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Show NAVY IS TO TAKE OVERALL SHIPS Vessels Grossing the Atlantic to Be Under Government Govern-ment Control. WASHINGTON, Nov. 29 Naval operation op-eration of all American merchant ships i engaged In trans-Atlantic service Is planned by the government to safeguard safe-guard vessels traversing the submarine subma-rine zone. Tho proposal has the ap-provl ap-provl of Secretaries Baker and Daniels and will bo adopted by the shipping board. The plan is to operate the ships with naval reserves, enlisting Into the service ser-vice the present officers and men of the morchant fleeU Those who don't wish to enlist will be shipped to tho South American and Pacific trades, although officials believe the great majority are ready to enter the navy service. Naval operation of the merchant fleet has been talked of over since the United States went to war, but heretofore here-tofore tho shipping board has objected to naval crows for any vessels other than transports. Officials of the board, howovor, wore finally won over and at a conforenco today with war and navy department officials thoy endorsed the plan as tho best metthod of getting and keeping trained and disciplined crows. It will be formally adopted probably next week. A greater part of the American merchant mer-chant marine already is engaged in overseas service and virtually all of tho now ships coming from the ways will bo put into tho trade. It Is estimated esti-mated that some 15,000 morchant ship seamen will be taken Into the naval rosorvo sorvlce. Both tho shipping hoard and the .navy department aro conducting training train-ing schools and, under tho plan tho shipping board's sohools, would be turnod over to tho navy department. More than 100,000 officers and men, It is ostimated, will bo needed to man the great floet of vessels American shipyards will turn out next year. One decided advantage of naval operation op-eration of tho morchant fleet, pointed out by officials, is that In a pinch the merchant fleet could call on the rogu-lar rogu-lar navy for mon. Tho intention, however, how-ever, Is to use as far as posslblo, onlyj men in the reserve service. It is considered likely that some seamen sea-men will refuse to enter the reserves because of the fact that once In and called to active duty a man cannot resign re-sign during the war. Such men would be placed on ships in other trade routes but eventually, It seems probable prob-able the plan will be extended to all services and men refusing to join the reserves may be forced out Naturalization of tho merchant fleet by using naval reservo crews will have no practical effect upon tho treatment of tho ships in foreign ports as all of them will ply to allied countries. It probably will make the crews liable to capture as prisoners of war but since the German submarines rarely undertake under-take to carry off prisoners the effect of this will be negligible. |