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Show ii Wsm 1 M AK ESC0H R EGT 1 Q PJ Admitted Defects in American Ameri-can Torpedo Equipment Exaggerated. ORDNANCE CHIEF MAKES STATEMENT Representative Gardner's Recent Speech Appears to k Have Been Overdrawn. ' '5 WASHINGTOX, Deo. 3. Whiit ci-lu-ials regard s popular e:ca;Ker:lt'on of admitted det'eots in tho American IV navy's torpedo equipment irna tho sub-ifot sub-ifot of a statement issued tonight by Secretary DauleU embodying u special report I'roin Hear Admiral Strauss, chief of the bureau of ordnance. Specifically the statement was pro- pared to prove misleading a declaration " that "of lonf;-ran(;o torpedoes there are only fifty .eight in the navy,'1 quoted quot-ed from a speech by Representative " Gardner of Massachusetts, who ii urg-. urg-. " ing the administration to support his resolution for an investigation of the nation's military preparedness. "Vhile tho recent discussion of the t- subject has dealt only with the eqnip-ment eqnip-ment of battleships and cruisers, Admiral Ad-miral Strauss took occasion to point '- out that on-ran0 torpedoes are neither required nor tlesired for sub- marines, lie recalled that the British V armored cruisers Aboukir. Cressy and Uosrue were torpedoed and destroyed bv a German submarine at a range of 500 yards. False Impression. "This statement standing by itself is calculated to leave a false impression,"' impres-sion,"' said Mr. Daniels. "In view of repeated statements that the navy haa only fiftv-eight long-range torpedoes, the chief of the bureau of ordnance has been asked to furnish a statement concerning the torpedo situation and has complied as follows: " 'The fifty -eight long-rangs torpedoes torpe-does so often referred to as the only ones the navy possesses are of the twentv-one inch, twenty-one foot type and there is no ship in the United States navy yet in commission that is being prepared to take them. They were manufactured for new construction, construc-tion, beginning with the Nevnda and the Oklahoma, and these two ships will ; not go into commission until about the end of next year. Their long range is obtained by an increase in length over existing types, and no ship prior to the Xevada and Oklahoma is constructed for torpedoes of this length. So far as the bureau of ordnance can ascertain, ascer-tain, these torpedoes have as high a range, or higher, than any torpedoes i-auufactured abroad. Torpedoes in Use. r 'Beginning with the Virginia class, which went into commission pnn cipally in lf'OO, and up to and including includ-ing the. Texas, which went into commission com-mission this year, all the battleships i are provided with twenty-one inch, seventeen-foot tubes. Within the last two years it was found possible to so improve the twenty-one inch, seventeen- - foot torpedo as to practically double its range and steps were taken at once To construct new torpedoes having the increased range. We already have a sufficient number of these longer range torpedoes to outfit the eight most recent re-cent dreadnoughts in commission and that is the equipment that they will have on board. " 'In addition to the above there - . are being manufactured at the govern- - r ment works at Newport and the Bliss " , works e.t Brooklyn a sufficient number to provide all of the battleships of the . L'nitea States navv beginning with the Virginia class with the long-range torpedoes. tor-pedoes. The Ohio class, which was first commissioned about 1904, is filled . with eighteen-inch tubes, and torpedoos of the highest range cannot be substi- tuted for the equipment now furnished without serious alterations. All Well Provided. ' " 'All of the armored cruisers, except ex-cept four, and all of the older destroyers destroy-ers are provided with eighteen-inch tubes. All of the cruisers and all of the destroyers subsequent to destroyer ' Nc. 28 are provided with torpedoes that were up to date in range and .. - speed one year ago. Since that time a scheme nas been developed for increasing in-creasing the range of the eighteen-inch eighteen-inch torpedo and there are now in process of construction eighteen-inch .. - torpedoes of the newer type which will outfit all destroyers from Xo. 28 with - the long range weapon. :- "'Long-range torpedoes are neither required nor desired for submarines. Submarine warfare is of such character ; as to make it advisable to use short- : range high-speed torpedoes and that is " the cla?s that submarines are being furnished with. The Aboukir, Cressy '' '- and Hogue were torpedoed recently, it will bs recalled, at a range or 500 yards.'" |