To April 30, 1940
UNITED STATES New Micro-Balance
Baltimore Sun, April 19.—Although American scientists have been cut off by the European war from the supply of high-precision instruments formerly imported from Germany, at least a part of the problem is being attacked at the Johns Hopkins University, it was disclosed yesterday.
Dr. Alsoph H. Corwin, associate in chemistry, has developed a new microbalance, one of the fundamental instruments in scientific measurement, which he says is as sensitive as the best German balances and about five times as accurate.
Because he wanted an instrument more reliable than the best German microbalances, Dr. Corwin started working on the problem about six years ago. He speeded his efforts about a year ago when he foresaw that the European supply might soon be cut off.
Although some micro-balances are manufactured in this country, none at present on the market is anywhere near as sensitive as the German instruments which Dr. Corwin wanted to improve upon, he explained.
The chemist asserted that his new micro-balance, which he described last week before the meetings of the American Chemical Society at Cincinnati, will measure weight to the sensitivity of 1/1,000 of a milligram.
This figure is equivalent to about 1/5,000,000 of the weight of an ordinary nickel, which weighs about 5 grams.
While the German balances will record such weights, they are accurate only to about 5/1,000 of a milligram, Dr. Corwin said, when light loads are being weighed, and about 15/1,000 of a milligram when heavier loads are tested.
The Hopkins scientist said his device, which consists of a delicately adjusted pair of scales in a metal case, is accurate at 1/1,000 of a milligram under uniform atmospheric conditions. He hopes to perfect it in such a way that it will not be affected by ordinary changes in temperature and humidity.
This problem hinges largely on the kind of substance used for the bearings, he explained. If he uses agate at the fulcrum, as do the Germans, it is subject to warping, because agate absorbs moisture.
If he uses a substance such as pyrex, which will not absorb moisture, the bearing lacks the hardness to withstand the wear of use. Dr. Corwin believes that the answer will be found in some synthetic product which expands and contracts uniformly with temperature changes, is impervious to moisture, and is hard enough to wear well.
The chemist explained that the microbalance is one of the fundamental instruments because the scientist can weigh much more accurately than he can measure dimensions. Hence, units of weight are basic in systems of high-precision measurement.
One of the practical effects of putting a more accurate micro-balance on the market, Dr. Corwin said, would be that it would speed up the whole process of research in the chemical laboratories of the country and make possible experimentation with much smaller quantities of chemicals than at present.
In Dr. Corwin’s own work with chlorophyll, the green substance in vegetation, this fact is of the greatest importance, since it sometimes takes students several months to obtain a tiny quantity of the substance and without a sensitive balance they would be unable to work with it until they have doubled or tripled the quantity.
The new micro-balance, when perfected a few months from now, is to be manufactured as a prestige item by an American concern. Dr. Corwin estimates that there is a potential market for about 2,000 of the instruments in universities and industrial research laboratories in the United States.
Blind Flight
Baltimore Sun, April 7.—Sitting in a tiny cubicle of one of the world’s largest bombing planes, with only the faces of a dozen fluorescent instruments to guide him, an Army Air Corps officer today completed the first “all-blind” flight in the history of aviation.
Major Carl B. McDaniel could not see out of the cockpit window of his 4-motored 22½-ton craft from the moment he opened the throttles at the end of a runway on Mitchel Field, New York, until the plane rolled to a stop at Langley Field.
The flight, requiring 2 hours 2 minutes, was a demonstration of what the Air Corps could do in time of war under weather conditions reducing “ceiling” and visibility to zero.
Major McDaniel, a native of Texas, who has been flying 21 years, was assisted by Captain W. A. Matheny, Lieutenant W. P. Ragsdale and four enlisted men. The plane carried two civilian passengers
While radio contacts were maintained throughout the flight, it could have been made at either day or night by means of celestial navigation. The only ground aids necessary—and they would be readily available in war time in spite of wireless “jamming”—were two low-power, shortwave radio marker beacons near Langley Field.
The bomber, part of the standard equipment of the General Headquarters Air Force, was taxied into take-off position and a canvas screen, shutting off Major McDaniels’ view of everything except the instrument panel directly in front of him, was draped around him so closely that it brushed his shoulders.
In the right cockpit was Captain Matheny, his view unobstructed so he could act as “safety pilot” in conditions of heavy air traffic. He also performed the regular functions of co-pilot, helping adjust the throttles, altering the propeller pitch, raising and lowering the landing gear, and reading off the air speed figures in the landing operation.
With eyes glued on 4 instruments—the air speed and rate of climb indicators, the “artificial horizon” which shows the position of the plane in relation to the ground, and the directional gyro, Major McDaniel opened the throttles. He held the ship on the ground until the air-speed needle pointed to 110 miles an hour. Then he eased back on the control column. The plane climbed rapidly, banking to line up on a course given the major by Lieutenant Ragsdale on the inter-communicating telephone. A cross-wind was forecast, and the major corrected his compass course for drift.
Leveling off at 4,500 ft., the plane droned at an indicated air speed of 185 miles an hour over Ambrose Lightship, Lakehurst Naval Air Station, Atlantic City, Delaware Bay, and Chesapeake Bay.
Fifty-seven minutes out of Mitchel Field, the skipper predicted: “We will be over the field at 11.32.”
He hit it to the minute. The distance is 300 mi.
Lining up on the Langley Field radio beam, the plane cruised about for 30 minutes before attempting the landing.
“It may be a little bumpy,” warned Major McDaniel. “The idea is to make a safe landing. The under-carriage can take it.”
He did a conventional orientation problem on the radio range signal, determining what “leg” of the beam he was following.
The air speed and rate of climb indicators and the artificial horizon became all important. So did the reading on a sensitive altimeter. But now the pilot had something additional to watch—a bulb on the instrument panel which would glow red when he was 800 ft. from the airport. He tuned a receiver to its frequency. The bulb lighted up. The pilot twisted a dial to tune to the frequency of another radio marker at the edge of the airport. Again the bulb flashed.
The pilot retarded his throttles, keeping his glide and air speed constant and leveling the wings of the miniature plane in the face of the artificial horizon.
A long 5 seconds passed. Then the wheels whammed onto the turf of the airport. The bounce was about like going over a curbing in an automobile.
Major General Delos C. Emmons, chief of the G. H. Q. Air Force, grinned widely at the ramp as Major McDaniel and his crew climbed out of the ship.
“Great work,” he said.
GREAT BRITAIN
The “Thetis” Disaster
London Times, April 5.—The report of Mr. Justice Bucknill on the loss of H.M.S. Thetis last June gives clear definition to a tragic story, of which the substance had already become apparent to all who followed the proceedings in Court. Nearly all the essential evidence was given in public, and the subsequent examination of the wreck has fully confirmed the accuracy of the account given by the survivors. Mr. Justice Bucknill, aided by his three technical assessors, has come to the conclusion that the full extent of the disaster must be attributed to the coincidence of a number pf accidents, each of which would be in itself unimportant, if any detail could be considered unimportant in so delicate and perilous a business as submarine navigation.
The proximate cause of the disaster was the opening of the rear door of a torpedo tube while its bow cap stood open to the sea. The officer who opened the rear door had satisfied himself shortly before that the bow cap was closed; but during this interval somebody must have moved the control lever sufficiently to cause the bow cap to open, and then replaced it in the ‘neutral” position, so that there was nothing about the lever itself to indicate what he had done. Who did this, when and why he did it, whether by inadvertence, by misunderstanding of his orders, or for some other reason, remain insoluble questions. Some solutions are more probable than others, but in so grave a matter the Judge rightly declines to guess. The mistake would have had no serious consequences but for a further lamentable accident; for Lieutenant Woods, before opening the rear door of the tube, performed the proper test to assure himself that the bow cap was not open. The test, if the cap was open and the tube full, should have caused a jet of water to gush from a small hole in the door; but unhappily, in the final stages of the construction of the ship, a workman had allowed this hole to become blocked with enamel. An instrument had been provided for clearing the hole in just such an event; but by some inadvertence it had never been used.
So the fatal error was committed. The door was opened, not upon a closed and empty tube, but upon the sea. Water came flooding in with overwhelming force, and carried all before it in the torpedo tube compartment. In the few seconds available to the men struggling in the maelstrom there was still a chance to save the situation if they could have closed the watertight door giving access to the next compartment aft. In that case it would still have been within the power of the ship’s pumps to restore her buoyancy sufficiently to reach the surface. Heroic efforts were made, and very nearly succeeded; but the pressure was too great, and the second compartment went the way of the first. From that moment, in spite of some gallant attempts to repair the damage, which are described in the report, it became impossible for the men inside the submarine to retrieve their position; their chance of safety depended on rescue from outside.
Malign fate then produced further mishaps. The junior officer in the accompanying tug who first felt misgivings tried to word his message to higher authority so as not to excite too much alarm. As a result the telegram was not recognized as urgent in transit, and did not reach its destination until precious hours had been lost. Though help was then instantly dispatched, nothing effective could be done before night fell—except one thing, which turned out to do harm, not good. The tug had made a wrong estimate of her position; consequently an airman, sent out in the evening to search for a buoy from the Thetis, searched in the wrong place and found the wrong buoy. His report caused the more extensive search at dawn to go still further astray. When the Thetis was ultimately found, time had become desperately short. The men in her, at first hoping to save their ship and then waiting to make contact with the rescuers, had postponed the attempt to escape individually with the apparatus supplied for the purpose; when at last they used it their weakness caused the system to break down, and only four were in fact saved. The last forlorn hope, based on the idea of cutting a hole in the small part of the hull protruding above water, was defeated by the tide, and the Thetis disappeared, with no possibility that her crew could survive long enough for the rescuers to recover contact.
The story is grim and terrible, and is not made less painful by being placed against the background of the larger tragedy that has opened for the world since the Thetis was wrecked. It has one redeeming feature, the magnificent conduct of the men, naval and civilian, in their last hours. The Judge quotes the words of the senior survivor, Captain Oram, who testified to “a quiet bravery which is a memory which will live with me forever.” And it conveys one lesson, which may well be taken to heart in war time, not only by members of the fighting services, but by all—that there is no detail of duty, however apparently minute, on the exact performance of which the lives of men may not some day come to depend.
Singapore Defenses
Baltimore Sun, April 26.—The defenses of Singapore have now been developed to a point believed to assure impregnability against any kind of attack possible at the moment to envisage. There is, however, no letup in preparations. Defensive measures will continue to be taken and defense works improved and increased until Singapore actually merits the designation often given it of late, “Gibraltar of the East.”
