Doctrine is the shield and buckler of United States aggression; it is the sword suspended by a hair over the Latin continent. Imperialism is a boundless ocean which threatens to engulf this constellation of free peoples.

That the United States will continue its policy of forbearance to the weaker nation is likely, but Americans. in Mexico should be protected, and the point where patience would cease to be a virtue would be reached were Americans in Mexico subjected to malicious injury, whether owing to an impotent government or to the acts of armed rebels.

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Not only are American interests in Mexico large, but they are bound to expand greatly in the near future. Pacific penetration of Mexico has been accomplished a considerable extent; but the Americanization of the territory to the South of the Rio Grande has only begun. This Americanization does not entail the future political union of the two countries, but it does give the United States a predominant interest in having a stable and just government in that territory.

In the absence of any additional overt acts against American citizens or property, the question of intervention remains in statu quo, and no action in the near future by this government is anticipated, unless there should be further irritating developments.

THE ITALIAN-TURKISH SITUATION

The center of interest has shifted from Tripoli to the Aegean Islands.

In Tripoli, the situation remains unchanged, and is practically the same as it was shortly after the Italian occupation last fall. The Turks have continued, from time to time, to make attacks on the Italian lines; but recently these attacks have been less frequent, and have been uniformly repulsed by the Italians. One of these attacks, at Lebda, on May 2, was reported to have been made by a strong force and with great vigor, and resulted in heavy loss to the Turks, who are at the disadvantage of having to attack more or less in the open, against entrenched positions.

The Italians seem to have improved their opportunity to experiment in the use of aeroplanes as a weapon of offense as well as an auxiliary for scouting and reconnaissance; but it will probably be some time before the public in general will be able to learn the results of the lessons which the Italians are acquiring as to the availability in warfare of aeroplanes and dirigibles.

With the inferior naval forces of Turkey bottled up inside the Dardanelles, the Italians, under the protection of their fleet's guns, have been free to pursue their hostile operations wherever they would, and have effected landings upon and occupied and possessed themselves of many of the Turkish islands in the Aegean Sea. The most important exploit in this line was the occupation of Rhodes, on May 4.

The Italian Commander-in-Chief, Admiral Viale, reported that the troops under the command of General Ameglio were convoyed by the navy and the debarkation took place at dawn of May 4, in Kalitea Bay, without opposition by the Turkish troops, and that eight thousand Italian troops had been landed with their equipment, field artillery, ammunition, stores, and provisions. If, as reported, all this was accomplished within about three hours, the Italian organization must have been most efficiently handled.

The report stated that the enemy had kept out of sight and the Turkish batteries did not open fire. Thus the ships were not obliged to fire a single shot to cover the landing force; but, as the Turkish troops were believed. to have fallen back to a position to the southwest, the Italian ships shelled that position, and the Turks retreated still farther away.

Later, it was reported that the Italians, in pressing their ocupation to cover the entire island, were resisted by the Turkish troops near the city of Rhodes, and, after a battle, the Turks, recognizing the futility of their position, surrendered their entire force.

The Turkish fleet is still hemmed in inside of the Marmora Sea, and it is reported that some disaffection exists among the crews of the ships. Some are clamoring for the Turkish fleet to go out at any hazard and encounter the Italian ships; while the majority are opposed to what they believe would be a useless sacrifice.

The rebellious spirit in Albania seems to be spreading, and this makes still further calls upon the military strength of Turkey, in her operations to suppress the rebellion, or at least to have stationed such troops near by, in sufficient force to prevent the uprising from becoming too general.

On the 6th of May, the Domenico Boluino, a 4,400-ton steamer, which had been requisitioned to transport some 1,400 troops from Derna to Genoa, ran aground in a fog near Bianconovo. No lives were lost, and it is hoped to salvage the vessel.

The order of expulsion of Italians from the Vilayet of Smyrna, resulting from the sinking of the Turkish ves

sels in Beirut harbor by the Italians, has been followed by another more sweeping order, expelling all Italian subjects everywhere in Turkey, excepting artisans, widows, orphans, and members of religious orders. Fifteen days have been allowed the Italians in which to depart.

WIRELESS NOTES

Delegates to International Radio-Telegraph Convention The United States Navy is represented at the International Radio-Telegraph Convention at London by Rear Admiral John R. Edwards, Lieutenant Commander David W. Todd, and Dr. Louis W. Austin. The other American delegates are: Prof. Willis L. Moore, of the Weather Bureau; Dr. Arthur D. Webster, of Clark University; Mr. John I. Waterbury, Mr. John Hays Hammond, Jr., and Mr. William D. Terrell, of New York, for the Department of Commerce and Labor; and Maj. George O. Squier, Maj. Edgar Russell, and Maj. Chas. McK. Saltzman, representing the War Department.

