was in reserve has been put into full commission. Adm. Wm. B. Caperton commands the Pacific Fleet now in South Atlantic waters and Adm. Austin M. Knight our Asiatic Fleet. To provide at least in part for the vast numbers of men and officers, required for our greatly expanded Navy, the President signed on May 22 a bill authorizing an increase of strength from 87,000 to 150,000 and the granting of temporary commissions or warrants to meet the exigencies of the moment. In addition two classes at the Naval Academy have been graduated instead of the customary one class, thus adding some 350 ensigns to the available list. A notable feature in administration peculiarly characteristic of this war is the enthusiastic and voluntary service of scores of our leading experts in various branches of science and industry. Such unpaid loyalty is beyond praise. The seven original members of the Advisory Commission to the "Council of National Defense" were Daniel Willard, President of the Baltimore & Ohio R. R., Samuel Gompers, President of the American Federation of Labor, Dr. Franklin H. Martin, of the American Society of Surgeons, Howard E. Coffin, of the Society of Automobile Engineers, Bernard M. Baruch, a successful New York business man of great capacity, Dr. Hollis Godfrey, of the Drexel Institute, Philadelphia, and Julius Rosenwald, President of the Sears-Roebuck Co. While this Council is chiefly concerned with army matters it has to help the business of the navy as well. Through an unfortunate and doubtless unintentional provision of the Food Control Act, all the members of this Council felt themselves obliged to resign. A National Research Council, appointed by the President, is enjoying the coöperation of the four principal engineering societies of the country and the financial assistance of the Engineering Foundation. Practically every branch of science and mechanical art is represented in this Council. The naval member is Chief Constructor David W. Taylor, U. S. N. Secretary Daniel's Summary of the Year's Work.-With the new session of Congress it was but natural to expect that legislative investigation into the conduct of the war and navy departments would ensue. Both Similarly, the Marine Corps is these divisions of the government ornearly doubled in size, the strength ganization had been brought face to being increased from 17,400 to 30,000. | face with tremendous new problems. |