But the difference between the two is, to the casual observer and stranger in Singapore, very marked. Approaching the Mediterranean Gibraltar, you note at once all manner of evidence of its strength as a huge fortress. You see the bleak and somber sides of the great mountain of rock towering out of the sea, and from its many embrasures you seem almost to discern the mouths of cannon peeping forth.
Here in Singapore, though, no signs at all of the military development of the place along defensive lines are apparent, unless you except the lately placed storage tanks for gasoline on many of the islands in the Malacca Straits. Never a gun appears, never a sign of cannon emplacement, bastion, or plan of fortification.
Singapore is, in fact, an island, not very large in extent, flat except for a few low hills, connected with the mainland of the Malay Peninsula at the sultanic unfederated state of Lahore by a stone causeway half a mile long. The island, owned by Malay rajahs for centuries, was purchased for England by Sir Samford Raffles who had been governor of Java during the short period of possession by England. It was regarded as a waste of money, but the farseeing Raffles saw its strategic possibilities as a link in the British chain of empire.
It was flat, marshy, and unhealthy and its transformation into the amazing cosmopolitan city of today is one of the outstanding marvels of all colonization. Its population is nearly 800,000, the majority being Chinese, but there are so many races and nations here that the censorship arrangements now in vogue in respect of mails entering and leaving require no less than 27 different interpreters, each fluent in a particular language, European and Asiatic. Singapore is far and away the greatest melting pot of races and nationalities in the world.
It is, in the matter of transport, British Empire and other, the crossroads of the East. Everything going and coming between the East and Europe must pass through the Malacca Straits, a narrow waterway between the end of the Malay Peninsula and the Dutch island of Sumatra. Thus, Singapore occupies a strategic position in respect of maritime transport probably more important than any in the world.
Possession of it, then, is vital in the extreme to the continued functioning of the British Empire. Without it that empire would be, in effect, split in two. Australia and New Zealand would be in a precarious state and the control of Singapore would mean a dire threat to the great Dutch oriental empire.
Clearly, England must hold Singapore to the last. At the time of the September, 1938, crisis, work of strengthening military defenses was in feverish progress both here and at Hongkong. It is rumored, though denied, that Britain intended to defend the latter only “up to a point” in the event of embroilment with Japan and certain attack by her large Navy. Hongkong is the main British naval station in the Far East, but it could be “bottled up,” the narrow entrances to its land-locked harbor closed by an enemy with greater naval strength available.
The possible intent could only have been, then, to fall back upon this “Gibraltar of the East.” But Hongkong defenses have been strengthened so far since the date mentioned that, according to the best available information, it is now considered secure against any kind of attack.
However that may be, British confidence in Singapore as a defensive military base is, very clearly, practically complete now. True, you see no signs of that strength as you enter the Straits from one end or the other. But among this cluster of green islands that hang about the island of Singapore and the tip of the Malay Peninsula like a garland of rare jade are, you are assured, guns of long range and the greatest power yet devised. Also, the approaches by sea are closely mined and great care must be used in navigating through them. Lack of this care, inexcusable negligence indeed, was the cause of the loss of a big British passenger ship a few months ago, with the drowning of many of her passengers. She struck a mine because the captain had not strictly obeyed the instructions as to navigation in protected waters.
The details of the defense plans and arrangements of Singapore are known, of course, only to a few, and obviously could not be discussed in any case. The center of the naval base, the great dry docks, and so on, are at the back of the island in the narrow passage that separates it from the Malay mainland. They are in a half-hidden and well-defended situation and strongly garrisoned. Other troop garrisons are in various places about the Crown Colony. Airplane strength is considerable and increasing all the time. The center of British sea strength in the East is, of course, Hongkong, three days’ steaming at full speed.
The cost of bringing Singapore’s defensive strength to its present state has been terrific, naturally, running already into many millions sterling, and still going on. Inasmuch as the Crown Colony is a free-trade port, with the exception of 15 per cent duties on spirits, tobacco, and gasoline, the customs revenue is not large. Nearly half the world’s rubber and much of its tin goes through the port of Singapore, the large part of both to America, and on these two products the colony’s considerable prosperity rests.
But the increased expenses due to the threat of war over a long period and now to the European war itself have been, and continue to be, so great that a graduated income tax has been proposed by the Government. Opposition to this, for a British Crown Colony, very radical move, is strong, even bitter, from all classes and there is some doubt whether it will be desirable to carry out the project.
The colony is full of very wealthy Chinese, most of whom have contributed pretty generously to their country’s cause at home. In wealth, and even in numbers, the Chinese of Singapore and of all British Malaya exceed the Malays themselves. Many millionaires are among them, even multimillionaires, if rumors of the vast wealth of some of the Chinese, gained from rubber, tin and other things not so apparent, are to be believed. They are taxed pretty heavily as it is and are leading fighters against an assessment on incomes. Furthermore, the source and extent of those incomes, they are not, in some cases, especially anxious to reveal.
Lately an American-edited publication in Shanghai has published rumors to the effect that Germany is endeavoring to reach, perhaps already has reached, an agreement with Russia to purchase the latter’s submarines lying at Vladivostok. These amount, so far as known, to about a dozen, none very modern but capable of playing a good deal of havoc among British shipping in the Pacific. The character of the publication mentioned is not such as to lend much credence to the report which is generally deemed here merely an invention. But the merest suggestion of German submarines ruthlessly at large in the Far East is sufficient to add stimulus to the further development of the defensive strength of British Empire bases.
VARIOUS NOTES
In a statement made in the House of Commons on March 20, Mr. Geoffrey Lloyd, the Minister of Mines, referred to the effective use of home-produced substitutes for imported oil. He announced that considering the importance of this matter, he had appointed Sir Harold Hartley as honorary adviser on the development of home-produced fuels, and had asked a number of leading representatives of industry, finance, and technical science, under the chairmanship of Sir William Bragg, the President of the Royal Society, to make a rapid survey of the subject in the light of war conditions. Within a month that authoritative body completed its survey, and on its recommendations the following six specific problems were being investigated simultaneously: (1) The production of oil from coal by synthetic processes, under the chairmanship of Sir W. Jowitt; (2) the products of low-temperature carbonization, under Lord Henley; (3) the liquid products of high-temperature carbonization, under Mr. Davidson Pratt; (4) alternative fuels for internal-combustion engines, under Major the Viscount Ridley; (5) the development of the use of colloidal fuels, under Mr. Irvine Geddes; and (6) the more efficient use of fuel generally, under Sir Clement Hindley. Interim reports had been asked for wherever possible in order that immediate action might be taken. Mr. Lloyd went on to say that he had received a report on the recovery of benzol which indicated that already additional crude benzol was being recovered at the estimated rate of 15,000,000 gallons a year, and that an extension of voluntary effort should secure a further 12,000,000 gallons a year. A most valuable survey of our production of creosote and pitch showed that these products could take the place of imported fuel oil and bitumen to the extent of some 300,000 tons in the current year.—The Engineer, March 29.
Three London publishers have in preparation books dealing with the brilliant naval action which led to the scuttling of the Graf Spee and the subsequent rescue of the British seamen from the prison ship Altmark. The first of these, The Battle of the River Plate, by Lord Strabolgi, who as a cadet served with Rear Admiral Sir Henry Harwood in the training ship Britannia, will be published shortly by Hutchinson. This will be followed by The Battle of the Plate, by Commander A. B. Campbell, with a foreword by Lord Chatfield (Herbert Jenkins); and The Navy Is Here, by Mr. Richard Hughes, who has taken as his title the simple statement which stirred the imagination of the world (Chatto and Windus). No authoritative information has yet been made public by the Admiralty, but an official account is likely to be published soon.—London Times, April 4.
A naval officer was convicted today in court-martial of “careless talk” as the Admiralty drove against gossip which might aid the enemy. He was deprived of his commission. Details of his offense were not revealed.—Chicago Tribune, March 29.
The Admiralty has renewed recruiting of sailors (fishermen preferred) to man the new sweeps and other small craft which are to be commissioned in the Royal Naval Patrol. This branch alone already consists of 10,000 men, a figure which must be progressively increased to 20,000; enlistments are actually being received at the rate of about 300 a week. The pay with allowances for seamen varies from about $6 a week for a bachelor to about $14 a week for a married man with 2 children.—Le Yacht, March.
The modernization of the monitor Erebus will be completed this summer. The engines and boilers have been replaced. The Erebus will be stationed at Cape Town. The modernization of the cruiser Australia will be completed at the end of August, three months earlier than anticipated. —Marineblad, February.
GERMANY
Air Strength
London Times, April 9.—Mobility is the strong suit of the German Air Force in this war as it was in the last. Having some 650 aerodromes available, at least 500 of them maintained by permanent staffs, the German squadrons can mass rapidly at any point where they may be needed.
At the present moment information at the Air Ministry suggests that the German squadrons are disposed west of a line drawn directly south from an imaginary point in the middle of Denmark. They will strike when the German High Command gives the order, and the probable reason for the small numbers used for the raids against ships is that this is specialized work.
There is no indication of a failure of German morale. The opinion of a Royal Air Force officer who has made a study of the subject is that the German airman has not changed fundamentally since the war of 1914-18, but that the modern German airman, with his Nazi upbringing, is not likely to be quite so tough as his predecessor when the real pressure comes. But the German Air Force is never short of the best type of German youth.
German aircraft have been designed for rapid production, but the figure of 2,000 a month given in American journals is an over-estimate. No one can tell the exact figure of German war-time production. The factories are ranged on the east side of the country, and have a fighter screen to protect them.
The backbone of German aircraft equipment is the Messerschmitt 109 and the Heinkel 111. The fighter is designed not to cope with other fighters but as a destroyer of bombers. In contact with British fighters it may show up badly, but it may be effective for attacking bombers. The Messerschmitt 110 twin-engined fighter appeared in units of the German Air Force in June, 1939, and it was used in the Polish war to escort bombers. Its main purpose, however, is interception. The Junkers 88 is designed on an idea similar to that which gave rise to the pocket battleship. It carries only light armament, but has high speed. There is evidence that there has been in Germany recently intensive training of bomber pilots.
The reports that a new type of Messerschmitt bomber has appeared in service are discounted by the Air Ministry. It is believed that a Messerschmitt 110 might have been adapted to take a few bombs, but that no new bomber type has been introduced.
