White House Night

Two years ago Congress authorized the Navy to build eight light cruisers. Action has been taken to build five of these. President Coolidge in his budget message to Congress (TIME, Dec. 13) did not recommend appropriations for the remaining three cruisers; instead, he suggested that their construction be postponed as a means of bringing the naval powers of the world to a new disarmament agreement.

Last week Rear Admiral Edward W. Eberle, Chief of Naval Operations, went before the Naval Affairs Committee of the House, told of the perilous state of the Navy,* demanded that Congress authorize the building of three cruisers and one dirigible in spite of the budget provisions.

Representative Thomas S. Butler of Pennsylvania, Chairman of the Naval Affairs Committee, father of famed General Smedley D. Butler of the Marines, heeded the demand of Admiral Eberle and took his troubles to President Coolidge. The first conference at the White House bore no immediate fruit. Representative Butler, organized his committee for action, for revolt if necessary.

Then, after a night conference with the President at the end of the week, the following compromise was reached: 1) Representative Butler will introduce a bill, with President Coolidge's approval, providing for an ultimate expenditure of $140,000,000 for the construction of ten 10,000-ton cruisers. 2) In the event of an international disarmament conference, the President is empowered to suspend such construction. 3) No appropriation for the three cruisers authorized by the act of 1924 will be requested at this session. 4) The President will probably soon approve appropriation of $1,000,000 for a 6,000,000-cu-ft. dirigible.

Thus, with ten theoretical cruisers, President Coolidge sought to ease the hunger of the Navy and avoid an argument with Congress. There was dissent from this plan, even in Republican ranks. Representative Britten of Illinois, ranking Republican of the Naval Affairs Committee, who was not present at the making of the Coolidge-Butler compromise, said: "If the bill does not appropriate for those three cruisers already authorized, the authorization for the ten additional ones would appear to the world as a big bluff."

Meanwhile, Navy officers argue whether it is better to have three cruisers in the hand, or ten in the bush.

*In armaments the U. S. Navy had fallen below Great Britain and Japan. It now approaches the level of France and Italy. According to the 5-5-3 agreement, it should be the equal of Great Britain. Its chief defect is a scarcity of modern light cruisers and of submarines in commission.