Wave Length for Distress Signals

One of the propositions to be submitted to the London Wireless Convention, by the American delegation, will be the lengthening of the wave length for distress signels, to avoid the possibility of confusion. The United States Senate has already passed a bill defining the wave lengths to be used by various interests, and other governments are following this policy, with a view of reducing interference to a minimum. The English government has assigned a certain wave length to the navy, another to the army, and still another to the post-office.

At a recent meeting of the New York Institute of Radio Engineers, President R. H. Marriott exhibited a chart showing that less than ten per cent of the oceangoing passenger steamers could use a wave length as short as 300 meters without materially reducing the radiation. He suggested that the distress call be sent on twice the average natural period, which seems to be the wave length for which the open circuit and radiation resistance are least. From this data the distress call wave length should be about 740 meters. This wave length would, of course, be less affected by absorption than the 300-meter length which has been proposed.

Effect of Sunlight on Long Distance Waves

Mr. Guglielmo Marconi delivered a lecture before the New York Electrical Society during his recent visit to this country. Referring to the effects of sunlight on the

propagation of electric waves over long distances, he said:

"The generally accepted hypothesis of the cause of this absorption is due to the ionization of the gaseous molecules of the air by ultra-violet light obtained from the sun. It is probable that the portion of the earth's atmosphere which is facing the sun will contain more ions, or electrons, than that portion which is in darkness, and therefore the illuminated and ionized air will absorb some of the energy of the electric waves.

"Recent observations reveal the interesting fact that the effects vary greatly with the direction in which the transmission is taking place. The results obtained when transmitting in a northerly and southerly direction being often altogether different from those observed in an easterly and westerly one.

"In regard to moderate power stations such as are employed on ships, and which use wave lengths of 300 to 600 meters, the distance over which communication can be effected during daytime is generally about the same, whatever the bearing of the ships to each other or to the land stations; while at night, interesting and apparently curious results are obtained. Ships over 1,000 miles away, off the south coast of Spain or around the coast of Italy, can almost always communicate during the hours of darkness with the post-office stations situated on the coasts of England and Ireland; while the same ships, when at a similar distance on the Atlantic from the westward of these islands and on the usual track between England and America, can hardly ever communicate with these shore stations unless by means of specially powerful instruments."

Aeroplane Wireless

H. T. Morin, chief electrician and wireless expert at the Mare Island Navy Yard, has recently conducted a series of successful experiments in sending and receiving wireless messages from an aeroplane by means of special apparatus of which he is the inventor.

The Wright Brothers have perfected a new control, which will be applied to all Wright aeroplanes in future. The new arrangement places the warping levers on the right and the elevating levers on the left. The control of the old Wright machines was so placed that an operator could not successfully manipulate the levers from the left hand seat after he had learned to fly from the right hand side, because the warping levers occupied different positions.

THE NAVAL APPROPRIATION BILL

The House of Representatives passed the Naval Appropriation Bill on May 28. It contained no provision for battleships. After the various amendments that had been agreed to had been passed, Mr. Roberts, of Massachusetts, offered the following amendment:

Recommit the bill to the Committee on Naval Affairs with instructions to report the same back forthwith with the following paragraph:

"That for the purpose of further increasing the Naval Establishment of the United States the President is hereby authorized to have constructed one first-class battleship, carrying as heavy armor and as powerful armament as any vessel of its class, to have the highest practicable speed and the greatest practicable radius of action, to cost, exclusive of armor and armament, not to exceed $6,000,000."

On this amendment, Mr. Roberts asked for a yea and the House refused to nay vote, with the result that recommit the bill to the committee with instructions to provide for a battleship, the vote being as follows: yeas, 10б; nays, 140; answered "present," 13; not voting (paired), 133. The vote in detail is as follows:

Rees

Roberts, (Mass.)
Roberts, (Nev.)
Rodenberg
Sells

Simmons
Sloan

Smith, S. W. Steenerson

Martin, (S. D.) Stephens, (Cal.)

Cox (Ind.) Cox, (Ohio) Cravens

Crumpacker

Curley

Matthews

Cary

Higgins

Miller

Catlin

De Forest

Denver

Foss

Not Voting-133

Kinkaid, (Neb.)

Kinkead, (N. J.)

Pujo

Randell, (Tex.)
Ransdell, (La.)
Reyburn
Rouse

Rucker, (Mo.)

Fuller

Langley

Gardner, (N. J.)

Lee, (Ga.)

Gillett

Legare

Scully

Goeke

Levy

Sheppard

Goldfogle

Sherley

Gould

Slemp

Graham

Small

Gray

Loud

Smith, J. M. C.

Gregg, (Pa.)

Guernsey

Hamill

Hamilton, (W.V.)

Malden

Stanley

Hammond

Malby

Stedman

McGuire, (Okla.) Sparkman

Harrison, N. Y.) Mays

Moore, (Tex.)