The Heinkel 112 single-seat fighter, which has been much talked about in this country, is not believed to be in service at all in the German air force at present. It is a smaller machine than the Messerschmitt 109 and the German staff decided to concentrate on the 109 to help production. There has been no news of the appearance in service of the Focke-Wulf 198 fighter.
The Messerschmitt 109 can mount 4 machine guns or 2 cannon and 2 machine guns. It is considered unlikely that the Germans will be able to modify their existing aircraft to enable them to take power-operated gun turrets of the kind used in many big British machines.
Expert opinion favors the view that it is the mobility of the German air force that is its greatest advantage. It will be recalled that in the last war the “circus” system was introduced by Germany, and for its success depended upon the greatest possible use of mobility. Today it is impossible to tell where the main body of the German air force lies, for the units can move so rapidly from one part of the country to another.
“Gnats”
Journal de la Marine Marchande, March 14.—The following gives the most interesting features of German “gnats,” or motor torpedo boats.
The first motorboats of the LM-type, built about 1925, displaced not more than 6-7 tons with a length of 52½ ft. and a beam of 8 ft.; they were propelled by 3 propellers driven by gasoline engines of 630 to 720 hp. and attained speeds from 28 to 30 knots. They had a cruising radius of 150 to 200 miles. The armament consisted of a 1.45-or 1.76-in. gun, a machine gun, and an 18-in. torpedo tube.
In 1926, the K-class were built, length 34.4 ft., in which the horsepower jumped to 1,060 and the speed to 40 knots.
About the same period some much larger boats were built, 26 tons, length 69 ft., beam greater, but capable of only 29 knots; these craft were designed primarily as submarine chasers.
The boats constructed from 1933 on have undergone a new transformation. According to the Germans, craft having a rounded hull cross section would have better sea-keeping characteristics than those with concave or flat bottoms. It is in the direction of craft with rounded hulls but of large displacement that the Germans have concentrated their efforts. Moreover they have discarded gasoline engines as being too dangerous and have employed in their stead light motors burning a heavier and less volatile fuel.
The R-1 to R-16 boats, built from 1930 to 1935, have a 45-ton displacement, 85.4 ft. length, and are propelled at 18 knots by 2 M.A.N. 600-hp. motors. They mount 2 anti-aircraft guns and have a 17-man crew.
The most recent torpedo launching motorboats of the S-6 to S-37 type, built from 1933 to 1939 have a displacement of 62 tons, a length of 93 ft., and are propelled at speeds of 30 to 36 knots by 2 double acting M.A.N. or Daimler-Benz motors of 2,400 hp. They carry an antiaircraft gun and two 20-in. torpedo tubes. There is a 17-man crew.
The majority of these craft, hulls of wood, are built by Lursen-Vegesack. These same yards recently furnished 8 similar craft to the Yugoslavian Navy. They have a displacement of 60 tons, a length of 92 ft., a beam of 14.1 ft., and a draft of 5 ft. Three 1,000-hp. Daimler-Benz motors of the BF 2-type furnish the power plant; there is in addition a small auxiliary motor for use at cruising speeds. The armament consists of a 1.85-in. gun, a machine gun, and two 18-in. torpedo tubes. The crew are 12 in number. All of these craft, of large tonnage and Diesel motored, naturally possess a large cruising radius. The normal cruising radius of a boat driven by a gasoline engine of around 20 tons is scarcely greater than 500 to 600 miles.
The Diesels used in the German craft are the ones which had been developed by several firms—under government contracts—for use in Zeppelins. These motors underwent very severe tests. The Daimler-Benz motors have been used in Zeppelins in transatlantic service. Those used in the motorboats develop 1,350 hp. through 16 cylinders arranged in 2 banks of 8 in a V at an angle of 50 degrees. The pistons are 7 inches in diameter and have a 9-in. stroke. The weight of the motor dry is some 4,400 lb., a little more than 2 lb/hp.
The M.A.N. motors can develop 1,200 hp. at 1,200 r.p.m.; they normally turn up for 900 to 1,000 hp. Their weight ratio is 2.62 lb/hp. These motors have 7 cylinders of 7.5-in. bore diameter and a 12-in. stroke.
The auxiliaries of this 2-cycle, doubleacting motor are: centrifugal blower for scavenging, pump for cooling oil, pump for lubricating oil, and centrifugal pump for circulating water. They are driven by the motor and use up about 20 per cent of the 1 hp. The fuel consumption does not exceed 3 oz. per horsepower hour, which bears witness to the excellent scavenging and complete combustion. The weight of the motor dry is 3,608 lb.
The German Navy has forbidden the sale of this type of motor as well as the publication of any or all descriptive literature.
Various Notes
Germany possesses a total of 95 shipbuilding Ways for large ships, viz.: Blohm & Voss 10, Bremer Vulkan 7, Deschimag 16, Deutsche Werft 12, Deutsche Werke 6, Howaldtswerke 10, Krupp 8, Schichau 6, others 20. In 1938, 500,000 tons were constructed. It is estimated that at the outbreak of war about 50 ways were free for the building of submarines In all, Germany can work on approximately 100 submarines at the same time. Eleven 750-ton boats can be Produced each month, or fifteen to twenty 500-ton boats.—Marineblad, February.
According to the Amsterdam correspondent of the News Chronicle, the aircraft carrier Graf Zeppelin was completed toward the end of January. According to the same source, the ship will carry 40 planes and sixteen 6-in. guns. With a 19,250 ton displacement, it should have considerable vertical and horizontal protection and make 52 knots.— Le Yacht, March.
JAPAN
Saghalien Concessions
The Japan Chronicle, March 28.—Fresh attention was given by the Coal Bill Committee of the Diet to relations with the Soviet Union, especially the difficulties in the operation of oil and coal concessions in North Saghalien. The Foreign Minister, replying to an interpellator, said that little improvement has been seen, despite long negotiations, but that efforts will be continued. He was unable to indicate exactly how Japan will deal with the various issues pending with Moscow but declared that the government is doing everything in its power to solve them.
Mr. Takayuki Matsuo, Kuhara faction of the Seiyukai, raised the question of Japanese oil and coal rights in North Saghalien and was told by the Foreign Minister:
The oil and coal enterprises under Japanese management in North Saghalien began to face difficulties several years ago because of Soviet pressure. Part of the trouble came from the application of rigid regulations and decrees.
Despite frequent negotiations between the Japanese Government and the Soviet Government and the authorities on the spot, little improvement is visible, and as a result the mining of coal under Japanese management has ceased. The government still is seeking improvement of the situation. The state of affairs is not satisfactory, but the government will do its best to restore the coal enterprises there as soon as possible.
In addition, there are a number of other questions between Japan and the Soviet Union. For settlement of them, the government is sparing no effort. I cannot say at present just what course Japan will take, but it is doing everything in its power to solve all questions immediately.
Revised Defense Plans
Japan Advertiser, March 5.—The new program of the Army has been discussed in the Diet, but its details have not been revealed. It is as though the people were looking at Mt. Fuji through a haze. By nature, of course, this is a matter requiring secrecy, but the public ought to know the background and the reasons for revision of defense programs.
Our defense strategy, it hardly requires emphasis, was concentrated on two fronts, the Soviet Union and China, with Manchuria in the center, before the Manchurian incident. The strength of the Soviet troops in the Far East was not very great, and the Chinese troops, despite their large number, were very poor in quality. Thus our military precautions against them were not on a very large scale.
But conditions have changed. The Soviet Union increased its forces, bringing men from Europe. Their strength grew far more than that of the Japanese forces within less than a year and a half. With the distribution of these troops along the borders of Manchuria, Japanese-Soviet relations suddenly became worse. Alive to the requirements of the situation, Japan in 1932 drew up a plan to improve defenses under which it increased greatly by 1935 its air force, soldiers, and munitions in Manchukuo. But this plan was not enough, for the Soviets increased their forces more than ever. Thus Japan was moved to augment its strength again with a 6-year plan beginning in 1936.
Then the Soviet Union launched new additions under its latest 5-year plan, strengthening considerably its air and mechanized forces. With these forces displaying a positive attitude, the border situation became more threatening.
Within less than several months after the start of our 6-year program for perfecting defenses, the China incident broke out. It broke out, it is clear, largely through the instigation and support of the Soviet Union. Indirect support from Great Britain, France, and the United States allowed it to develop in serious proportions. The real military strength and control of China, it was found, were far greater than Japan had expected. Efforts to prevent the hostilities from spreading beyond North China failed, and eventually they engulfed Central and South China, with the result that the fronts now are the longest the world ever has known. In Manchukuo, meanwhile, Japanese forces clashed with Soviet troops at Changkufeng and Nomonhan.
The number of Japanese soldiers sent to the Continent is not known, but they are confronting far greater numbers, 2,000,000 Chinese and 400,000 Soviets. The Soviet mechanized corps are very good, and because of this Japan had to pay unexpectedly heavy sacrifices at Nomonhan.
A truce has been concluded with the Soviet Union, bringing comparative calm to the Manchukuo-Soviet border regions. In China, a new unified regime promises to be born. These developments cannot be regarded, however, as stabilizing the whole situation. The Soviet Union openly is using force against weak countries in North Europe in the same manner as it did at Changkufeng and Nomonhan. Because of its continued aid to the Chiang Kai-shek regime, the strengthening of its forces in the Far East and the eastward advance of its heavy industries, it is premature for Japan to believe that relations with the Soviet Union will improve. Only against a background of military strength can the China incident be stabilized.
The new defense program for which provision is made in the next budget is based on changes in the international situation and experience in the China incident. It takes into consideration the possibility that the hostilities will continue for at least several years, requiring improvements in general military strength and in the air forces and mechanized corps.
Record Budget
Japan Advertiser, February 24.—The record-breaking 10,300,000,000 Yen budget approved on Thursday by the House of Representatives makes the 83,000,000 Yen budget passed by the first Diet 50 years ago look like small change by comparison, Speaker Shoju Koyama observed Thursday in commenting on the staggering accounts for the 1940-41 fiscal year.
“This comparison shows how astonishing has been the progress of the national power of this country and how amazing is the effort of the people,” he is quoted by Domei as having said.
Pointing out more contrasts, Mr. Ko-yama said that the 16,500,000,000 Yen approved for extraordinary military expenditures since the start of the China incident, including the special military accounts embodied in the present budget, is 65 times the amount required to prosecute the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-95, which was disposed of at a cost of 250,000,000 Yen. The cost of the present fighting thus far also is more than 10 times the amount Upended on the Russo-Japanese War, which came to 1,508,000,000 Yen.
“One will be able to see from this just how grave a matter the present China incident has become,” the Speaker said.
