Admiral BowEN. Yes, sir; under the direction of the Bureau of Engineering.

Mr. CASEY. Is any provision made whereby the Navy could take dvantage of research and experiment by private enterprise?

Admiral BowEN. Yes, sir; that happens frequently. Whenever we ind a commercial laboratory which is better fitted to carry out a cerain problem we contract for the project with that laboratory. Furhermore, when we bring something into being at one of our laboraories and its development has proceeded to the point where our faciliies can go no farther, we call in outside talent.

Mr. CASEY. Assume that an individual or a laboratory has designed in engine that is a new approach to the problem of hoist engines, for xample. He is an individual in private life. Would any part of this fund be available from your department to subsidize him in his experiments if you found they were worth while?

Admiral BowEN. We decide each of those questions on its merits. Mr. CASEY. Would you have authority to subsidize him in his experiments?

Admiral BowEN. Yes, sir; we would have authority to subsidize him, but each one of those questions must be settled solely on its merits, because sometimes we are deluged with requests from persons who want the Government to finance the development of an idea. We say in every case that the individual himself must finance the development. It would have to be an unusual, an exceedingly meritorious, project that we would directly subsidize and, of course, it has to have a naval application.

ALTERATIONS

Admiral BowEN. The next is item 34, "Alterations," $570,000.

The "Material maintenance and improvement plan (vessels)," fiscal year 1939, contains 265 items, total estimated cost of which to all bureaus is $33,632,965. Of these, seven are repairs rather than alterations and have been handled under object 1291. Of the alterations, seven of the highest priority have been selected by the bureaus concerned as the only ones, in the interest of economy, for which money is being requested. The total cost of these alterations is: Ordnance, $2,596,000; Construction and Repair, $593,000; Engineering, $570,000; grand total, $3,759,000, less than 12 percent of the total of all items on the original approved plans.

Mr. UMSTEAD. Admiral, as I understand it, the purpose of this appropriation is to modernize vessels in the fleet.

Admiral BowEN. Yes, sir; in a sense. The expression "modernization" has acquired particular significance, because we go to Congress to get authority to "modernize" a vessel whenever the estimated cost exceeds the statutory limit of $450,000 for navy yard expenditures in an 18 months' period. This item will be completed within the limitation.

Admiral KIMMEL. We put these under the head of improvements to the fleet.

RADIO IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM (VESSELS) 1939

Admiral BowEN. Item 35, "Radio improvement program (vessels), 1939," $690.000.

The Chief of Naval Operations, in drawing up the needs for the naval communication service for 1939, furnished a priority list to

the Bureau of Engineering, approved by the Secretary of the Navy, of the projects which he considered essential for the maintenance of the communication system on an up-to-date, efficient, and effective basis. The total estimated cost of all those items of improvement for vessels of the fleet was $3,911,000, involving 18 projects. Budgetary limitations forced the Bureau of Engineering to reduce this total to a small fraction of its original value. The 14 projects listed under this item, at a total estimated cost of $690,000, represent complete elimination for 1939 of four projects and reduction of the remainder so that the total of the original list now stands reduced more than 82 percent.

Of the 14 items, 9 totaling $570,000, are continuations of programs previously undertaken.

At the rate funds are being made available, completion of these projects cannot be expected for an indefinite length of time. It must be realized that these projects, involving procurement of highgrade equipment as they do, entail a delivery interval of from 12 to 18 months; that is, no deliveries can be expected, even in the event of a national emergency, much within a year from the date a contract is entered into.

Two of the 14 projects, at a total of $75,000, mark the beginning of procurement projects based on the result of successful research covering a number of years. These two items in the future will join the previously discussed nine, eventually bringing the fleet up to modern standard as regards radio and sound equipment.

The three remaining projects, totaling $45,000, are for additional equipment urgently required. Funds requested herein should be sufficient for the completion of these projects.

Mr. UMSTEAD. Admiral, can you give us, in addition to the statement you have just made, a further statement relative to the efficiency and effectiveness of modern radio equipment as used in the Navy?

Admiral BowEN. The radio equipment in the Navy is entirely efficient within the limitation of the age of the equipment. Radio is a rapidly advancing art, and it becomes necessary from time to time to have a complete renewal of equipment and a complete modernization of equipment.

The fleet requires for its use, both in peace and in war, sending and receiving apparatus which is capable of communicating on everything from low frequencies and intermediate frequencies to high frequencies, superfrequencies and short wave. The number of channels of communication that are required to be kept open in connection with the command of the fleet, of course require a con siderable investment in equipment. Ideal developments in the radio field would guarantee that in the event of war communication car be had by the Commander in Chief with all the units of his comand without successful enemy interference.

RADIO IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM-SHORE STATIONS

Item 36: "Radio improvement program-shore stations," $477.0000 The shore station portion of the Chief of Naval Operations list previously mentioned totals $2.480,000. After thorough study of the entire situation, the original 19 projects were reduced to 12 and the money value of the total was reduced by 81 percent.

Six of the 12 items having a total cost of $180,000 are for continuing projects already undertaken, but at a rate very much slower than that desired by purely military considerations alone. Two at a cost of $12,000 are for new equipment urgently needed which, in the interests of economy, have been reduced 50 percent for 1939 to provide for their completion in 2 years rather than the 1 year properly required. One at a cost of $25,000 is incident to the completion of Naval Air Station, Alameda, and will be completed with the funds requested herein.

