NAVIGATION. Compasses.-Thirty-eight compasses have been repaired and thirtyfive new compasses have been purchased since my last annual report, conforming in all respects to the requirements adopted by the Bureau. Valuable information continues to be received in the compass reports from vessels of the Navy afloat. An extensive series of experiments has been carried on by the superintendent of compasses for the purpose of testing the efficiency of the new compensating binnacle, and in its completed state it is now accurate in principle and construction. The Atlanta, Boston, and Dolphin have been supplied with these binnacles, the most favorable position for the standard compasses having been determined by a series of vibra tion observations with delicate magnetic needles. Observations for determining the magnetic condition of these three ships have been coutinued, and the results now filed in the Bureau are valuable as giving the magnetic history of the ships since they were launched. The special work on board the Atlanta at Newport, and the Boston during her passage from Chester to New York, developed some interesting facts in relation to the action of their compasses, which are considered so important that the reports are forwarded with the report of the superintendent of compasses. Compass-testing houses.-The compass-testing houses will shortly be completed, and it is expected that the magnetic instruments will be mounted and in readiness for observations by January next. Navigation supplies.-As a result of the extended competitive trial of forty-five chronometers submitted by American makers, which took place recently at the Naval Observatory, thirteen passed the tests and were accepted by the Bureau. It is proposed to continue these trials next year, and to purchase as many of the successful chronometers as cicumstances will admit. Improved sextants and marine glasses have been purchased in such quantities as the limited appropriation allowed. Single incandescent electric lighting plants have been installed in the Atlanta and Boston, the former by the United States Electric Lighting Company, the latter by the Brush Electric Company, and bids have been invited by advertisement for proposals for installing a double plant in the Chicago. It is of course very desirable to depend entirely upon the electric lights when such plants are supplied, but this can only be assured by duplicating them. This method of lighting ships of war, owing to the small amount of heat given off, the absence of disagreeable odors, and the more perfect illumination, adds much to the health and comfort of the officers and men, tends to make them contented and happy during their long absences from home and friends, promotes discipline, and prevents crime. Photographic outfits.-Much progress has recently been made in instantaneous marine photography, and as the process can now be successfully carried out underway on ship-board, it is my intention to supply our cruising ships with photographic outfits as rapidly as practicable. Several have already been furnished, and the copies from negatives taken of headlands, rocks, &c., render official reports of greater interest and value to the Government and to scientific men. Deep-sea sounding machines.-The Juniata and the Essex, before sailing for the Pacific and China stations, were fitted with complete deep-sea sounding apparatus, which will render it possible to take deep-sea soundtugs in localities the depths of which have not yet been determined, and enable the Bureau to ascertain whether or not certain shoals ro ported in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, and now shown on charts, really exist. In this connection I would state that ships of war should be supplied with deep-sea sounding machines and reeling-in engines, by which, without material interference with their regular duties in time of peace, soundings could often be taken and much more information be added to our knowledge of the ocean depths. For this purpose increased appropriations are necessary. Libraries. Further additions of professional books have been made o the libraries of cruising ships; and Professional Paper No. 19. "The Variation of the Compass," and No. 20, entitled "Naval Brigade, and Operations Ashore," have been published and distributed among the officers of the Navy. The first-mentioned paper was prepared from ob servations made in different parts of the world by the navigators of vessels of the Navy, to accurately determine the variation of the com pass, with the intention of ultimately publishing a correct general variation chart for the use of navigators. Professional Paper No. 20 was prepared by First Lieut. H. K. Gilman, U. S. Marine Corps, for the instruction and use of officers and men when it becomes necessary for a naval force to operate on shore. Signal books. The revision of the general signal book referred to in my last annual report, has been completed. The modifications which have been proposed to the tactical signal book have been embodied in manuscript, but it will be necessary to subject them to a series of extended practical trials before it can be determined whether or not they are advantageous. These trials can only be carried out successfully by a number of ships remaining together at sea in one squadron for a considerable time. Very important data relating to the maneuvering pow ers of ships, and the consequent tactics to be observed in battle may, however, be obtained by determining the relative speeds and tactical diameters of our larger tugs, and then exercising them together as a squadron, both in smooth water and under the varying conditions to be met with at sea. For this purpose I would recommend that four tugs of the same class be prepared for this work, and that during the coming spring and summer they be officered and manned, forming a "squadron of evolution," now considered necessary by all foreign Governments for the intelligent instruction of the personnel. Ocean surveys.