OCR Text |
Show OurNavy Falls Behind A considerable fight will be waged In Congress this session to decide whether the American Navy Na-vy will be tuilt up to the strength authorized by the London Treaty by 1930. There can be no doubt whatever that at the present time the United Staes is much lurher behind this standard than either Great Britain or Japan. Those who think the American r.'nvy Is demanding too much should rfa'iw that since 1922 the United States lias built or authorized author-ized only thirty-six vessels as against ninety-six by Great Britain Brit-ain and one hundred and twenty-six twenty-six by Japan Duiinx the last ten years. (i':icrding U Senator Hale, Republican of Mi.ir.c, this country lias atarcod a little more than one-Uurd one-Uurd as many viswls as England and Utile more t:ian one-fG.inli those- of Japan. According to the same Senator, t the expiration cf the Treaty of the United States will lag behind In every category except capital ships. In aircraft, he says, America Amer-ica will have fifty-nine per cent of treaty allowances as compared to eighty-five per cent for both the British and the Japs. In heavy cruisers we shall have eighty-five per cent aa compared to one hundred per cent for both of the other powers and in light cruisers forty-nine per ctnt as compared to forty-five for Great Britain and one hundred for Japan. In submarines sub-marines we shall have only fifty-one fifty-one per cent as against seventy-eight seventy-eight for the British and one hundred hun-dred for the Japs. During a time of national depression de-pression the building of naval ships would help the problem of unemployment considerably. Con-strution Con-strution officers estimate that seventeen dollars out of every twenty In the cost of a war ship goes into labor, about half of which Is spent in the ship yards and a little more than half on labor scattered over the country and used in the production of necessary materials. |