Referring to the general accounts Mr. Koyama said that the Diet in its preceding sessions in 49 years approved budget expenditures aggregating roughly 60,000,-00,000 Yen. The general accounts for the 1940-41 fiscal year will boost the figure to approximately 66,000,000,000 Yen.
Mr. Koyama attributed the passage of the colossal budget on Thursday to the “spirit of nationwide co-operation for the attainment of the objectives of the China incident at all costs and for the elevation of national policy and prestige, as reflected in the House resolution to respond to the Imperial wishes on the 2,600th anniversary of the founding of the Empire.”
Various Notes
Speaking to foreign pressmen in Tokyo last Week, the Japanese navy spokesman again referred to the reported extension to the Pacific of the British and French blockade. “Any extension or Europe’s war to this part of the world represents the last thing desired by the Japanese Navy,” he said. The spokesman had been asked or his comment on a reported Anglo-French decision, and when pressed for reply as to whether he considered such an extension of the blockade likely he added that in his opinion “there is no such indication. And we hope that no such extension will ever occur.”
Questioned regarding the forthcoming American naval maneuvers, the spokesman said that the United States is perfectly at liberty to hold naval maneuvers for the purpose of testing the efficacy of the nation’s defense. This is done by all powers, but the question was whether the projected maneuvers would not exceed defensive bounds and assume an aggressive nature.
Asked if he considered the fact that the American maneuvers are being held in the Western Pacific could be construed as giving them an aggressive character, the spokesman declined to comment, but he did say that maneuvers genuinely in the Western Pacific could be open to criticism as assuming an aggressive nature. There was no official definition as to what constitutes the “Western Pacific,” added the spokesman in reply to further questions, but it was generally agreed—he pointed out—that the Western Pacific begins at the International Dateline, that is 180 degrees east.—The Japan Chronicle, April 4.
In well-informed Japanese circles, it is said that the mission of Herr Emil Helfferich to Tokyo is primarily economic. The president of the Hamburg Amerika Line is to examine the possibility of an agreement and readjustment of commercial relations on account of hostilities and to settle the question of German merchantmen which have been taking refuge in Japanese ports since the outbreak of war and on which the port charges and subsistence of crews now add up to a large total still to be settled by the commanding officers of the ships concerned.
Herr Helfferich is an expert on Far Eastern economic matters. He is the president of the advisory council of the administration of Ostasien-verein, and for a long time directed the Straits and Sunda Syndicate at Batavia.
The Japanese Government has forbidden all exports of coal on or after 1 February. The ports of the Far East such as Hongkong and Singapore, which have been getting their fuel from Japan, will now have to order coal from India and Africa.—Journal de la Marine Marchande, February 29.
The early construction of a new port at Taitung is contemplated at the mouth of the Yalou. The project is designed to handle 2 million tons of merchandise annually and will be the only ice free port in Manchukuo. The construction is expected to take 8 years and will cost 115 million yen. The South Manchurian Railroad will share in the development.—Journal de la Marine Marchande, March 7.
The secondary naval base Maidzuru will soon become a base of the first rank. In view of naval expansion the present facilities of the base are not considered satisfactory.
The long-awaited passenger air service between Japan and the South Sea Islands was inaugurated on December 5, 1939. The cost per passenger between Tokyo and Saigon is about $55, and between Saigon and Palao, $33.—Marineblad, February.
ITALY
Guidonia Center of Studies
Journal de la Marine Marchande, February 22.—Italy has created within the Roman countryside the Guidonia Center of Studies which is one of the most important in the world. This center, specializing particularly in aeronautical questions, contains many laboratories.
The aerodynamic section is furnished with 7 wind tunnels of large diameter and 2 smaller tunnels; 4 tunnels have a diameter of 6.6 ft. and allow the carrying out of tests at atmospheric pressure. The air currents are produced by means of propellers driven by 450-hp. motors capable of furnishing a maximum wind velocity of 148 knots. One of these tunnels is used especially for airplane propellers and has a variable speed motor capable of a top speed of 6,000 r.p.m. The 5th tunnel which has a 10-ft. diameter is designed for the testing of airplane sections of large dimensions in a wind velocity of 54 knots produced by a 150-hp. motor. This tunnel is also provided with a moving picture device for photographing and recording events.
The 6th tunnel has a means of reproducing stratospheric conditions. It allows the simulation of all events experienced in actual flight in the stratosphere. A 2,850-hp. motor allows 13 different wind velocities to be obtained and a refrigerating machine furnishes the necessary means of temperature control. Conditions for varying wind velocities up to 1,600 m.p.h. at a pressure of 1.4 lb. per sq. in. can be simulated.
The 7th or “big” tunnel is provided with a test chamber 66 ft. long by 29.5 ft. high. The discharge and entry ports for the wind have respective diameters of 14.3 ft. and 22.2 ft. The air current is produced by a 6-bladed propeller 17.7 ft. in diameter, driven by an 1,800-hp. motor which produces a wind velocity of 162 knots.
The hydrodynamic section is provided with a model basin of 1,453.5 ft. length over-all, 21.4 ft. wide, and 11.7 ft. deep. It has a capacity of 10,800 tons. The models are towed by a carriage running on tracks on the edge of the basin. Each of the 4 wheels of the carriage is driven by an 18.5 kw. motor capable of a 100 per cent overload. Speeds are recorded by means of photoelectric cells installed every 16.4 ft. down the length of the basin. The maximum speed attainable by the towing carriage is 45 m.p.h. For the testing of hydroplane models, a special carriage is used driven by a 100-hp. motor which can reach a speed of 90 m.p.h. A camera apparatus allows the filming of the trials.
In addition to these 2 sections, the Center of Guidonia has a laboratory for research on motors with numerous test banks, a laboratory for the testing of flight instruments, an optical and photographic laboratory, a technological outlay for testing materials including physical chemistry and radiography, a fuel analysis and test section, a laboratory for testing lubricants, paints, and varnishes. Finally, there is a special division for the study of radio electricity, radio apparatus, and radio direction finding.
SWEDEN
New Ship Model Tank
The Nautical Gazette, April.—(Gothenburg, Sweden, March 10, 1940.) The institution for ship designing of the Chalmers Technical High School of this city will soon have at its disposal one of the largest and most up-to-date ship model tanks in Europe.
The tank forms part of the new premises and laboratories which are being built for the institution, and is estimated to be ready for practical use this summer. It has a total length of 847 ft., a width of 34 ft. and is 17 ft. deep. The rather unusual length of the tank will make it possible to undertake tests with models of very fast craft, and of airplane flotteurs, etc.
The models are maneuvered by a traveler, running on rails on both sides of the tank. On this traveling platform are placed most of the recording instruments as well as the staff handling the experiments. The traveler built for the Gothenburg institution will be one of the fastest in the world, with a speed of 47 ft. per second. It is being delivered together with all electrical equipment by the Swedish Asea Works. The tank is also in all other respects equipped with the most modern devices and instruments in this field of research, delivered by Swedish and foreign firms.
In direct connection with the model tank has been built a workshop for the production of the necessary paraffine models, propellers, etc., as well as special tanks, where the models are trimmed to desired depth and connected to the traveler and the instruments.
The initiator of the installation of the new ships model tank is Dr. Hugo Ham-mar, retired chief of the Gotaverken Shipyard, one of the Swedish shipbuilders who has most actively contributed to the development of Sweden’s modern shipbuilding industry, today one of the leading in the world in the sphere of seagoing motor vessels. The new shipbuilding institution has been erected by means of state appropriations. The realization of the tank project has, however, been much facilitated through large donations from the Swedish shipping world for partial covering of the running expenditure and costs for special research objects.
The Chalmers Technical High School, situated as it is in Sweden’s leading shipbuilding and shipping center, has been for many years one of Sweden’s foremost in situations for the training of naval architects and shipbuilding engineers. With the new extended premises and laboratories at its disposal, it will be the actual center for all education in this field in Sweden.
The Swedish shipbuilding activity during this century has not only been characterized by a rapid expansion but also by the development of several important technical novelties. The new model tank, which has been hailed with much satisfaction by Swedish shipping circles, will, no doubt, constitute another important asset for the future development of Swedish ship design and shipbuilding industry.
Sweden’s merchant fleet, including auxiliary and sailing craft, increased last year by about 17,000 tons to a total of 1,622,000 tons gross, while the number of vessels was reduced by 19, mostly through war losses, to 2,240. Steamers showed a decrease of 51 to 850 of 813,000 tons, while motor vessels increased by 34 and 73,000 tons to 465 aggregating 723,000 tons gross. Sailing craft with auxiliary engines increased by one vessel to 914 of 83,000 tons and sailing ships showed a drop of 3 to 11, totaling 3,000 tons gross.
According to official Swedish reports the Swedish mercantile marine lost 11 vessels with a total tonnage of over 21,500 tons gross during February. During the same month the other neutral states lost about tons. For the first 6 months of the war the Swedish losses total 40 vessels of tons gross and in these catastrophes nearly 300 Swedish seamen have been killed. In addition three vessels have been seized by the German prize court.
The Swedish Svea Shipping Co., one of Sweden’s largest shipping enterprises running regular lines along the Swedish coasts and between Sweden and Baltic and North Sea ports, shows a net profit for 1939 which is more than double that of 1938, 2,082,000 or crowns, about $500,000, as compared with 914,000 crowns in the prior year. The Board proposes the payment of a dividend of 2 crowns per share, corresponding to 6.6 per cent against 5 per cent for the preceding year.
The Gotaverken shipyard of Gothenburg recently delivered a 15,500-ton tanker, Andrea Provig, built for Norwegian owners. The vessel, which is built to the highest class of Lloyds, is propelled by a 5-cylinder, 2-stroke, double-acting Gotaverken B. & W. engine of 7,000 i.hp., estimated to give the vessel a speed of 14 knots on cargo.
The same shipyard has also recently launched a tanker of about the same size. Owing to the severe cold certain special preparations had to be undertaken before the launching took place.
Another vessel, B. P. Newton, took water the first days in February at the Kockums yard of Malmoe. It is being built for Norwegian owners and has a loading capacity of about 16,000 tons. The propelling machinery will consist of a Kockum-M.A.N. 2-stroke Diesel engine developing about 6,000 hp. The contracted speed is 14½ knots on cargo. The vessel will be specially equipped for simultaneous transport and unloading of several kinds of oils.
