Salt Lake Tribune | 1908-04-22 | Page 1 | Noted Naval Expert Praises Our Ships

NOTED IAVAL EXPERT mm oi skips! a j Sir William Henry While De- j dares Criticisms Are Un-, Un-, founded in Fact. BOSTON, April 21. In an interview j publisher here todny Sir William Henry White, who was for nearly twenty years the responsible designer of all British warships, comments on recent criticisms of the American navy. After declaring that, the criticisms are unfounded in fact anel supplementing this declaration by a long and technical explanation, Sir William says: "There is one thing moro that I j would like to say, and I think it is vital. I have known the American navy from the start, it. is not generally known that, the modem .American navy started with the purchase of two of 1113' designs from Armstrongs. That was in !18S5. From these designs the Charleston and the Baltimore were built. "The first thing I want to say in this connection is that you have naval architects as capable as an-, in niy judgment, in the world. "The second thing1 1 want, to sa'. is that your shipbuilding yards are quite equal' to any we have in their equipment equip-ment and management, anil all that. : "And the result is that, in my opin- ion. you have a fleet that, ship for snip, comparing' the ships designed at a given giv-en date nnd that is the only fair comparison com-parison is eiepial to anything the world contains. And next to the British navy I think your navy is the best in the world. ' '