Show THE C B OF NATIONAL DEFENSE I WHAT THE ARMY AND NAVY WOULD HAVE TO DO IN WAR WHY THEY SHOULD HAVE TO DO IT AND WHAT THEY NEED FOR SUCCESSFUL PERFORMANCE PERFORMANCE-A A THOUSAND WORDS A ADAY ADAY ADAY DAY EXPRESSING THE MOST AUTHORITATIVE FACTS AND OPINIONS AS TO OUR NATIONAL NEEDS By J. J W. W MULLER i Author of The Invasion of or America XI Imperfections of the Submarine What has been true throughout all naval wars of ot the past and what Is equally true today is that the backbone of ot any navy that can command command command com com- mand the sea consists of or the strongest strong strong- est eel sea going sea keeping ships of Its day or of ot its battleships Thus the general board of ot the tho navy said in its report of ot November No 17 17 1914 It repeated not only what the general general general gen gen- eral board had declared undeviatingly undeviating undeviating- ly since 1903 but It repeated merely merel what the lessons lesson a of ot all naval wars warsIn warsin warsin in all history have declared Single ship actions or fights between between be be- tween small groups of ships may make varying fortune of war for Cor months but the decision that means definite v victory tory or defeat will como come from Cram a n fleet action And the fleet that wins will win because its ships have bave superior resisting power and superior smashing power The large Increase ase in submarines is most desirable said the secretary secretary secre secre- tary of the navy in presenting this report to congress but nothing inthe in to inthe the present resent war ha has disproved the tho boards board's faith in the m modern dern dread naught It is important that the American I people shall not be carried away by the romantic thrills caused by I exploits of at the wonderful submarine Four times Umes in the history of our OUT existing ex feting navy the scientific u building of the fleet has haa been halted seriously serious ly by enthusiasm over new types types' of nf ships that proved fallacies First came the tho commerce destroyer Cal fal fallacy lac lacy based on the belief that a n swift unarmored and practically unarmed un up- armed ship could sweep the seas of at enemy commerce and escape enemy enemy- warships by running a away way It produced produced pro pro- produced the almost wholly worthless ships Minneapolis and Columbia that soon had bad to be relegated to the position of or training and receiving I oria pj P ships Then there was waa tho the armored naval ram hailed as as' as the death blow to armored vessels There wore were the armored heavily turreted heavily gunned con coast t defense monitors that cost coat And finally there was the dynamite throwing cruiser of or which type fortunately only one ship the tho Vesuvius was built It was hailed as a wonder of ot war and It was an utter failure All these appealed as powerfully to public imagination in their time as does the submarine today The submarine submarIno has proven itself to be bo an undoubtedly effective and necessary ship but despite tho the extraordinary things it has done in the present war it has not yet proved that it Jt itIs' itIs itis is Is' decisive It may be that events later on may change tills this condition but at this time the big ship remains reo re- re 1 mains ruler of or the seas The one positive achievement of the tho submarine Is that it has made blockade mortally hazardous it if not Impossible But blockade of or the American coast would mean that an enemy already had won the mastery mastery mastery mas mas- tery of ot the sea If the American and armored cruiser fleet is properly strong blockade will be impossible and the country will not need to fall back on the desperate expedient of keeping its ports open by submarine attacks In Inthis Inthis Inthis this sense the submarine submarino is far more mote valuable to continental European countries whose coasts arc are on narrow narrow nar nar- row seas easily blocked by close neighbors or raided from nearby bases The submarines submarine's second undoubted ed achievement is as a commerce destroyer But Dut here again the narrow narrow nar nar- row seas of or E Europe rope provide a con can differing from Crom the tho position of orthe or the United States Furthermore Inthe in inthe inthe the event ent of an attack on America there would be no hostile commerce to destroy The only shipping that would attempt to approach our coasts would be friendly shipping to tobe tobe tobe be welcomed eagerly In Im addition the United States has been consistent for years in working work ing trig for Cor a free tree sea that sea that Is 18 for an agreement that In time of ot war all merchant shipping even though belonging be longing to countries at war shall be absolutely immune except when it carries actual riot not constructive contraband of war or ot If it tries to torun torun torun run an actual close blockade of ot a specified port or ports Events appear appear ap ape pear to be shaping toward a general general gen gen- eral acceptance of ot this principle since the tho destruction of commerce In the present war has proved itself to cause irredeemable damage to all sides without overwhelming o advantage ta tape tage e to any There remains then for tor American consideration chicO chiefly the actual fighting value of the submarine against fighting ships That this is great is Js undoubted That it is decisive decisive decisive de de- still sun remains to be proved There is no way to know till a test I comes whether or not the fleet Cleet submarine submarine sub sub- marine op operating in the open ocean during a ferocious fleet battle can cause preponderating damage before before before be be- fore the great guns of the armored ships already have done their destructive destructive de de- de work against each other The Tho great inherent defect of ot the submarine is 18 that the moment it sinks under the surface it is as blind as a blind man There has been no approach yet toward Joward curing this se- se age age ir Ui U rious weakness Therefore the submarine sub sub- marine absolutely must expose itself It It- self seIt to destroyers by lifting its Us periscope peri perl scope above water to sight its prey If tho the chosen victim is stationary or moving at nt a steady speed in in a steady direction the submarine can sink then and guide itself with Its ita speed depth and direction indicators indica indica- tors so that It can fire a torpedo at the ship which it no longer sees Bees But if Ie the tho vessel is Immensely swift and holds an nn erratic course the tho dif dlf difficulty of or torpedoing becomes ex ex- The Tho com complete failure of at the English Eng Eng- lish navy to establish a close blockade blockade block block- ade of or tho the German coast and tho the complete success of ot that same navy In guarding perfectly Its transport of or troops across the channel Illus illus- illustrate graphically both tho the strength and the weakness of ot tho the submarine The lesson to be learned from this illustration is that the United States navy must have a flotilla of submarines sub sub- marines Justly proportioned to Its capital ships but that nothing should Interfere with the establish ment of a proper strength In dread dread- and armored cruisers Th tat tto to cruiser will h he dis cussed in the next article |