Morrison

Switzer

Talbott, (Md.)
Thomas
Townsend

Tuttle
Vare
Vreeland

Hartman

Hayden

- Helm

Hinds

Hobson

Mott

Hughes, (W. V.) Page

The bill, as reported to the Senate, on May 29, by the Senate Naval Committee, contained the following provisions, among others:

INCREASE OF THE NAVY

Two first-class battleships, each carrying as heavy armor and as powerful armament as any vessel of its class, to have the highest practicable speed and great radius of action, and to cost, exclusive of armor and armament, not to exceed seven million four hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars each.

Two fuel ships, to cost, exclusive of armor and armament, not to exceed $1,140,000 each, which shall be built in navy yards, one to be built in a navy yard on the Pacific coast.

Six torpedo boat destroyers, to cost, exclusive of armor. and armament, not to exceed $940,000 each.

One tender to destroyers, to cost, exclusive of armor and armament, not to exceed $1,315,000.

Barnhart

Conry

Bartlett

Cullop

Beall, (Tex.)

Dent

Blackmon

Dickinson

Booher

Dies

Borland

Difenderfer

Gallagher

Brantley

Dixon, (Ind.)

Garner

Broussard

Eight submarine torpedo boats, to cost for all not to exceed $4,480,000, of which the sum of $1,600,000 is appropriated.

One submarine tender, to cost not to exceed $1,000,000. of which the sum of $400,000 is made immediately available.

The Secretary of the Navy may build any or all of the vessels authorized in the Act, in such navy yards as he may designate, and shall build any of the vessels authorized in such navy yards as he may designate, should it reasonably appear that the bidders for the construction of any of the vessels have entered into any combination, the effect of which would be to deprive the government of fair, open, and unrestricted competition in letting the

contracts.

APPROPRIATIONS

Among the appropriations made are the following: For experimental work in the development of aviation for naval purposes, the sum of $10,000 is appropriated.

For the Naval Gun Factory, at Washington, D. C., for new and improved machinery for existing shops, $125,000 is appropriated; and for machinery, cupolas, furnaces, and foundry equipment for a new foundry, $100,000 is appropriated.

For new batteries for ships of the navy: first, for new sights for five-inch, six-inch and seven-inch guns, and modifying their mounts, $100,000 is appropriated; second, for modifying or renewing breech mechanisms of three-inch, four-inch, five-inch, and six-inch guns, $125,000; third, for replacing Mark VI six-inch guns with Mark VIII guns and repairing and modernizing the Mark VI guns for issue, $100,000; fourth, for lining and hooping to the muzzle eight-inch forty-caliber Mark V guns, $50,000; fifth, for liners for eroded guns, $125,000; and sixth, for modifying five-inch caliber Mark V guns, $60,000.

For procuring, producing, preserving, and handling ammunition for ships, $3,850,000.

For modernizing turrets of ships of the navy: for equipments for turret ammunition hoists and rammers to increase the rapidity, safety, and reliability of the ammunition supply on all turret vessels authorized previous to the Michigan class, but excluding the Amphitrite, Miantonomah, Puritan, and Terror, $250,000 is appropriated.

For new small arms and machine guns. $203,000. For purchase and manufacture of torpedoes and appliances, $650,000.

For modernizing projectiles, $300,000.
For mines and mine appliances, $100,000.

For experimental work in the development of armor piercing and other projectiles, in connection with problems of the attack of armor with direct and inclined fire at various ranges, the Bureau of Ordnance is granted $100,000.

Repairs and changes in the following amounts are authorized to be made to the vessels specified:

Connecticut, $250,000; Vermont, $250,000; Albany, $350,000; New Orleans, $350,000; Minneapolis, $284,000; Columbia, $292,000; Sylvia, $14,000; Solace, $120,000; Panther, $100,000; Piscataqua, $45,000; Active, $38,000; Unadilla, $43,000 Uncas, $33,000; Pennacook, $23,000; Samoset, $23,000; Pompey, $38,000; Yantic, $38,000; Prometheus, or l'estal, to be converted into a repair ship, $350,000.

For the improvement of the Naval Station at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, $1,742,000 is appropriated, and the limit. of cost of the dry dock is increased to $3,486,500; and for the Naval Magazine at Kuahua, Hawaii, $152,500.

BUREAU OF EQUIPMENT

It is provided that the duties heretofore assigned by law to the Bureau of Equipment shall be distributed among the other bureaus and offices of the Navy Department, in such manner as the Secretary of the Navy may direct, and the Bureau of Equipment is abolished.

WIRELESS STATIONS

The bill authorizes the Secretary of the Navy to establish high power radio communicating stations, one in the Isthmian Canal Zone, one on the California coast, one in the Hawaiian Islands, one in American Samoa, one on the Island of Guam, and one in the Philippine Islands, cost not to exceed one million dollars, of which $400,000 is to be available until expended.

