Sink or Swim?

A citizen and a taxpayer marched into the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia, last week, with a bodyguard of lawyers and counselors-at-law. At his right hand was Wilton J. Lambert, Washington attorney, centurion of the bodyguard. Such was the abrupt appearance of William B. Shearer, plaintiff--described in papers which his lawyers proceeded to file as a citizen and a taxpayer as well as a qualified naval expert and the inventor of a type of one-man torpedo boat, the Sea Hornet, sold to the Government during the War. One other person was described in the papers filed. He was Curtis D. Wilbur, set down as Secretary of the Navy and defendant.

Citizen Shearer is the same gentleman who, last spring, following fleet maneuvers, started discussion by a series of interviews in The New York Times in which lie declared that the naval ratio of England, Japan and the U. S. was 5--3--1--with the U. S. last (TIME, May 12, 19).

Once more he emerges into the spotlight. He begged the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia to issue an injunction restraining Curtis D. Wilbur, in his capacity as Secretary of the Navy, from ordering or permitting the unfinished battleship Washington (one of the incompleted products left over after the Limitation of Armaments Conference) to be sunk at sea in bombing and target practice.

In support of his petition, Mr. Shearer urged:

1) That the Washington lias cost $35,000,000 and is 85% complete; and, therefore, it would be a great waste to sink the ship as well as a "great and irreparable injury" to our national defense.

2) That the Limitation of Armaments Treaty is not in effect, was never properly ratified because of the "failure of France to ratify" in toto.

3) That the letter of the Treaty has not been observed by Great Britain, who is maintaining capital ships to the amount of 711,000 tons instead of the 525,000 tons allowed. This alleged condition comes about because the King George V, Thunderer, Ajax and Centurion have not been scrapped, as provided for in the Treaty, although the ships which were supposed to replace them, the Rodney and Nelson, are "practically completed."

4) That the spirit of the Treaty has not been observed by Japan or Great Britain who have continued to enlarge and improve their navies in ways not specifically prohibited by the Treaty.

5) That, as compared with the navies of Great Britain and Japan, the U. S. Navy is "weak to a point of serious and alarming degree"--in fact, lags far behind the other two in strength. This point Mr. Shearer supports with a mass of detail similar to that given out by him last spring.

6) That it would be better to convert the Washington into an aircraft carrier.

The Court gave Secretary Wilbur four days to show cause why the injunction should not be granted. Meanwhile, preparations went forward for sinking the Washington off Cape Charles, Va., without any marks of perturbation on the part of the Navy Department. The plans called for planting bombs in the water around the ship and exploding them in imitation of airplane attack to see just how well modern armament could withstand such shocks. After several days of such tests, scientifically conducted, if the Washington were not yet sunk, the battleship Texas would be at hand to use her for target practice.

At the appointed time, the Navy Department filed its reply:

1) That the Washington has cost only some $15,000,000 and that it is only some 70% complete.

2) That Great Britain is allowed 580,000 tons in capital ships until the completion of the Rodney and Nelson; after which, when other ships are scrapped, Britain's allowance will be 558,000 tons--a larger tonnage, within the rights of the Treaty, than the 525,000 tons allowed to the U. S.

3) That the Saratoga and the Lexington have been ordered converted into aircraft carriers.

4) That the other matters raised by Mr. Shearer are immaterial.

5) That the President has full authority to order the destruction of the Washington in any manner he sees fit; and that in this matter the Secretary of the Navy acts only as his agent.

6) That much valuable information will be gained from the tests contemplated, since the opportunity of sinking the Washington will show the effectiveness of the type of armor employed on the latest war vessels.

Summarily, the Court dismissed Mr. Shearer's petition. He entered an appeal in the District Court of Appeals-- which will take about 20 days. Meanwhile, the Washington was towed out to sea to her destruction.