Three of the projects, totalling $260,000, are for undertaking procurement of equipment urgently needed to permit the safe operation of airplanes, principally of the patrol seaplanes whose numbers have increased so greatly of late. Considerations of safety of personnel and freedom of military operations dictate that these three projects should be completed immediately, that is, the entire amount required, $1,080,000, should be made available for procurement of all the material necessary in 1939. The reduction which has been made in this estimate will, if continued at the same rate, require the spread of the procurement of this equipment over 4 years.

CRASH BOATS

Item 37 (crash boats): $30,000.

Crash boats are necessary at naval stations where airplanes operate over the water. In general, the crash boats now in service are in satisfactory condition. $65,000 appropriated for crash-boat engines in 1938 is being used in the construction of two crash boats; one for duty at Naval Air Station, San Diego, and one at Naval Air Station, Hampton Roads, Va. It is estimated that these boats will cost $30,000 apiece engineering. The remaining $5,000 appropriated in 1938 will be used for installing engines procured in 1937 in a crash boat being built for Naval Air Station, Anacostia.

At the present time the Navy is approaching standardization on three types of crash boats, all capable of making not less than 35 and as nearly as practicable 45 statute miles per hour. These three types are: (a) 28-foot boat powered with 200-horsepower engine, engineering cost, $10,000; (b) 36-foot boat powered with one 375-horsepower engine, engineering cost, $18,000; (e) 45-foot boat powered with two 300-horsepower engines, engineering cost, $30,000.

The present need of naval air stations for new crash boats, none of which is a replacement, is as follows:

Two 45-foot boats for Naval Air Station, Alameda, recently established. One 45-foot boat for Fleet Air Base at Pearl Harbor. This is an additional boat required because of the greatly increased operations at Pearl Harbor since the strengthening of the patrol-plane squadrons stationed there.

One 36-foot boat to the Naval Academy at Annapolis, Md., where a squadron of patrol planes operates for training of midshipmen and no crash boat is at present assigned.

One 28-foot boat to the naval proving ground, Dahlgren, Va., where miscellaneous planes operate in connection with proving-ground work. There is no erash boat assigned to this base at the present.

The total engineering cost of providing these (5) boats, based on present estimates, would be $118,000 and prudence dictates that because of their possible contribution in saving life and salvaging Government property, they shall be procured during 1939. However,

budgetary restrictions necessitate a spreading out of this program to an extent to be later determined.

For 1939, $30,000 is requested covering the engineering portion of the cost of one crash boat to be assigned to Naval Air Station, Alameda.

Incidental cost to other appropriations, construction and repair____. $20,000

RETRIEVER BOATS

Item 38 (retriever boats): $25,000.

The retriever boat is a heavy-service boat, engined with 200 horsepower, and capable of a speed of about 13 knots. It is used in connection with test runs on torpedoes, to guard against loss, on a torpedo run, of a torpedo worth $12,500. A number of retriever boats are stationed at intervals along the course for the purpose of recovering torpedoes when they have completed their runs. At the present time there are 18 of these boats stationed at the Naval Torpedo Station at Newport, R. I., where the majority of the torpedo test work is done, and five at the Naval Torpedo Station, Keyport, Wash., where the tests, which must be made on the west coast, are run. The general condition of these 23 boats is highly unsatisfactory and the cost of maintenance is excessive. This is due to the fact that they are from 15 to 20 years old and are powered with obsolete engines. A progressive replacement program is absolutely essential to obviate the necessity, within a very few years, of replacing all of these 23 boats at one time. Appropriation limitations have provided for replacement at the rate of one boat per year for the last three years. It is not believed that this rate is nearly rapid enough. The Bureaus would like to replace the boats at the rate of four boats per year, but 1939 budgetary limitations have required that this be reduced to two. It is hoped that the rate can be accelerated hereafter to overcome this deferment. The engineering cost of the two boats is $12,500 each, a total of $25,000.

Incidental cost to other appropriations, construction and repair_-_. $15,000

YARD AND DISTRICT CRAFT BUILDING

Item 39: Yard and District Craft Building, $900.000.

The Yard and District Craft Development Board each year promulgates a 5-year building program intended to maintain the Navy's Yard and District craft in operable condition. This program is based on a useful age for this type of craft for 30 years. The plan. promulgated for the 5-year period, beginning in 1938, provided for the construction in 1938 of five large harbor tugs, one small harbor tug, one garbage lighter, one water barge, one fuel oil barge, and one ambulance boat. When the appropriation was finally approved, this program had been reduced by two large harbor tugs, one water barge, and one ambulance boat.

The carry-over from the 1938 program, added to the original 1959 program, brought the latter up to the figures shown in column 3 be low, in addition to certain non-self-propelled units not involving engineering expenses:

If the program listed in the last column above is appropriated for 1939, the following table shows the present status of the yard and district building program for the three subsequent years:

Deferment of this replacement program any more than is absolutely dictated by the condition of the National Budget is poor economy. The engineering cost of maintaining obsolete machinery mounts very rapidly toward the later years of a vessel's life. If any yard and district craft unit reaches the point where repair is unwarranted or impossible, due to lack of funds before its replacement is available, it will be necessary to obtain the necessary services by charter. Due to the fact that all of the equipment required is not available on the charter market in the location in which it will be needed by the Navy, the cost of such charter is bound to be excessive and uneconomical. The program herein presented is the absolute minimum considered acceptabe by the best judgment of the Navy Department.