Washington, Dec. 30.
The Navy Department has projected the establishment of additional bases in the Pacific, including an air base on Palmyra Island south of Honolulu, authoritative sources revealed today.
Palmyra Island is the Navy Department's first objective, and ah air base will be constructed there if it can be done at reasonable cost. Navy officers" here admitted the owner of the group of islands of which Palmyra is a member had recently conferred with high Navy Department officials, State Department authorities and officials of the Department of Interior. They refused to reveal details of the conferences, Informed quarters say the Navy wants Palmyra for a secondary base to strengthen the Hawaiian defences. Several Navy men are expected to be stationed on the island in the immediate future for observation purposes. It is not known whether the Navy will attempt to lease or purchase the property. "The owner of the island is Mrs. Fullard Leo.
The last session of Congress, it was recalled, authorized $25,000 for purchasing an unspecified island, but the funds have not yet been voted. Observers believed they were intended for Palmyra, although the amount probably is not large enough to undertake immediate extensive development. The proposed acquisition fits into the Navy's plans for a half-circle of island warning stations around Hawaii.
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