-The Ranger has been employed in sounding in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Lower California, in continuing the triangulation of that coast from points established by the Coast Survey in California, and in examining the same locality, with the object of per fecting the charts already prepared from the survey made under the Bureau. It is proposed that the Ranger shall continue and complete this examination, after which she is to search for the rocks and shoals which have been reported to exist in the North Pacific Ocean in the track of vessels bound to San Francisco. When the Thetis, now fitting out at New York as a surveying ship, is ready, it is proposed to send her to the Spanish Main to correct the errors on charts published from the old Spanish surveys, after which she should go to the Pacific to search for the many dangers to navigation reported to exist in that ocean, and to accurately determine the geographical positions of some of the numer ous islands which are known to be incorrectly placed on the charts now in use by navigators. Department library.-There has been a steady increase in the number of professional books added to the library, and an improvement in their arrangement and in the facilities for their use. The collection is yearly becoming more important to the work of the Department, but it is at present affected by the reduction of the annual appropriation from $2,500 to $1,000. As the appropriation is expended with care and judg ment and the sum formerly appropriated is necessary to keep the Department abreast of the times in professional investigation, I would recommend that the appropriation be restored to its original figure. Publication of war records.-The progress made in the collection, arrangement, and copying of the naval war records for publication has been as rapid as the limited force of clerks and copyists provided for by Congress would allow, and in this connection I would renew the suggestion made last year for a sufficient appropriation to push this important work to completion. Naval War College. During the past year water has been introduced into the building; a sewer built to connect it with the sea; the foundation cemented and drained; the first and second stories thoroughly repaired, and the necessary changes made to adapt them to the purpose for which the building is to be used. It was intended to put the entire building in complete repair this year, but the appropriation was only sufficient to authorize contracts to be made for the repair of the basement, work on which is now progressing. The second session of the college opened September 6, with a class of twenty-one officers of the Navy and Marine Corps, and will close on the 20th of November. The course was begun with lectures by Rear-Admiral Luce, commanding the naval force on the North Atlantic station, explanatory of the necessity which exists for the close study of the art of war, and the advantages to be derived from the establishment of the War College for this purpose. Full courses of lectures on naval tactics, naval warfare, the practice of gunnery, marine international law, military hygiene, military science, and coast defenses, were delivered by Commander Hoff, Captain Mahan, Lieutenant Meigs, Professor Soley, and Medical Director Dean, U. S. Navy, Lieutenant Bliss, United States Army, Commander Goodrich, United States Navy, and Captain Bixby, U. S. Army. Lectures on the duties of a general staff, on the preservation of iron and steel ships, and on the deviation of the compass, were delivered by Lieut. C. C. Rogers, Assistant Naval Constructor Gatewood, and Lieutenant Cornwell, U. S. Navy. The course was supplemented by additional lectures from General J. C. Palfrey, and John C. Ropes, esq., who again kindly volunteered their services without compensation. General G. H. Gordon had also again volunteered his services, but his untimely decease prevented the class from meeting that distinguished officer." The advanced course of instruction on subjects directly connected with the art of war has been this year, so far as it was practicable, illustrated by practical exercises ashore and afloat, the waters of Narragansett Bay and their proximity to the sea offering peculiar advantages not to be found elsewhere. The Naval War College may now be said to be fairly established, and I beg to commend it to the earnest support of the Department. Hydrographic Office.-I beg leave to call attention to the detailed report of the Hydrographer for the past year. Through the branch offices much information has been obtained that is useful in the Hydrographic Office, and in return the mercantile marine has been largely benefited by the distribution of information contained in the publications of the Navy Department. Requests for the establishment of branch offices have been received from the mercantile communities of several of the large seaports of the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, but in consequence of the limited appropriations which have so far been granted, it has not been practicable to comply with these reasonable requests. The appropriation made at the last session of Congress for the prep aration and publication of the surveys of the Mexican coast, enables the Hydrographer to prepare the charts of surveys made in the Ranger, of the Pacific coast from San Diego to Panama, for the publication of which additional appropriations will be required. Naval Observatory.