department work easily, and that admiralty finance is
recognized as having been placed upon a sound and efficient
basis. There are important financial officers outside the
accountant-general's department concerned with assisting the
controller. The inspector of dockyard expense accounts,
who is entirely in the controller's department, enables
him to exercise careful supervision over expenditure and
the distribution of funds to special purposes. This work,
however, though highly important, is merely one part of the
system of financial control. Within recent years the bonds
have been considerably tightened, and the work is untainted by
corruption. It is true that in exercising rigid supervision
over expenditure the work has become more centralized than is
desirable, and it is a mark of change within recent years
that local officers have been in larger measure deprived of
independent powers. This, indeed, is a necessary condition
of financial control, or at least a condition which it
is not easy to change where rigid control is necessary.
5. Mobilization of the Fleet.--By the mobilization of the
fleet is meant the placing of naval resources upon a war footing,
in readiness in all material and personal respects for hostile
operations. A complete mobilization for purposes of practice
in peace time would dislocate seafaring life in a manner which
would be justifiable only by actual war. Thus no country in
peace manoeuvres calls out all its naval reserves, or makes
use of the auxiliary cruisers--merchant ships for which a
subvention is paid, and which are constructed with a view to
use in warfare. Experience has shown that when vessels are
commissioned they are liable to numerous small breakdowns
of their machinery if they are manned by crews who have
no familiarity with them. Many accidents of this kind had
occurred in the British navy at manoeuvres, though it could
not be shown that the vessel was defective, or that the crew
was either untrained or negligent. These experiments led the
admiralty to adopt a new system in 1904, designed to obviate
the risk that vessels would be crippled at a critical moment
by want of acquaintance on the part of the crew with their
machinery. Under this system all vessels which are considered
to be available for war are divided into two classes:--first,
those in full commission which constitute the different
squadrons maintained at all times; and secondly, those which
form the reserve and are kept in partial commission--or rather
partially manned though in commission. These are kept at
the home ports--Chatham, Portsmouth, Plymouth--in reserve
squadrons under a flag-officer who will command them in
war. Each vessel has a captain, a second in command, and a
proportion of other officers including engineer, navigating
and torpedo officers. Two-fifths of her full complement of
crew are always on board, and they include the most skilled
men needed for the proper management of the machinery
of all kinds--more especially that of the torpedoes and
guns. These vessels go to sea for periodical practice. When
therefore line fleet must be mobilized for war it will only
be necessary to fill up the number of trained men by the less
skilled hands from the naval barracks occupied by the sailors
not belonging to any particular ship, or from the naval
reserve. All ranks of the navy are placed on a roster by
which they successively serve in ships in full commission, are
quartered in the naval barracks and drafted from them to the
ships of the reserve, from which they return to the sea-going
ships. It is calculated that there are always men enough in
the barracks to complete the crews of a small squadron for
emergency service without disturbing the regular routine of
the peace establishment. The British admiralty may claim
that though the machinery at its command in the past was not
perfect it has commonly been able to send a squadron to sea
more rapidly than any other power in Europe. Much depends on
the arrangement of the stores as well as the disposition of the
men. The introduction at the end of the 18th century of the
businesslike practice of keeping the fittings of each ship
together by themselves, did much to facilitate the rapid
mobilization of a portion of the British fleet in 1790 which
impressed all Europe. The prompt manning of a special service
squadron in 1895 in consequence of the troubles then arising
in connexion with the former South African Republic, showed
that even before its plans for mobilization were completed
the admiralty had its resources well in hand. (R. V. H.)
Other countries.
As regards the navies of countries other than Great Britain,
their government is in the hands of ministers or departments
variously constituted. The Russian admiralty is a highly
organized bureau, divided into departments, and under the supreme
control of a high admiral, usually a grand duke of the Imperial
House. The German admiralty was, till 1872, a branch of the War
Office, though governed by a vice-admiral under a naval prince
of the reigning family. In 1872 it was severed from the War
Office, though remaining an appanage thereof, and a general
of the army was placed at its head. The French minister of
marine, assisted by a permanent staff, controls the navy
of France on a highly centralized system of administration;
but the departments are well organized, and work well. The
Italian fleet is governed on principles analogous to the
French, but with a large admixture of the English representative
element. The American system is worth describing in more detail.
United States Navy Department.
