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Show uu - JAPAN TO RANK AHEAD OF U. S. WASHINGTON, Feb. 26. Japan by 1916 will have wrested the position of third naval power from the United States and this country will have difficulty dif-ficulty in maintaining Itself in fourth place unless it builds two battleships a year. Secretary Meyer so declared in his testimony before tho house naval affairs af-fairs committee. 1 Tho secretary ursed greater liberality liber-ality by congre'ss in dealing with the naval establishments I Mr. Meyer asked for an appropria-I appropria-I tion of $1,000,000 to establish a globo girdling wireless system, by which tho United States warships could keop in constant touch with Washington, Wash-ington, with their basea and with each other. The committeo is pledged to economy econ-omy and although appropriations for battleships have not been acted upon many mombers are said to be Inclined In-clined not to support tho caucus "which decided against a. two-battle-shlp program. Tho wirolesB Buggos-rlon. Buggos-rlon. It is believed, will not be agroed to for reasons of economy. The secretary told the committee J tte tr that evon with the construction of Missal two battleships a year tho United ( Jrpr States in four years would be forced '& I to drop behind Japan in the naval &Xi i scale If only one ship a year be '. J2ftfc built, he said, the country would find rd Itself outstripped by Great Britain, ' V Germany, Franco and Japan. . Tis ( As part of the general naval reor JJ.tl ganlzatlon scheme. Secretary Meyer 'i i&t$t suggested the abandonment of the kiWi navy yards at New York, Boston and ,' 5irtli Portsmouth. N. H.. provided 52-1,000,- , t 000 could be realized from their sales. i, la Tho navy yards cost the government ' fcnte t more than ?116.000,000. fcirraa In place of tho abandoned yards the 1 (o new plan contemplates one coal yard ' Jiq In Narragansett bay. another at Nor- ' ,alfh folk, a torpedo station at Charleston 011(4 and a small yard at Key West. The V ?ntpi lattor would bo In the nature of an 'J (h, auxilliary to the naval base at Guan- - ofa tananio. -,'itso Tho secretary strongly advocated i "a eyj the coalition of the grade of admiral -ttatl, on the active list, with the creation f leGjry, of two vice admirals. ifeg Jo 00 ' Bjutl LONDON. Feb. 26. According to a ' Jfl Shanghai dispatch to the Post, Yuan , te Shi Kai haa decided to proceed to ''dacii Nanking in compliance with the B of t wishes of tho republican leaders. ' Jent |