-The details of the astronomical work performed with the various instruments since the date of my last report, together with a statement of the distribution of the work of the Observatory at present, are contained in the report of the Superintendent. The examination at the Observatory of such of the instruments as are supplied to ships by this Bureau continues to give satisfactory results. A large proportion of the sextants in use for many years were, upon examination, found to be defective and unfit for issue, while such of them as could be repaired have been put in serviceable condition. In this connection I desire to suggest that legislation be requested authorizing the destruction of such chronometers and sextants as are found to be no longer reliable. The law requires them to be sold; but to sell chronometers and sextants which are pronounced unfit for issue to the naval service, is to tempt unprincipled persons to buy them at small cost and resell them to unsuspecting dealers or masters of vessels, whereby errors in navigation may result in the loss of ships and cargoes. In accordance with authority contained in the act approved July 26, 1886, steps have been taken to commence the erection of the new Naval Observatory on the site purchased by the Government for that purpose. In conformity with a provision in the same act, and, by the direction of the Department, the instruments which were purchased for the use of the Transit-of-Venus Commission have been delivered into the custody of the Superintendent. Nautical Almanac.—An account of the progress made in the preparation and sale of the regular annual publications of this office is given in the report of the Superintendent; and I desire to invite your attention to the fact that the printing of these volumes, which must necessarily be done in advance, has fallen considerably behind at the Government Printing Office. RECOMMENDATIONS. I beg leave to bring to your attention the suggestions and recom mendations which have been submitted in previous annual reports relating to the ill effects likely to result from delay in obtaining for publication in the Naval War Records the papers now in private hands, and necessary for a complete narrative of the operations of the Navy during the civil war; to the advantages to be derived from placing the library of the Navy Department on the same footing regarding the binding of books as the libraries of the Department of State, the Patent Office, and the Surgeon-General's Office; to the remarks relat ing to the character of the building in which the engraving of plates and printing of charts is carried on for the Hydrographic Office, which prevents the plates from being stored there and subjects them to risk of injury on removal, and which causes loss and inferior work on account of the unfavorable conditions of light and temperature, and the large amount of vibration; to the importance of establishing compass stations at the large sea-ports of the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, for the purpose of determining the compass errors in ships of the merchant marine; to the advisability of extending the system of time-balls for the benefit of the maritime community; to the suggestion favoring an international congress to consider the adoption of a universal system of marks and buoys for channels and harbors; and to the suggestion as to the desirability of increasing the pay of the instrument-maker of the Naval Observatory. ESTIMATES. In submitting the estimates for the coming fiscal year, I would again call your attention to the impossibility of efficiently administering the Bureau without sufficient appropriations. Upon this subject I beg to quote from the two last annual reports, as follows: I beg to invite your attention to the annual appropriations of this Bureau, which have steadily decreased in amount from $192,500 for the fiscal year of 1866-'67, to $100,000 for the year 1883-84. Since the year 1866 the amount appropriated annually to carry on the work under the cognizance of this Bureau has been insufficient to supply our vessels with the best and most improved articles of navigation outfit. In consequence, however, of the quantity of supplies purchased during the civil war, and remaining on hand at its close, cruising ships have been furnished with instru ments for navigation which, if not of the latest patterns, still answer the purpose for which they were purchased in the absence of better. But the supplies above mentioned have gradually been exhausted or have become obsolete, and have been sold as "unserviceable," in compliance with the act of Congress approved August 5, 1882, which required all stores and supplies to be appraised, and those found to be "unserviceable" to be sold. (Report of 1884.) The supply of articles of navigation outfit has still further decreased since the above was written, while the appropriation for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1885, was $87,500, a reduction of $2,500 on the amount of the previous year. The appropriation of the present fiscal year is $87,500, which is $42,500 less than the estimates. I have submitted estimates for $130,000, an amount which in my opinion is necessary for the efficient administration of this Bureau, and without which it will not be practicable to supply our cruising vessels with the improved outfits required for the safe navigation of modern ships of war. (Report of 1885.) I have only to add that the amount appropriated for the present fiscal year, under the head of " Navigation," was $83,500. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, J. G. WALKER, The SECRETARY OF THE Navy. Chief of Bureau. REPORT OF THE CHIEF OF THE BUREAU OF ORDNANCE.. BUREAU OF ORDNANCE, NAVY DEPARTMENT, Washington City, November 10, 1886. SIR: I have the honor to submit the annual report of this Bureau, and also to transmit estimates for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1888: (1) Fuel, tools, material, and labor; batteries of the new types for six ships now in service; towards the general armament of the Navy $1,086,750 00 (3) Freight and miscellaneous expenses. (4) Civil establishment at navy-yards. (2) General repairs to ordnance buildings, magazines, and appendages (5) General expenses of the Torpedo Station; two steam launches for instruction and experiment; extension to electrical laboratory, and repairs to the sea-wall 26,960 50 78,500 00 |