The record for the Swedish Air Lines for 1939 has been most satisfactory in spite of the war. Passenger kilometers paid for amount to 18,392,000 as against 14,133,000 in 1938, an increase of 30 per cent. The influence of the war can be measured by the fact that for the first 8 months of 1939 the number of passenger kilometers were up by 56.3 per cent as against the same period for last year. Kilometers flown amounted to 2,900,000 as against 2,715,000. Figures for freight and luggage have increased by a few per cent and amount to 511,000 kg. for freight and 611,000 for luggage. Mails have decrease from 716,000 kg. to 577,000 as no night mail has been flown since September.
Imports to Sweden amounted to 258,000,000 crowns during January, or about 84,100,000 more than in the corresponding month last year, while experts rose by about 20,000,000 to 168,500,000 crowns, according to official statistics just published.
On the import side all groups of goods show increases, the largest being for the minerals and metals. Improved figures were registered also for the most important categories of Swedish export goods. The timber goods groups, including timber, pulp, paper, and cardboard, displayed a growth in export value, compared with January, 1939, by 19,000,000 crowns to 71,600,000 crowns, and exports of machinery goods went up by 3,000,000 crowns to 36,000,000 crowns. The Swedish export of minerals and metals remained unchanged at nearly 40,000,000 crowns.
Various Notes
The firm of Eric Tornros of Gothenburg has introduced in Sweden a Norwegian apparatus for making visual distress signals. This apparatus, designed to aid distressed sailors in a small boat or on a raft, transmits signals automatically every 30 seconds with a radius of visibility of 1½ nautical miles. It is powered by a battery capable of 100 hours continued use, or by two 50-hour batteries.
The Swedish Government today introduced a bill asking for appropriations of 117,305,000 kr. (£6,905,000) for new warships during the present and the next fiscal years. The bill calls for postponement of the building of two coast defense ships of about 8,000 tons each, which was decided upon last year, in view of the need to reserve the capacity of the country’s shipyards for building lighter units of various kinds.
In addition to two destroyers, which are to be finished during the fiscal year ending June 30, and another one for which the initial appropriations were made at the extraordinary Riksdag session last autumn, a fourth new destroyer is now to be built at a cost of 10,690,000 kr. (£630,000). Besides 6 big and 12 smaller mine sweepers for which the money was already voted in the autumn, the government have ordered a further number of mine sweepers to be built. An unnamed number of new submarines has also been ordered. For motor torpedo boats 11,000,000 kr. (£647,000) are asked.
For the acquisition of a further number of naval craft a lump sum of 34,950,000 kr. (£2,056,000) is demanded by the Government. Instead of building a mothership for submarines, a merchantman is to be bought and reconditioned for the purpose.—The London Times, March 7.
U.S.S.R.
Tone Changing
The Japan Advertiser, March 26.—(Yo-miuri.) Foreign Minister Hachiro Arita not long ago was reiterating that the negotiations with the Soviet Union for a trade agreement are progressing smoothly, but what puzzles us is that nothing has been mentioned about it recently. It hardly taxes the imagination to believe that at least the basic terms and conditions of the pact have been decided on by the respective delegations. What we are Wondering about is why the pact has not been concluded. If the negotiations are deadlocked, the reason must lie in political blatters rather than in differences with regard to the terms of the pact. And if this is true, probably the negotiations will end in a fiasco sooner or later just as did the negotiations several months ago regarding the Manchukuo-Outer Mongolian frontier at Nomonhan.
Concrete plans for the organization of special commissions to fix the boundary between Manchukuo and Outer Mongolia and to deal with any disputes that may arise have been presented to the Soviet Union. That Moscow seems to be rather indifferent toward them is deplorable. We recall that Foreign Commissar Viacheslav M. Molotov declared last year that he would endeavor to adjust and improve relations with Japan, taking the opportunity Presented by the negotiations for settlement of the Nomonhan dispute and other issues, but he seems to have forgotten this declaration, for he apparently is giving little attention to the negotiations for a trade pact.
Moreover, Moscow has failed to keep its promise to conclude a new fishery convention. When it agreed to a modus vivendi for this year, it said it would open negotiations for a new permanent convention. In view, however, of its deliberate taking from Japan of three fishery grounds in the recent auction, it is likely that it has no sincerity whatever with regard to keeping its pledge to conclude a new convention.
There have been reports that the Soviets have been concentrating troops in the Far East, especially since the peace with Finland. It is not known, however, how many troops have been sent or for what purposes. Recently, Soviet patrols in Saghalien fired on Japanese patrols.
All in all, there are indications that the Far Eastern policy of the Soviet Union has undergone appreciable change. How it will develop cannot be predicted, but it is evident that since the Soviet-Finnish peace the Soviet Union brazenly has been annoying Japan. As long as it does not abandon its policy of aiding the Chiang Kai-shek Government, its relations with Japan cannot be adjusted, we believe. Under the circumstances, we urged the government to reconsider the foreign policy it has been following thus far.
OTHER COUNTRIES
Brazil
The Pan-American neutrality committee, ordered to pursue the task undertaken last September at Panama, after having met again at Rio de Janeiro, interrupted its work on February 6 for a month; but the delegates remained nonetheless at Rio where they pursued the study of the problems suspended.
Last week, the Committee agreed on rules concerning internment, which the Graf Spee affair brought to a head. Referring to the principle of international law and to the Convention of The Hague of 1907, it decided to recommend to the 22 republics adopting the following principles:
(1) Each neutral state shall intern, until the end of the war, individuals who enter their territory individually or collectively, if they belong to the forces of the belligerents, including naval forces considered as auxiliaries of war; naval forces are excepted whose entry into a neutral port has been authorized, but the officers or members of the crew shall be interned who remain ashore when the ship shall have left port;
(2) The wounded and sick shall be transported across neutral territory, after authorization, and on condition that the vehicles transporting them are not materials of war. The wounded and sick brought in by an enemy belligerent or by their own forces or confided to a neutral shall be interned;
(3) Escaped prisoners reaching neutral territory shall be free, the neutral government being able to decide their length of stay within the country and whether or not to interne them;
(4) Belligerents, victims of shipwreck or an accident occurring in neutral territory, whether voluntary or not, shall be interned except as outlined in paragraph 5;
(5) Persons physically incapable of taking part in the war shall not be interned. They shall be cared for by the neutral state and shall be repatriated as soon as possible. In case this is impossible, they shall remain until the end of the war;
(6) The interested parties shall remain under the jurisdiction of the neutral state;
(7) The neutral state will have to decide: individual or collective internment, place of residence, limits of liberty or of activities while interned, means of vigilance. The crews should remain aboard interned vessels to insure upkeep and maintenance and should be under surveillance.— Journal de la Marine Marchande, February 29.
Canada
Out of the necessary war-time secrecy surrounding details of Canada’s war effort today came two general statements of progress concerning naval and military preparations. The dominion’s $50,000,000 ship construction program is ahead of schedule, according to the department of munitions and supplies. At 15 shipyards, work is proceeding on more than 100 new vessels for naval and air service purposes. Voluntary extension of hours and intensification of effort by shipyards employes is said to be largely responsible for the progress.
At present 4,000 men are engaged but soon this number will be more than doubled.
The naval program calls for 64 patrol ships and 26 mine sweepers among the larger craft. Construction of some of these is far advanced and they will be delivered this year. Launchings will begin in about 3 months. The rest are due in 1941. Ten ships are being built for the British Admiralty.
Other craft under way include lighters, aircraft tenders, and rescue boats, service scows, and supply and salvage boats. However, the program is constantly being revised and expanded and the shipbuilding industry is geared to meet the demand.
The other announcement concerned the organization and re-grouping of the nonpermanent active militia, combining it with the Canadian active service force so it can reinforce overseas units.
All infantry regiments will be grouped territorially: three of them allotted to Ontario; two, one French and English, respectively, to Quebec; one each to British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatoon, Manitoba, and New Brunswick, and one allotted jointly to Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. The regiments will include all rifle, machine gun and tank units in their districts. Each will contribute proportionately its share of overseas reinforcements.
Cavalry, engineer, signal and army service, medical and ordnance corps units will follow the same system, distributing opportunities for service overseas.
To meet the increasing war costs, an increase of $200,000,000 in Canadian exports is expected this year.
The increase will come, it is said, despite loss of trade with enemy countries and the shrinkage of the Australian and New Zealand markets. These are counterbalanced elsewhere. Eighty per cent of Canada’s export trade is with the United States and the United Kingdom, and Britain’s projected war purchases from Canada alone will represent an increase of between $150,000,000 and $250,000,000 over pre-war consumption of Canadian products.—Chicago Tribune, April 21.
China
The constant chipping at the new dugouts in the solid rock, interrupted by the frequent blasting, which is the dominant note in Chungking, symbolizes the present attitude of the Chinese. The mass of the people and many of the leaders would like peace; but all prefer to endure further horrors which the war may bring rather than accept a peace of surrender.
In spite of their manifold difficulties, of which the maintenance of communications with the outside world is the most serious, the Chinese are full of confidence and have a degree of optimism. General Chiang Kai-shek, on whom many observers believe that the future of the war, if not of China, depends, looked the picture of health, and was in good spirits when I saw him on his return from the front. The rank and file of the Chinese Army are daily heartened not so much by the claims of Chinese successes in the field as by the reports of Japan’s growing difficulties at home and abroad. Over all, there is a zest for building up a new China beyond the reach of the Japanese Armies.
Dr. Kung assures me that China has not yet used up the credits granted by Great Britain and America. The barter agreements with various countries, except Germany, are working smoothly undeterred by the blockade. The Chinese claim to have ways and means of getting goods in and °ut of the country, which the Japanese cannot Prevent, and they are confident in their ability uot only to finance the war, but also to develop their internal resources. To this end the four government banks have just granted credits of $100,000,000 for rural development in Szechwan alone.
The war in the West has certainly brought disadvantages to China. The intense preoccupation pf Great Britain and France in their supreme task in Europe does not help China. But she has benefited in other ways. Looking out on a world in arms from their fastness in the mountains of Szechwan, the Chinese feel that their international position is better than that of Japan. They brush aside fears that China should become too deeply involved with Russia, as a consequence of the help they continue to receive from there, and they discount the risks of complications with the Allied Powers that might arise if any exports to Russia under their barter agreement should find their way to Germany.
The Chinese claim that they have their own Communist problem well in hand, and they minimize, perhaps too much, the dangers of the Wang Ching-wei movement, preferring to make the most of the delays, the bickering, and the desertions at Shanghai. The chief source of their confidence, however, is their belief that America will exert increasing pressure on Japan, even to the point of forcing her to withdraw her troops from China. The Chinese are also counting on an Allied victory, which will enable the European signatories of the Nine-Power Treaty to turn their attention to the East. Hence their present attitude, which is that there can be no settlement the Far East until there is a settlement in Europe.—London Times, March 9.
