Washington, Apr. 26.
The Navy yesterday asked for bids on materials" for defence nets to be used in Pearl Harbour, Panama Canal, Golden Gate and Guantanamo, The nets will be made at Mare Island, California, Naval officials predicted that the bulk of the Navy's building programme, including the construction of eight battleships, would be completed about four months ahead.
At Boston yesterday the new 14,700-ton aircraft carrier, U.SS Wasp, was formally commissioned, Construction on the Wasp was begun in 1936. It will carry 75 aircraft and is armed with eight five-inch 38 calibre anti-aircraft guns and 40 small guns, The ship cost an estimated U, S,$20,737,000, exclusive of armament.
Meanwhile, the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Mr, Louis Compton, in a letter to the Democratic Representative from Indiana, Mr. Louis Ludlow, said he was shocked by the testimony of Rear Admiral Joseph K, Taussig, Commandant of the Fifth Naval District, before the Senate Naval Affairs Committee last Monday. Mr. Compton said "Mr, Edison (the Secretary of the Navy), myself and the Navy Department disapproved of the views Admiral Taussig expressed." Admiral Taussig expressed the belief that a Japanese-American war was inevitable and advocated the strengthening of naval defences at Guam—United Press, Washington, Apr. 26, The naval strength of the United States is "deplorably weak" in comparison with the strength and naval programmes of other nations, Senator David I. Walsh, Democrat from Massachusetts and Chairman of the Senate Naval Affai Committee, declared in a radio broadcast here last night, "We are living in a world dominated -by brute force," he said, "Treaties do not guarantee any security, The treaties limiting naval armaments expired four years ago andan armaments race started all over the world. We are aware of the enormous naval construction of Great Britain and' Japan being carried out at a feverish pace. We are aware that France and Italy progressively enlarged their navies, We are aware that Germany dreams of the day when she will be a great naval power and has already made plans in this direction. We cannot close our eyes to these realities, Havas,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.