A TWO OCEAN FLEET

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 72, 18 December 1907, Page 7

A TWO OCEAN FLEET

AMERICA'S UNDERTAKING.

. BEGINNING OF PACIFIC CRUISE.

THE COST OF POWER. BY TELEGRAPH—rRESS ASSOCIATION—COPYRIGHT. New York, December 16. Admiral Evans starts to-day on a 140 days' voyage with fifty-three, vessels, 16,000 mon, and 850 battleship guns. 1 London, December 16. The New York correspondent of "Tho Times" anticipates that Congress will vote more warships 011 the basis of a two oceans standard. It will cost two millions sterling to send the American fleet to the Pacific, and fourteen millions to complete the new naval programme. FLEET LED OUT BY ROOSEVELT. A GREAT PAGEANT. NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS A THREAT. (Rec. Dec. 17, 10.35 p.m.) New York, December 17. President Roosevelt, aboard the Mayflower, reviewed Admiral Evans's -'fleet, and led the squadron out of the bay amid mighty strains ~of music. The spectacle was highly impressive. London, December 17. "The Times" says that President Roosevelt's enthusiasms are thoroughly British, in that they are leavened with strong practical sonso and solid practical aims. . The cruise is a demonstration of the views expounded in the President's latest message to Congress. "The Times" is confident that he has taken measures to defeat any attempt on the part of the labour politicians of the West to turn the visit ; to Pacific ports into a dangerous demonstration. JAPAN REDUCING HER DEFENCE BUDGET. ADVICE OF ELDER STATESMEN. (Reo. Dec. 17, 10.53 p.m.) London, December I:. The "Daily Telegraph's" Tokio correspondent states that the Japanese Cabinet has decided, from next fiscal year, to postpone military undertakings to tho extent of two millions' sterling annually during the next six years, and to curtail naval expenditure in"1908 by half a million-and by during the next six years. This decision is largely duo to tho influeuco of tho older statesmen, particularly Count Katsura (a former Premier and War Minister of Japan, who -entered tho army in 1867 and who, after study iii Gormany, helped largely to reorganise, tho. Mikado's forces). ' A FLEET IN BEING. ' ' The names of the sixteen battleships under Admiral Evans as as follow:— Connecticut ' Kansas Louisiana Vermont Virginia . Georgia . Alabama. ' Illinois Kentucky '' Minnesota " ••• ' " Missouri New Jersey Rhode Island Ohio Maine . . Kearsago The departure of 'these warships will leave but three, battleships on the Atlantic Coast—the Indiana, lowa, and Massachusetts. Mr. Metcalf, Secretary to the Navy, states that thero. are seven other battleships in course of construction in the eastern dockyards. Of these, three aro near completion, two aro well under way,, and two—namely, the two 21-knot 20,000 ton vessels sanctioned by last Congress— have just' been begun, and will bo completed within eighteen months. If all the sixteen ■battleships remain in the Pacific, there is already a substantial nucleus of a second Atlantic fleet. On arriving''off'the coast of California, Ad-, miral Evans s Armada will find' three battle-: ships already at Puget Sound—the Nebraska, 1 Wisconsin 1 , and Oregon—while thirteen cruisers' —four armoured, two first-class, one secondclnss, and six third-class—ars on the Pacific station under oommand of Bear-Admiral James Dayton.' Admiral Evans's battleship fleet has also ' sent out an advanco guard of two armoured cruisers, the Tennessee and Washington, under Rear-Admiral Sebree. These cruisers aro to maintain a speed of 12 knots, the battleship fleet 10 knots. , The fleet, according to present arrangements, will call at Trinadad, Rio de Janeiro, Punta Arenas, Callao, and, lastly, Magdalena Bay, before entering the- Golden Gato. Arrangements are being mado for tho conveyance of coal to these ports in American and in foreign vessels. For tho convenience mainly of the smaller vessels, colliers will accompany the fleet, and the destroyers, which, it is understood, may skirt the coast' moro closely than the larger ships, will also bo able to coal at various' ports at which tho United States Government contracts for the maintenance of a permanent supply of fuel. Thero are about fifteen of such stations on tho South American coast. .