The president of the United States is commander-in-chief
of the navy--a constitutional prerogative which he seldom
asserts. The Navy Department is administered by a civilian
secretary of the navy--a cabinet officer appointed by the
president--who exercises general supervision. Next in
authority is the assistant-secretary, also a civilian nominee,
who acts as an assistant, and has, besides, certain specific
duties, including general supervision of the marine corps,
naval militia and naval stations beyond the continental
limits of the United States. The details of administration
are supervised by the chiefs of bureaus, of which there are
eight. They are appointed by the president from the navy
list for a period of four years, and have the rank of
rear-admiral while serving in this capacity. They have
direct control of the business and correspondence pertaining
to their respective bureaus; and orders emanating from
them have the same force as though issued by the secretary.
The bureau of navigation is the executive, or military, bureau,
and as such promulgates and enforces the orders and regulations
prescribed by the secretary; it has general direction of the
procurement, education, assignment and discipline of the
personnel. It also controls the movements of ships, including
the authorization of manoeuvres and drills, such as target
practice. The bureau of equipment has charge of all electrical
appliances, compasses, charts and fuel, and generally all
that relates to the equipment of vessels, exclusive of those
articles that come naturally under the cognizance of other
bureaus. It has charge of the naval observatory, where the
Ephemeris is prepared annually, and of the hydrographic
office, where charts, sailing directions, notices to mariners,
&c., are issued. The bureau of ordnance has charge of the gun
factory, proving ground, and torpedo station, and all naval
magazines; all the details that pertain to the manufacture,
tests, installation or storage of all offensive and defensive
apparatus, including armour, ammunition hoists, ammunition rooms,
&c., though much of the actual installation is performed by the
bureau of construction after consultation with the bureau of
ordnance. The bureau of construction and repair has charge
of the designing, building and repairing of hulls of ships,
including turrets, spars and many other accessories. It builds
all boats, has charge of the docking of vessels and the care of
ships in reserve. The chief of this bureau is usually a naval
constructor. The bureau of steam engineering has charge of all
that relates to the designing, building and repairing of steam
machinery, and of all the steam connexions on board ship.
The bureau of supplies and accounts procures and distributes
provisions, clothing and supplies of the pay department afloat,
and acts as the purchasing agent for all materials used at
naval stations, except for the medical department and marine
corps. It also has charge of the disbursement of money
and keeping of accounts. The chief of this bureau is a pay
officer. The bureau of medicine and surgery has charge
of all naval hospitals, dispensaries and laboratories,
and of all that pertains to the care of sick afloat and
ashore. The chief of this bureau is a medical officer.
The bureau of yards and docks has charge of construction
and maintenance of wet and dry docks, buildings, railways,
cranes, and generally all permanent constructions at naval
stations. The chief of this bureau is often a civil engineer.
Under the cognizance of the secretary's office is the office
of the judge-advocate-general, an officer selected by the
president from the navy list for a term of four years, with the
rank of captain while so serving. He is legal adviser to the
department, and reviews the records of all courts and statutory
boards. Under the cognizance of the assistant-secretary's
office is the office of naval intelligence, which collates
information on naval matters obtainable at home and
abroad. The staff is composed of naval officers on shore
duty, the senior in charge being usually a captain, and known
as chief intelligence officer. Several boards are employed
under the various bureaus, or directly as advisers to the
secretary. Some are permanent in character, while others
are composed of officers employed on other duty, and are
convoked periodically or when required. The naval policy
board is composed of officers of high rank, and meets once
a month; its duties conform to those of the general staff in
armies. The board of construction consists of the chiefs of
bureaus of ordnance, equipment, construction and repair, steam
engineering, and the chief intelligence officer. Its duty
is to advise the secretary in all matters relating to the
construction policy in detail. The general construction policy
is suggested by the naval policy board. The board of inspection
and survey is composed of representatives of all bureaus, who
inspect vessels soon after commission and on return from a
cruise, and report on the condition of the ship and efficiency
of its personnel; it also conducts the official trials of new
vessels. The boards for the examination of officers for
promotion are composed of officers of the corps to which the
candidate belongs and of medical officers. Every officer
is examined professionally, morally and physically at each
promotion. The Navy Department is located at Washington,
D.C., and occupies a building together with the State and War
Departments (the latter being charged solely with army affairs).
The personnel (see also under NAVY) is limited in number by
law. The engineer corps was abolished in 1899, the then
engineer-officers becoming line officers in their respective
relative grades. Line officers are the military and executive
branch, and are required besides to perform engineer duties.
They are graduates of the Naval Academy. Vacancies occurring
in the construction corps are filled from the graduates of
