Show SIMS IM RULED ik BY f BRiTISH H JH THEORIES RI r resident Wilsons Wilson's Plan Planor 01 a I for or Action Revealed f H ly Secretary Daniels I at t Committee Probe PI Fl FilL 53 N I r-ASHINGTON r May 12 FF A confidential cablegram Lr am ra President Wilson to Rear miral Sims in London sent Ar oo war was read to the thelia w mate e naval In Investigating committee lia day ay by Secretary Daniels It Jt ex- ex essed ased surprise that th the British ad- ad had failed tailed to use Great Brins Brin's Bri- Bri ns n's great naval superiority etL ef- ef eti i L g L against the submarines and andIed led died on Admiral Sims fo for comments I based on independent alight and without regard to Judg MIl Q P t anyone anyon on side t pf fife 1 ater ter I T The e admiralty was he helpless pless t to the pint of ot panic In the face of or th the sub sub- l I e situation the message sa said d. d oo O PRUDENT Every plan we lye suggest they reject ct lEvery r some Orne reason of ot prudence Mr wn added In m my mr view this is Is' not for tor prudence but for for boldness yen ren at the cost of great losses Of J. J conclusion President Wilson ked kd Admiral Sims to advise him as Fl F ouId give advice e If U you were run run- Ing ng nga a a. law of ot your ow own n I Admiral Ad Sims' Sims reply said Secretary aniels who presented the presidents president's in connection with his an answer w r charges charies against the navy deF de- de OF F il conduct of t tie the e war was ang ar a ng ing telegram of ot generalities of ot what r j e British admiralty was doing Ie I ItLE E MESSAGE resident esl ent Wilsons Wilson's message to to Sims OF Bows From the beginning of the war been greatly surprised at the nure of t the e British admiralty alty to F use Great Britain's great naval naval 8 In an effective way In Inthe Inthe n the presence of ot the present C rine emergency they ar ar are help helpless ess to the point of panic Every plan we suggest they re reject re- re 10 j ct for some reason of prudence prude ce 1 In my view this Is not a atin time for J prudence but for tor boldness even t the cost of ot great losses In most of ot yo jour our r dispatches you have quite properly advised us of ot J sort of ot aid and op co-op co operation desired desired de- de sired from US US' by the admiralty he trouble is that th their lr plans and Of F do not seem to 10 us us Cious I would be very much to you if It Ito o would woud w uld report rort r port t to me confidentially of ot co course iI x cUy what what the I admiralty has n vreen t een doing and arid w what at they hey have ac ac- and added to the he report re- re I port your own and sugI sugI sug- sug I based upon Independent ought of ot t the e wh whole le situation without re regard ard to the judgments i j 1 anyone n that side of ot the water IE OF CONVOYS 3 rhe admiralty was waa very verr ver slow to toad ad ado adopt pt the protection of convoys s 's san and an anit it is 1 now oW I Judge protecting con conVoys on adequate scale within J L' L th the danger zone seeming to keep small Ismail craft crat with the grand fleet absence of cr craft rt for convoy isS is is' isten S ten p en more apparent art pi the French o. o sf if than on an the English n coast coastIn Jf id d In the channel channe I Ido do not see seelow see low nw ow rhA th h military supplies and fuel oil are to be delivered de- de frt livered at British ports In arty any other oth- oth S v er erway way within the next few months month than under Adequate convoy There 1 presently not be ships or tank tank- era enough and our shipbuilding plans plans' nay may not hot begin to yield im im- results In less than eight eight- en n months I. I I believe that you will Keep jese hese instructions absolutely andI and I to yourself and that you ill fill give me such advice as you i wild uld give if you handling and if 4 rou OU Were running a navy of your yourI I nV 0 ITTER 1 TER FROM SIMS J I r r. r Daniels also read a letter Jetter tr front ro Iral Sims to ta former Ambassador I re eat at London written AU Augut U t 7 7 in part said n ii this connection I 1 have hae sug- sug I sUon to make I have hav received Orl r rd practically directly from the that he was much dis- dis sed ired with my mv reply ibIs t cable cable- I Continued on page age 3 3 age I I I SIMS RULED BY BRITISH Continued Continued from page 1 1 gram that that that-i it did not change his his' opinion opinion- at all all- that he regards me I d by trie by y the l admiralty and and so pro British pro that he seriously ton ton- con con- I- I the ac of replacing ing g lY 9 other officer COMB COMBINED NED ATT- ATT ATTACK CK Admiral Sims' Sims reply to to the president en t told also of plans f for or a combined ed sea ea and land attack to turn the German right flank and cut off Zeebrugge as a provisioning plo base base- Mr 1 Daniels said That was the kind of bold and audacious thing the president pr and and- the thenay navy nay department had been urging been from rom our en trance Into the war declared leclar d the secretary But even even then Admiral Sims said Eald it had not been definitely decided on by the war council though the the- daring and successful attack on Zeebrugge came much later It might have been a er very different story if it tt had b been n undertaken e when the navy department was urging some such f bold plan all of ot which Adm Admiral r l Sims thought thought impracticable when when- urged d dby by the navy department DISCREDITS NAVY Admiral Sims told the president hed he had been shown studies of the departments department's departments department's departments department's depart depart- ments ment's plan to prevent the egress of submarines s. s Mr Daniels