A new flag has been designed for the projected Wang Ching-wei régime in China which, according to Domei, symbolizes peace, national salvation and the country’s feeling against the Comintern.
A triangular yellow pennant floats above the flag proper, inscribed with four Chinese characters fading Anti-Comintern and Peace. The emblem itself has a crimson background, while on the upper left quarter a white sun appears on a blue background identical with the flag used by the Chungking Government.—Japan Advertiser, March 1.
Costa Rica
San Jose, Costa Rica, April 4 (AP).—The Foreign Ministry announced today that a treaty would be signed with Nicaragua tomorrow providing for the canalization of the San Juan River, which connects Lake Nicaragua with the Atlantic and forms the eastern boundary of the two republics.
The San Juan River would form an important link in any interocean canal that might be built across Nicaragua. The Costa Rican Foreign Minister, Tobias Zuniga, and a special Nicaraguan envoy, Manuel Cordero, last night agreed upon details of the treaty, which was drawn up following a survey of the San Juan project by United States army engineers.
Nicaragua has long sought an agreement with Costa Rica to develop the San Juan River as a waterway.—Chicago Tribune, April 5.
Philippine Islands
The presence in this island group of ores of strategic importance may have an influence on the attitude of the United States with respect to their liberation. Indeed, America must import several minerals such as chrome, manganese, mercury, nickel, tin, tungsten, antimony, and aluminum. In the Philippines, manganese and chrome are the most important. In 1937 twelve thousand tons were mined; in 1938 four times as much, though that is not more than 1 per cent of world production. Japan took 75 per cent of the 1937 production and almost all of the 1938. Twenty-two per cent of chrome imported into the United States comes from the Philippines. The importance to the United States of the chrome reserve (estimated 1,015 million tons) is plain to see. The greatest part of the important iron and copper production has gone to Japan. The gold production in 1938 amounted to $31,600,000. The rise of Philippine mining is due in great part to Japanese capital. The present export value of Philippine mineral products (3 per cent of all exports in 1938) is not large, but the strategic value of these minerals must ever be borne in mind.—Marineblad, February.
Portugal
The new navy yard at Alfeite has a hydrographic ship under construction which is to be launched in the near future. This vessel will have a displacement of about 1,150 tons.—Le Yacht, March.
Turkey
Word comes from Istanbul that the Turkish Government has just decided to establish a navy yard on the Golden Horn. This yard would specialize in the building of merchantment. It would be constructed by British interests. The estimated cost is 2 million pounds sterling and would be payable in accordance with the terms of the Anglo-Turkish treaty. The yard is to be ready for operation in 3 years.—Journal de la Marine Marchande, March 21.
Yugoslavia
In order to replace the port of Dubrovnik, which does not lend itself to enlargement, Yugoslavia is going to construct a port with modern facilities on the Dalmatian Coast. The site chosen is near the little town of Plotea at the mouth of the Narenta River. The small island of Osing, which closes the mouth, will be completely removed and will furnish the stone for the foundation and construction of the quays.—Le Yacht, February.
AVIATION
The Aircraft Engine and the War
U. S. Air Services, February.—This nation again finds itself a seriously concerned spectator while a major European war gets under way. It faces the question of what to do to guard its existence and properly provide for its future. The problem is not a new one. The war simply has altered the conditions by making the solution more urgent and the results more vital, and a far larger than normal share of the national effort will be required to cope with it.
This is particularly true in the technical field, for if there is any one lesson which would seem to be obvious from recent history, it is that the nation dropping behind in technical development is almost irretrievably lost. Aviation forms a perfect example of a highly technical and basically essential art where development has taken place at an almost phenomenal rate and, despite some increasingly effective limitations, promises to continue to do so. The aircraft power plant as the mainspring of the whole is of primary importance and it is of interest to consider where we stand, what is required, and where we are going in the period we are facing, regardless of whether this period covers a long drawn out war, or another armed truce.
An almost endless detailed comparison of engines and relative performances can be made, which I do not propose to go into. Even when the comparison is limited to the known first-class engines of the world, data in many cases are inexact, it is woefully difficult to get all of the variables properly valued and the answer can almost be predicted from the assumptions and the weight given different variables. However, it would seem to be an over-all fair statement that performance-wise we compare favorably with anything produced and that in the properties of both reliability and durability the engines of the United States are better than those of other countries. The efficient air-cooled radial type, in particular, has been brought to a high state of development.
In actuality, however, this does little more than assure us of a reasonable start. The history of the last war was one of such intensive development of aircraft engines that not only were powers increased many times over, but completely new types were evolved. There are modifying influences to be taken into account in attempting to apply these lessons to the present situation, but we can be certain that foreign progress will be accelerated at a rapid rate. Not only will there be the advantage, dearly paid for but of inestimable value, of actual service experience, but also the unlimited resources and facilities that war provides.
Herein lies our major weakness. The modern aircraft engine has reached the stage in its evolution where the development of a new model is a painstaking laboratory process and every gain is had only at the expense of thousands of hours of research and development work. Our laboratory facilities, although in most cases liberally provided by normal standards, are now inadequate. This is particularly true of the government basic research laboratories. Obviously, therefore, there are two things to be done. First, the laboratories and all facilities now available must be utilized so as to get the maximum of work from them and the demand intelligently planned to eliminate all nonessentials. Secondly, the government laboratory facilities should be expanded to the utmost limit possible, and quickly. This is one Part of the necessary program which is seriously behindhand.
A detailed prediction concerning quantity, performance, and types to be expected is a difficult task and the result would probably be of little value. How-over, I am inclined to believe we can arrive at some general conclusions, which will be reasonable, by utilizing our limited experience, if we take into account the effect of the present circumstances and other modifying factors. As an example, although there was no such thing as military aviation when the previous war began, the use of guns of all calibers had long experience behind it. Despite all of this knowledge, before the outcome was decided the quantities of guns and shells required were increased and multiplied so many times over that the original estimates were eventually a subject of scorn. It seems to me that military aviation now occupies this same position. Regardless of whether or not the war will be won with air power, the airplane has proved its value as a major Weapon and the only limit on quantity will be the problems inherent in the production °f such a complicated mechanism and the ability to train sufficient pilots. As concerns the war itself, therefore, I look for the fabrication of engines in hitherto unthought of quantities.
The power outputs which will be utilized are probably the easiest of all to predict if We do not require exact figures and will be content with covering the indicated range. As we have previously noted, if we attempt to directly apply the history of the previous war, we would expect powers to multiply several times. It is fairly patent that this is wide of the mark and I believe excessively so. Increased aircraft performance constantly requires more power, but most of the other factors are tending to slow up the rate of increase.
The propeller is finding its future task a difficult one, especially the combination of high power with high altitude, and it is indicated that a serious change from past practice, either in the propeller itself or the engine drive, may be necessary for any considerable addition. Undoubtedly, a solution will be found and the necessary power cared for, but the time required to evolve this will have a restraining influence.
Another factor is cost, whether this be measured in dollars, man hours, or other form of payment and cost increases far out of proportion to physical size. To calculate the effects of this is not easy, for war proverbially brings forth what seem to be superhuman efforts in overcoming obstacles of this kind. Over all, considering the cost in conjunction with the ultimate quantities which will probably be required, the net effect should be one of holding against a rapid increase.
Although substantial gains have been made in the past 10 years in specific output, this rate cannot be expected to continue, due to fuel and supercharging limitations. Large power increases can be had, therefore, only by the addition of more cylinders. More cylinders, even if applied to existing types of engines, mean a new engine design and the development time required again has a braking effect on the rate of increase.
Engines of 1,800 to 2,000 takeoff horsepower are now ready for service or will be so shortly. There would appear to be no fundamental reason why they cannot be built to develop 4,000 or even 5,000 hp. In view of the factors enumerated, I look for no such units, but instead an increase more of the order of 50 to 70 per cent.
Based on experience from the last war, we should see our present types of engines rapidly superseded and other types come and go before the present war is concluded.
Some major military operational factor may intervene to direct the trend all in one direction. That is, it may suddenly be found that the liquid-cooled engine is highly vulnerable in its cooling system and that far too many of them fail to return from action. Or it might be that the aircooled engine will develop some basic fault, although already it has had a fairly good tryout in the minor wars which have taken place. In any such event the shift should be to an already established type.
Another condition which will seriously mitigate against any rapid change in type is the simple time element. That is, it now takes from three to four years (as a minimum) to develop a really serviceable engine, starting from the inception of the design, if the engine is markedly different from previous experience. War-time exigencies will, of course, tend to accelerate this, but as an offset the engine will undoubtedly be of an increased size and more complicated, so that the final period required will be little, if any, shorter than at present. It would seem, therefore, that even if the war proves to be an extremely long one, it would still not provide time for more than one complete change.
The major change in cylinder arrangement will probably be caused by the power demands previously discussed. These in combination with the increasing importance of reduced frontal area will cause the addition of more cylinders strung out lengthwise, so that although we do not depart much from the basic types, the form will change somewhat. Again, however, the time element pretty much dictates that most of what will be forthcoming in the period under consideration is already designed and in the development stage, or at least on the drafting board.
The gear-driven supercharger with multiple stages and intercooling makes an acceptable solution up to reasonable pressures, but beyond these the power required for driving becomes an excessive burden. The most promising answer would seem to lie in the exhaust turbine-driven supercharger which has been under development for a considerable time. Unfortunately, this development has not yet been entirely successful and its installation presents a severe, but not insurmountable, problem. Either these difficulties must be overcome in the near future, or an acceptable substitute found quickly.
Various aircraft designs requiring extension shafts, reverse rotation, propeller change speed gears, dual propeller rotation and many other more or less unorthodox ideas, all requiring special engine constructions, are constantly being studied. Guessing at the time when these may come into actual use is difficult, but I am inclined to believe that the more complicated of them will fall down of their own weight, almost literally. A few of the simplest and most straightforward in design have a good chance of adoption in time.
An excellent record in the reduction of fuel consumption has been made by the modern aircraft engine, the gain amounting to approximately 25 per cent in the last 10 years. This trend can be expected to continue, although at a somewhat reduced rate, for not only is each successive reduction more difficult to obtain, but the immediate practical limit would seem to lie somewhere in the next 15 per cent.
