692 Presidential Addresses 



velopment of a naval station at Subig Bay be begun 

 at an early date; for under the best conditions it 

 is a work which will consume much time. 



It is eminently desirable, however, that there 

 should be provided a naval general staff on lines 

 similar to those of the General Staff lately created 

 for the army. Within the Navy Department itself 

 the needs of the service have brought about a sys- 

 tem under which the duties of a general staff are 

 partially performed; for the Bureau of Navigation 

 has under its direction the War College, the Office 

 of Naval Intelligence, and the Board of Inspection, 

 and has been in close touch with the General Board 

 of the navy. But though under the excellent offi- 

 cers at their head these boards and bureaus do 

 good work, they have not the authority of a general 

 staff, and have not sufficient scope to ensure a proper 

 readiness for emergencies. We need the establish- 

 ment by law of a body of trained officers, who 

 shall exercise a systematic control of the military 

 affairs of the navy, and be authorized advisers of 

 the Secretary concerning it. 



By the act of June 28, 1902, the Congress au- 

 thorized the President to enter into treaty with 

 Colombia for the building of the canal across the 

 Isthmus of Panama; it being provided that in the 

 event of failure to secure such treaty after the lapse 

 of a reasonable time, recourse should be had to 

 building a canal through Nicaragua. It has not 

 been necessary to consider this alternative, as I am 



