Neg on ee 
TO THE NEEDS OF THE UNITED STATES NAVY. 127 
amination into the various elements constituting these two classes, the destroyer and the 
submarine, will show that they are direct opposites, the former having all the qualities and 
attributes conducive to high speed and the latter all those conducive to low speed, and it is not 
likely that these two types can be merged in the future sufficiently to accomplish the aims 
above indicated. The views of all officers are united in desiring a high-speed submarine, 
and that is in the minds of everyone who advocates enlarging these vessels either to 800 
tons or 1,200 tons; but for practical purposes it cannot with certainty be guaranteed in 
the present state of the art—and every surrounding consideration leads to the belief that 
such a happy consummation need hardly be expected, although it should not preclude all 
reasonable efforts to perfect the instrument in an experimental way to every extent and 
to the very limit. Now we are in a position to see that the coast-defense submarine pos- 
sesses a very much greater radius of action than that conceded by the advocates of the 
larger type and sufficient to extend our submarine defenses far off the coast-line if need be; 
but in view of the strategical reasons advanced by Captain Rodgers in his paper, his argu- 
ments are believed to be absolutely sound that the conditions existing abroad which made 
the 800-ton type desirable do not fit into the conditions existing with respect to any 
probability of warfare on these coasts, and that such extended radii will not be needed. It 
is my opinion that the best boat yet developed for all our purposes is the coast-defense 
type—the O class, of 520 tons displacement, now being laid down—as it embodies all of the 
best elements of the foregoing classes and is sufficiently ample for all purposes from any 
considerations now in sight. 
Tue PRESIDENT :—I had hoped, as a layman, with a very superficial experience and 
knowledge of submarines, though sufficient to prevent me from going into the business at 
my time of life, that some of the experts would have told us how a 250-ton or 300-ton 
displacement submarine, like the Deutschland, can carry 750 tons of cargo. They have 
not given us this information. It is a simple matter, I find, and perhaps will come out 
some time and be given by someone who knows more about the subject than I do. 
Mr. Stmon Lake, Member :—Just as I came into the room, Captain Niblack was re- 
ferring to the German type of submarine—I understood him to say the German-Lake type. 
I think, for the reputation of America, I should like to explain certain things and say 
why I prefer to call it the Lake type as adopted by Germany. Before doing that, it is 
necessary, perhaps, for me to step away from the scientific discussion of the subject and 
refer to the business side for a moment to make my point clear. 
When the Russo-Japanese War began representatives of both the Japanese Govern- 
ment and the Russian Government came here and inspected our submarine boat, the Pro- 
tector, which was built in 1901-1902. At that time we had designed two other types, which 
had both also been submitted to our own Navy Department in 1901; one was called a sub- 
marine cruiser, which is practically the type which is being built to-day by Germany and all 
of the European countries, with the exception of England, and even England has adopted 
some of the characteristics of the cruiser type above referred to. 
The characteristics of that type were, as stated, the submergence on a level keel by 
the use of hydroplanes—the change from the old cigar-shaped form of submarine into a ship- 
shape form, with a light-weight superstructure or outside skin, which surrounded a heavy 
pressure-resisting body, which pressure-resisting body we have always preferred to keep 
circular, or substantially circular in form, for the purpose of resisting the external pressure 