Safety fuel, although not yet strictly defined, appears definitely on the horizon. It can be obtained in a sufficient quantity and at a reasonable price. There are undoubtedly some real problems to be solved in connection with its use and these may take a considerable amount of effort and time. They should not be insurmountable, however, and it seems reasonable to expect that the almost universal demand for its adoption will be satisfied.
The consideration of commercial engine development as distinguished from the military has been omitted purposely. This is mainly because the military effect is certain to be the preponderate one in the period ahead. The commercial requirements can be fairly easily got at, especially that of power which will probably fit reasonably well into the military range as it has in the past.
Beyond this the picture is not clear. Air transport, despite its phenomenal growth and present healthy condition, is not yet in a position completely to support a separate engine development. If, however, military demands for the ultimate in specific performance eventually cause a lowering of the high standard of reliability and durability to which we have attained, then it seems there will be more of a distinction between the two than heretofore. The transport demand will generally be for greater and greater reliability and the transport engine may probably be a modified military type, or types, operated at a reduced rating.
To sum up, this country has an excellent chance of maintaining a reasonable position in the race if the vital importance of research is recognized and the necessary action taken quickly. The quantity of engines produced for war purposes may well be far larger than any present conception. Towers will increase, but at no phenomenal rate. It will be some time before engines in excess of 3,000 hp. will be produced in large numbers. Barring the Upsetting influence of some unforeseen factor heretofore overlooked, the air-versus liquid-cooling competition should continue as strenuously as ever.
The air-cooled radial, the simplest and the most efficient form in the utilization of material ever devised, will continue to be Produced in large quantities. The liquid-cooled, in-line, in various forms will be well represented. Adding cylinders will lead logically to a combination of radial and inline arrangements. Supercharging is due for a change and special power-drive construction will probably be used eventually, but these will be of the less complicated sort. In a few words, we will have what would have been an orderly development considerably accelerated by present world conditions.
Challenge
The Engineer, April 5.—One cannot but admire the courage with which the prevailing type of aero-engine was challenged in a recent discussion before the North-East Coast Institution of Engineers and Shipbuilders. Although Mr. W. S. Burn, who led the attack, described his own experience as well outside the aeronautical field, he thought his long acquaintanceship with other forms of internal-combustion engine justified him in calling attention to undeveloped opportunities which the aero-engine designer might have seized but has not. As a general proposition, there is much to be said for the claim that advance is often made on unexpected lines by the bringing in of men accustomed to another technique. This was, for instance, most notably seen in the aeronautical field in recent years when the designing skill which produced the great airship R. 100 was transferred to heavier-than-air craft, and there speedily arose the now well-known geodetic method of airframe construction, with results seen at large in many of our present-day long range bombers, and incidentally in the world record for length of a single flight.
So here we have a challenge, not the first, to the existing form of aero-engine; one that has the merit of carrying the matter to its logical issue by the presentation of a definite alternative. Scrutiny of his proposals shows at once that although Mr. Burn may be right in claiming to be out-side the circuit of aeronautical experts, he has none the less made himself familiar with the technical position of the aero-engine as it exists today. The claim is that the petrol engine should give way to an engine using safety fuel, a fuel of such low volatility as greatly to reduce the risk of trash fires, and capable of giving a horsepower-hour for a consumption as low as 0.32 pound—when used of course in the right kind of engine. The engine cycle proposed is the 2-stroke compression ignition type, having opposed pistons as in the familiar Junkers engine. But in order to fit into the flat shape of the airplane wing, it is proposed that the engine should itself be flat, having three rather large cylinders on each side of the crankshaft, and giving in all 2,100 hp. The choice between air-cooling and water-cooling is solved by the unexpected method of not using either, placing instead this considerable duty on the oil circulation. The engine is to be so disposed in the rear half of the wing as to be easy of access for adjustment during flight, and to be conveniently disposed to take a pusher-air-screw.
Here, in short, is the latest challenge by the compression ignition partisans to the existing type of aero-engine. To meet with any success it has to be assumed that the fuel injection apparatus is at least as free from fear of breakdown, or interrupted service, as is the customary combination of carburetor and magneto. The importance of this point can hardly be too highly stressed since the entire dependence of the life of the whole structure rests on the ability of the engine to give continuous duty. The result of engine failure may be absolute disaster. So much attention in fact does the engine demand that it is rather alarming to picture this large flat engine so tucked away that it cannot be readily replaced as a whole. The ability to change the engine as a complete unit is a convenience which has much in its favor, and is possessed by many present-day types. Mr.Burn naturally, however, views his engine with parental pride, and makes claims for it which are decidedly full-blooded; as, for example, its requiring less supercharging at altitude than the petrol engine, though in fact what is lacking at such altitudes is air, not fuel, and the atmosphere can be counted upon to be impartial between rival types of oxygen-consuming apparatus. But boldness goes a long way when it is suggested that in the case of such an engine being fitted to flying boats it might be feasible, in order to overcome pusher-airscrew difficulties, to use rotatable stub floats in place of the customary transverse hull step. To anyone with knowledge of the intricacies of flying boat hull design, with the peculiarities of stub floats, and with the sensitivity of the shape of the underwater portion of the hull, it will be a shock to find such complexities treated lightly as a small step towards the production of an improved engine. Nevertheless we welcome this challenge and we hope that those in high authority will consider it with the care it deserves. Germany has her own reasons for wanting to use the less volatile fuels, but her assiduity in working at compression ignition designs must not be allowed to leave us behind, especially in their application to the long range aircraft needed for ocean-going patrols.
New Pursuit Craft
New York Herald Tribune, April 10.— A new twin-engined, single-seat pursuit plane, known as the Skyrocket and described by its builders, the Grumman Aircraft Corporation, as the fastest plane of its type in the world, took off here today in its first public test flight. The plane is said to have a top speed of between 425 and 450 miles an hour.
With Bob Hall, test pilot for the Grumman company, at the controls, the plane roared into the skies from a rain-soft field only 7 seconds after the craft’s two 1,200-hp. Wright air-cooled engines were “given the gun.” By way of comparison, a standard Grumman single-engined pursuit of the type which the Navy has bought in the past was put in the air at the same time, and the new fighting plane almost literally flew circles about the older model.
Although it was built with an eye to possible service aboard a navy aircraft carrier, the Skyrocket, it was learned, has been released for negotiations with foreign buyers, and Colonel Paul Jacquin, head of the French Air Commission in the United States now arranging plane purchases, is said to have visited the Grumman factory during the last week for a look at the plane. It can be armed with 10 machine guns or with 2 cannon firing explosive bullets and 4 machine guns. The pilot fires the guns by pressing a button.
In one of the tests today the new plane flew about 100 yards in advance of the standard pursuit plane and suddenly began a steep climb which the older craft was unable to duplicate. Officials of the aircraft company were reluctant to discuss performance figures, but it was said that in tests the Skyrocket has climbed more than 4,500 ft. a minute without full power on. The officials asserted that the climbing qualities of the plane resulted in part from the extreme lightness of the plane. It weighs approximately 3,500 lb. less than most other comparable twin-engined, single-seat pursuits.
The Skyrocket has a wing spread of about 42 ft. and its length is about 28½ ft. Highest speeds were reached, it was said, at an altitude of 16,000 ft.—the one at which enemy bombers would be most likely to fly during raids.
Various Notes
Officials of the Curtiss-Reid aircraft plant revealed today that experimental construction of a revolutionary new type of airplane engine Powered by electricity had been undertaken. The engine, it was stated, is wholly experimental as yet. It is not a Curtiss-Reid product, but apparently is being built in that plant and with cooperation of Curtiss-Reid engineers.
From descriptions obtained from workmen the engine apparently is powered by electric batteries of a new light-weight type. Ordinary storage batteries of a size large enough to operate a 1,200-hp. airplane motor would be too heavy and bulky.
Actual development of an electric plane would be an aviation achievement of the first magniture, eliminating gasoline fire hazards and reducing operating costs.
Aviation circles reported a rumor that the experimental ship was designed to attain a speed of 300 miles an hour and a cruising range of 3 hours. Curtiss-Reid officials said it would not reach the testing stage for some time.—New York Herald Tribune, April 6.
On January 13, 1940, there took place the first mass troop movement by airplane in the United States, in which a complete combat unit, with weapons and camping equipment, were transported from Hamilton Field to March Field, California.
The 2d Battalion, 65th Coast Artillery (AA), consisting of 342 enlisted men and 12 officers, was organized into 3 infantry companies and a headquarters detachment. Each soldier carried complete field equipment, 2 additional blankets, rifle, field belt, and bayonet. Six .30-caliber machine guns and ammunition for all arms, as well as field ranges, kitchen equipment, and rations were loaded into the planes. Thirty-eight bombers of the B-18 type were used in the movement, each of 35 planes carrying 10 men, and 3 being untilized as cargo planes.
Owing to a severe storm, the entire flight was forced down at Bakersfield, where it was necessary for the troops to spend the night. They were sheltered at the Kern County Fair grounds, and resumed the flight to March Field the next day.
The Air Corps’ efficiency assured success of this movement. Another contribution to success was the readiness of the American soldier to volunteer for extra duty. When the call for volunteers was issued, over 450 names were received. Almost all of the troops were recruits with but a few months’ service. It was expected that many would be air sick, and special precautions were taken to supply each man with a container to take care of the situations which might “come up.”
The Coast Artillery is pleased to have the distinction of furnishing this battalion; and the general reaction of the troops was “When do we do it again?”—Coast Artillery Journal, March-April.
MERCHANT MARINE
Diesels on Boiler Fuel
Motorship and Diesel Boating, April.— One of the perennial controversial subjects included in almost every discussion of marine Diesel engine operation is the advisability of using boiler oil as Diesel fuel. Although it is universally agreed that the use of such oil would greatly increase the economic superiority of the Diesel engine over steam machinery this superiority has not been, and in most countries is not now, narrow enough to furnish a compelling motive for the use of heavy oil. It is well understood that the use of low grade fuel in the Diesel calls for more careful attendance and closer attention to maintenance of correct operating conditions.
For this reason there has been an almost universal tendency to take the path of least resistance and use high grade Diesel fuel that is more expensive but requires little treatment other than to pump it through the injection valves. Because of this habitual use of special Deisel fuel the belief persists in many quarters that Diesel engines will not operate successfully with low grade fuel, of the order of the so-called bunker C boiler oil.
Renewed interest in the subject has been created by the obvious intention of the U. S. Maritime Commission to operate its new motorships with boiler fuel, or if this proves to be impracticable, the cheapest fuel that will give satisfactory performance.