said and th that t the he considered the scheme impracticable cable He evidently sought to discredit the navy saying saying that these sam same suggestions and many similar ones had been made by people people people peo peo- of all alI classes since t the e beginning of the war said Mr fr Daniels WANTED d'- d' Sims' Sims cable to th the president sug- sug that the proper policy to p pursue pursue pur pur- r- r sue was to adopt the the recommendations recommendations he had made to to the department most of which had been decided upon and pu put in op t Admiral Ad Ad- Admiral miral Sims suggested them Secretary Secretary Secretary Secre Secre- tary Daniels declared He added the tile the secretary con continued that we should adopt an organization n similar r in all respects to the British squadron squad squad- squadron ron and virtually transfer all alI naval authority to his headquarters in London TOO PRO Two remarkable and and significant statements in Admiral Sims Sims' reply to President Wilson Nilson were cited by Mr Daniels as evidence that the admiral was so hypnotized by British by-British British influences influences that that- he was willing to try to lure the the president of the United Slates States into the feeling that regardless of ot future developments ve always count count upon the support of the Brit Brit- British ish navy V v. v WHO SAID SO t X It would be interesting to know what British government officials assured as assured as- as s- s him that regardless of future developments the United States States' can always count upon the support of the British nav navy said Mr Daniels n It seems inconceivable th that t any admiral could have regarded such assurances assurancE'S as worth paying tolls to transmit Every schoolboy should know that lri a a democratic government no govern government govern govern- ment meat official could pledge his coun country's country's coun coun- try's navy to to- support another government govern govern- govern government ment regardless of ot future developments develop develop- ments It is to be hoped that if It Admiral Admiral Ad Ad- Admiral miral Sims has such assurances he will send send senda a copy of ot the pledge in writing with the name ot the important important tant government officials officials' appended thereto to be filed tiled In the archives archives' of sops for the simple UNDER A A SPELL Admiral Sims was was under n ler the spell of Influences of-Influences ces that m made do him b believe that the British government go could be depended UP upon ri more to take care care of ot America Americ than America Am rica should depend upon own her her her- own strong right arm said Mr Daniels This att attitude attitude tude of ot acceptance of everything British he he added Undoubtedly undoubtedly undoubtedly un accounts for tor his Ills opposition to the creation n o of an independent I American Army and his idea that American troops sent ent abroad should I be used sed as an ah annex to the British sh army army- quoting G General n ral Bliss as recommendIng recommending recommending rec rec- that policy polley When General General Gen Gen- eral Bliss read that that Admiral Sims had quoted him hin as advocating such a policy he wrote at at once t to the he secretary secretary secretary secre secre- tary of wary war r declaring ng th the truth to be exactly th the reverse NEGLECT U U. U S. S I Daniels Daniels' went further into into- recommendations ns made by Sims I He told of of- the recommendation that the coast of the United States be stripped of of ot pro protection that destroyers- destroyers might be besent besent besent sent to European waters The results when submarines did dirt later appear appear off ort our coasts proved the wisdom of the departments department's policy polley DanIels declared In one of the letters of Admiral Sims to the department read by the secretary secre secre- tary he told of ot a conversation he I had with Premier Lloyd George in which of the fu- fu he convinced the premier fh- fh the ot of attempting attempting- the bottling up submarine It If he convinced th the British prime prime- minister he failed utterly when later in a a. long cablegram t to he be und undertook convince the president of ot the United States who pressed the plan of the ban age across th North sea DanIels Daniels Dan Dan- Lois said J j That he convinced ed the prime minIster minister min min- ister later is interesting Everybody WR was wa wrong except Sims and those in In the admiralty who opposed any new plan I ION RELIED ON BRITISH Taking up another phase of ot the question and aiming to sho show further urther Admiral Sims' Sims alleged attitude aLtitude toward the British Daniels charged that instead instead in stead of making his own Independent Inquiry Into reports of ot our commanders that submarines submarine had been damaged and sunk Admiral Sims according to 1 the statement issued by his own headquarters headquarters head head- head I quarters submitted such reports to o othe the British admiralty and accepted th the admiralty's awards Daniels asserted that Sims told C. C C C. Carlin then congressman from Vir Vir- Virginia ginia visiting London during the war that as as coin pared to the British navy our achievements had had amounted to little that England had d protected us upon the seas and we could always rely upon tipon her het to do so so and that and that in view of ot this friendship there was no necessity for tor us us to desire a navy nav which would in any way equal that that that-of of f Great Britain Carlin Daniels s said seid ld declared that Sims should hould be on the British h p payroll payroll pay pay- y- y roll not Amer Americas cas v- v |