THE SUBMARINE BOAT. 737 



SPIRITED COMPETITION IN SUBMARINE-BOAT CONSTRUCTION EXTREMELY 



BENEFICIAL. 



The advent of the Lake company into the tield of Hubniarine-boat 

 construction has been of incalculable advantage to the interest of the 

 Goveriunent. The strong presentation of the merits of this ))oat has 

 materially assisted in preventing the naval service from being saddled 

 with do/ens of l)oats of a tvpt^ whose efficiency and utility has yet to 

 be demonstrated to the satisfaction of the Board of Construction of 

 the Navy Department, as well as to the Congress. 



The problem of a submarine ma}' not only involve a change in naval 

 construction, but a revolution in naval tactics. That nation will fall 

 behind in relative naval strength of every description which refuses 

 to encourage competition among designers, and which is wedded to 

 the belief that in this mechanical age the solution of any technical 

 problem can onh^ be solved Ijy a few persons. 



THE POLICY OF EXPERIMENTATION A WISE ONE. 



Before the Congress again assembles the Navy of the United States 

 should have some definite knowledge as to the capabilities and possi- 

 bilities of submarine boats. The boats now under construction should 

 be commissioned immediately after the}' have met contract require- 

 ments. Then they should t)e subjected to surface and submerged runs 

 which will not only show their endurance in these respects, but also 

 the limit of endurance of the working crews. It can be expected that 

 the several young officers placed in charge of the boats will be intent 

 upon making their individual commands the most efficient. By'thus 

 creating a spirited rivalry between these young commanders the prac- 

 tical advantage and disadvantage of the craft will be ascertained. 



Our policy as regards further construction should therefore be in 

 the direction of finding out the actual military value of the boats that 

 we have contracted for. We should also determine the relative worth 

 of these boats as compared with craft of different designs. 



Time is not an essential element in this matter, for by offering a 

 premium for rapid speed construction it will be possible to induce 

 many shipbuilders to construct them within six months. If the 

 inducement is made sufficiently attractive, there are shipbuilders who 

 will guarantee to do the work in four months. 



The policy of determining the substantial worth of the boats now 

 under construction before authorizing more of this special type has 

 been urged by the Board of Construction of the Navy. This Board 

 consists of the chiefs of the Bureaus of Ordnance, Steam Engineering, 

 Construction and Equipment, also the Chief Intelligence OflScer of the 

 Navy. Such a board should have opportunities for securing reliable 

 information upon the subject. The General Board of the Navy, pre- 

 SM 1901 47 