It has been repeatedly demonstrated that large Diesel engines will readily operate with even the heaviest grades of boiler fuel if the fuel is properly conditioned. As a result of experience this necessary conditioning, formerly thought to be quite complicated, has been reduced to a rather simple procedure. All that is required is heating and cleaning.
As a generalization it may be stated that if the viscosity of the oil is sufficiently low to enable it to be pumped through the injection valves by the fuel metering pumps, it will burn satisfactorily in the cylinder. With most oils there is a straight line relation between viscosity and temperature, so that when the numerical value of this relation is determined correct viscosity is maintained by maintaining the oil at the correct temperature. With the modern heat exchangers now available this is easily done.
On the basis of our own experience we can again generalize by saying that any oil that is reduced to a Saybolt viscosity of 200 will be sufficiently fluid for proper injection. The temperature required to produce this viscosity will vary with different boiler fuels. This is obvious from the fact that different fuels will range from 550 to 2,200 Saybolt viscosity at 100 degrees.
Since all such fuels contain a considerable amount of abrasive dirt their use, even when good combustion conditions are attained, will result in excessive wear of cylinder liners, rings, pump plungers, and valves unless the oil is cleaned before it is delivered to the fuel metering pumps. An effective and practical means of doing this is by centrifuging. Heating of the oil is required for effective centrifuging but since it must be heated anyhow, for injection, two birds can be killed with one stone.
The first of the Commission motorships to enter service comprise a group propelled by Sun-Doxford engines all of which are operating with fuels varying from 14 to 17 Be gravity. Of course, the opposed-piston type of engine is conceded to have little trouble with such fuel, but it should be noted that the Cooper-Bessemer auxiliary engines on these ships also use the heavy fuel. Temperature of the fuel is maintained by circulating an amount in excess of pump requirements through the heat exchangers. Effectiveness of the cleaning done by centrifuges is demonstrated by the fact that on the first ship, the Donald McKay, the wear in the 24 cylinders of the auxiliary engines has been from 7 to 11 thousandths of an inch in approximately 5,000 hours of operation. Equally good re-suits are expected from the second group of ships to enter service, which are propelled by Busch-Sulzer Diesels.
With the excellent fuel economy being shown by the turbine machinery of the Commission’s steamships we believe that Diesel engine builders and ship operators should give most serious attention to increasing the Diesel engine’s economy by the use of fuels that tend to put the two types of machinery on a more nearly equal initial fuel cost basis.
MISCELLANEOUS
The Dutch East Indies
Baltimore Sun, April 19.—The situation ns to the Dutch East Indies seems to be that Japan has warned this country and Great Britain to watch their steps and we have warned Japan to watch her step. In consequence, both the United States and Japan are formally committed once more to preservation of the status quo. That is, they are formally committed once more to recognition and preservation of the rights of Holland in the Dutch East Indies. Beyond that, the United States insists, in Secretary Hull’s statement, that any future alteration of the status of the Dutch East Indies, if events compel alteration, shall be by peaceable procedure and in deference to the principles of international law.
The agitation is the result of fear throughout the world that Germany will invade Holland, conquer her, and put her under that system of control which the Nazis euphemistically call “protection.” Holland possesses a great empire. What would be the fate of its outlying possessions if she were brought under Germany’s control? In particular, what would happen to her productive East Indies with their rubber and oil and other essentials of modern industry? Germany, in present circumstances, would be at disadvantage in the East, for she lacks naval force. The Japanese profess to have fear that Great Britain or the United States would assert
a “protective” authority over the Dutch East Indies. They do not wish either to do so. They apparently feel that they might be able to make terms with the British ultimately, but they do not wish to go to that trouble and risk. They are not so certain that, if we asserted “protection” over the Dutch East Indies, they would be able to make terms. To us, these Japanese fears seem extravagant. The British in China as well as in Europe, have their hands full and are not likely to invite further dissension with the Japanese. And we know that neither the American Government nor the American people wish to rush into further commitments and therefore further responsibilities in the Far East. Still, in fairness, it may be said that the Japanese may have been genuine in their fears.
On our side, we are bound to be suspicious of the Japanese in any new unsettlements in the Far East. We regard their invasion of Manchuria as bald conquest in violation of treaty obligations. We regard their invasion of China proper as even more flagrant invasion of a peaceful neighbor and as shameless violation of treaty obligations. We look upon her assertion of domination over all Eastern Asia as assertion of the privilege of brutal conquest. In the nature of things, then, we become watchful if the future of rich islands of the East is in doubt. We become watchful because we have maintained a consistent position in support of the reign of law in international relations. We have, in late years, faithfully applied the rules to ourselves in foreign relations. And we are watchful because, in addition to our support of international law, we have a direct economic interest of large magnitude in preserving the stability of the Dutch East Indies, in guarding the free movement of commodities from those and near-by islands and in resisting the totalitarian controls over international trade which commonly attend the extensions of authority by the dictator nations. In this watchful attitude, we are well within treaty rights and protections, specifically the Root-Ta-kihara agreement with Japan in 1908 and the Far Eastern agreements to which we and Japan were parties in the Washington Conference of 1921-22.
As of today, these mutual suspicions between Japan and ourselves have resulted in mutual declarations of intention to respect the rights of the Dutch Government in the East Indies and to obey international law. The American Government and the American people will be happy if these declarations are supported in acts, as emergencies of the future may develop.
World's Naval Shipbuilding
Norsk Tidsskrift, February.—Given below are (a) launchings for 1939, and (b) ships under construction or whose construction will begin in 1940. The date cannot be strictly accurate for countries at war.
Argentina.—(a) 1 mine sweeper, 1 transport; (b) 5 destroyers, 4 mine sweepers.
Belgium.—(b) 1 survey ship, 1 motor patrol boat.
Brazil.—(a) 9 destroyers, 4 mine layers; (b) 2 cruisers, 3 submarines, 3 gunboats.
Great Britain.—(a) 5 battleships, 4 aircraft carriers, 12 cruisers, 7 destroyers, 1 mine sweeper, 4 escort vessels, 3 patrol boats, 6 submarines, 3 river gunboats, 16 motor torpedo boats, 6 submarine net guard boats, 1 ship for magnetic research, 1 fuel tanker; (b) 2 battleships, 1 aircraft carrier, 4 cruisers, 16 destroyers, 4 submarines, 1 mine layer, 20 mine sweepers, 22 escort vessels, 6 motor torpedo boats, 1 motor torpedo boat tender, 1 river gunboat, 8 submarine net guard boats, 1 royal yacht, 1 hospital ship, 107 trawlers, 56 patrol boats, 1 cable ship, 1 tug, 1 destroyer received from Canada, 67 trawlers purchased.
Chile.—(b) 2 cruisers, 2 submarines, 1 survey ship, 1 transport, 1 school ship.
Cuba.—(b) 2 cruisers, 14 gunboats.
Denmark.—(a) 1 submarine, 1 mine layer, 2 mine sweepers; (b) 2 torpedo boats.
Egypt.—(b) 1 gunboat, 4 mine sweepers, 6 torpedo boats.
Estonia.—(b) 1 submarine chaser, 4 motor torpedo boats, 1 guard boat.
Finland.—(b) 2 mine layers, 2 destroyers, 2 submarines, 2 motor torpedo boats.
France.—(a) 2 battleships, 1 cruiser, 4 destroyers, 2 submarines, 2 gunboats, 19 mine sweepers, 4 motor torpedo boats, 18 submarine chasers, 2 fuel tankers; (b) 2 battleships, 2 aircraft carriers, 2 cruisers, 4 destroyer leaders, 18 destroyers, 23 submarines, 1 gunboat, 1 river gunboat, 10 mine sweepers, 26 motor torpedo boats, submarine chasers, 7 fuel tankers, 4 aircraft tenders.
Greece.—(a) 2 motor torpedo boats; (b) 6 destroyers, 2 submarines.
Italy.—(a) 1 battleship, 8 submarines, 26 motor torpedo boats; (b) 1 battleship, 14 cruisers, destroyers, 4 torpedo boats, 2 motor torpedo boats, 20 submarines.
Ireland.—(b) 2 motor torpedo boats.
Japan.—(a) 1 aircraft carrier, 2 cruisers, 6 flotilla leaders, 1 submarine, 1 mine layer, 1 mine sweeper, 3 submarine chasers; (b) 4 battleships, 1 aircraft carrier, 1 cruiser, 8 submarines. It is said that plans are being laid for fifteen 16,000-ton cruisers, 5 smaller cruisers, 12 destroyers, and 8 submarines.
Yugoslavia.—(a) 1 gunboat and 1 tanker; (b) 1 destroyer leader, 2 destroyers, 2 submarines, 4 motor torpedo boats.
China.—(b) 1 motor torpedo-boat tender, 2 patrol boats.
Netherlands.—(a) 1 cruiser, 4 destroyers, 1 gunnery school ship, 8 submarines; (b) 3 battleships.
Norway.—(a) 3 torpedo boats, 2 mine sweepers; (b) 2 destroyers, 1 submarine, 8 motor torpedo boats.
Portugal.—(b) 3 destroyers, 3 submarines, 6 motor torpedo boats, 1 tanker.
Rumania.—(a) 1 mine layer; (b) 2 submarines and 1 mine layer.
Siam.—(a) 2 cruisers, 2 guard boats, 1 tanker.
Soviet Russia.—(b) 3 battleships, 2 aircraft carriers, 5 cruisers, 6 destroyer leaders, 2 destroyers, 20 submarines.
Spain.—(b) 2 destroyers, 3 submarines, 2 mine layers. It is said that plans are being laid for 4 battleships, 14 cruisers, and 14 submarines.
Sweden.—(a) 1 destroyer, 4 motor torpedo boats; (b) 2 large armored vessels, 1 destroyer, 5 submarines, 18 mine sweepers, 1 submarine tender.
Turkey.—(a) 2 submarines; (b) 4 destroyers, 4 submarines, 4 mine layers, 1 hospital ship.
Germany.—(a) 2 battleships, 2 cruisers, 22 submarines, 18 torpedo boats, 18 mine sweepers, 12 motor torpedo boats, 1 submarine tender; (b) 3 battleships, 1 aircraft carrier, 6 cruisers, 8 destroyers, 12 torpedo boats, 34 submarines, 12 mine sweepers, 1 gunnery school ship, 1 submarine tender, 2 tenders for motor torpedo boats, 1 fleet tender, 1 mine tender.