"Washington, Feb. 14.
President Roosevelt yesterday told a press conference that he hoped the Senate would restore the fund, which was struck from the: Naval Appropriation bill, enabling "the laying of the keels of two superdreadnoughts during the fiscal year. 1 The bill carried 'U.S.$1,000,000 to provide for the start of huge Warships, but the budget recommended that U.S47,800000 be made available for laying keels.
Mr. Melvin Maas, chairman of the House Military Affairs Committee, urged the United States to fortify Guam Island, only 1,500 miles south of Yokohama, in a fiery speech before the House here yesterday.
Advocating the adoption of the record-breaking Naval Appropriations Bill now before the House, Mr. Maas said Congress should not eliminate the provision for the development of Guam.
"We Would Be Immune"
"It Guam is fortified," Mr. Maas said, "we would be invincible and immune to attack in either ocean."
He said a fortified Guam would be thesnext best thing to a two-ocean Navy. An air base on Guam, he pointed out, would enable the United States to watch the movements of the Japanese Fleet and thus prevent any surprise Japanese paned. "be! simply, start making "Japan doesn't declare war" he
He said he believed the possible withdrawal of the United States from the Philippines would merely increase the necessity for fortifying Guam.
"Nothing could create more respect for the United States in Japan than forthe United States to say that we will do as we damned please in the Far East," he said.
Mr. Maas said he did not believe American interests in China justi-fled a war against Japan, but insisted that the United States must place itself in a position to defend its rights. He said a close watch on the Japanese fleet was impossible from Hawaii,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.