DUTY FOR RETIRED OFFICERS

The bill provides that:

Hereafter any naval officer on the retired list may, in the discretion of the Secretary of the Navy, be ordered to such duty as he may be able to perform at sea or on shore, and while so employed in time of peace shall receive the pay and allowances of an officer of the active list of the grade from which he was retired: Provided, That no such retired officer so employed on active duty shall receive, in time of peace, any greater pay and allowances than the pay and allowances which are now or may hereafter be provided by law for a lieutenant commander on the active list of like length of service: And provided further, That any such officer whose retired pay exceeds the highest pay and allowances of the grade of lieutenant commander, shall, while so employed in time of peace, receive his retired pay only, in lieu of all other pay an dallowances.

ADMIRALS AND VICE ADMIRALS

The bill provides that the Commander-in-Chief of the Atlantic Fleet and the Commander-in-Chief of the Pacific Fleet shall each, after being designated as such Commander-in-Chief, have the rank and pay of an admiral, while serving in such position; and that the officer second in command of each of these fleets, while serving. on such duty, shall have the rank and pay of a viceadmiral. These grades being thus re-established, the annual pay of an admiral is fixed at $12,000, and the annual pay of a vice-admiral is fixed at $10,000. It is provided that in time of peace the officers to serve as commanders-in-chief and second in command of the two fleets shall be designated from among the rear admirals on the active list.

CHIEFS OF BUREAUS

The bill repeals the present law, which reads:

The pay and allowances of chiefs of bureaus of the Navy Department shall be the highest shore-duty pay and allowances of the rear admiral of the lower line, and all officers of the navy who are now serving or who shall hereafter serve as chief of bureau in the Navy Department and are eligible for retirement after thirty years' service shall have, while on the active list, the rank, title, and emoluments of a chief of bureau, in the same manner as is already provided by statute law for such officers upon retirement by reason of age or length of service, and such officers, after thirty years' service, shall be entitled to and shall receive new commissions in accordance with the rank hereby conferred:

But provides that no officer who has received his commission under the provisions of said Act shall be deprived of said commission or the rank, title, and emoluments thereof by virtue of this repeal.

MEDICAL RESERVE CORPS

A medical reserve corps is created, which is to be in all respects, except as may be necessary to adapt it to the needs of the navy, similar to the present medical reserve corps of the army.

DENTAL SURGEONS

It is also provided that not more than thirty assistant dental surgeons shall be appointed as part of the Medical Department of the navy. These appointments are to be made by the Secretary, appointees to be between twentyfour and thirty-two years of age, and to be graduates of standard medical or dental colleges.

ADDITIONAL PAYMASTERS

The grades of the active list of the Pay Corps of the Navy are increased by ten additional paymasters and by twenty additional passed assistant and assistant paymast

ers, with the proviso, however, that the total increase of the Pay Corps shall not exceed twenty during the first year.

COUNCIL OF NATIONal defensE

The bill contains a provision for a Council of National Defense, and provides for the Council of Defense, as follows:

That there is hereby established a Council of National Defense, consisting of the President of the United States, who shall be ex officio president of the council, the Secretary of State, who shall preside in the absence of the President, the Secretary of War, the Secretary of the Navy, the chairman of the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate, the chairman of the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate, the chairman of the Committee on Military Affairs of the Senate, the chairman of the Committee on Naval Affairs of the Senate, the chairman of the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives, the chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives, the chairman of the Committee on Military Affairs of the House of Representatives, the chairman of the Committee on Naval Affairs of the House of Representatives, the Chief of the General Staff of the Army, an officer of the Navy not below the rank of captain to be designated by the Secretary of the Navy, the president of the Army War College, and the president of the Naval War College.

That the chairmen of the several committees of the Senate and House of Representatives herein named shall act as members of the council until their successors have been selected.

That said council shall report to the President for transmission to Congress a general policy of national defense and such recommendation of measures relating thereto as it shall deem necessary and expedient.

That said council shall meet at least once in each calendar year on such date or dates as it shall fix: Provided, That in time of war said council shall meet only upon the call of the President of the United States: Provided further, That special meetings may be called by the president of the council:

And provided further that the council may summon for consultation at any of its meetings any citizen of the United States, and upon request by the council the Secretary of War and the Secretary of the Navy shall order any officer of the Army, Navy, or Marine Corps to appear before the council for consultation.

That for carrying out the purposes of this Act there is hereby appropriated, out of any funds in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, the sum of twenty thousand dollars, to be available until expended, and to be expended upon vouchers signed by the president of the council: Provided, That all necessary expenses of the chairman of committees of the Senate and of the House of Representatives, when called to attend meetings of said council when Congress is not in session, and the necessary expenses of all persons summoned, shall be paid from this appropriation, upon approval by the president of the council.