Chapter XXXIV: Act 1892: , it is optional to cite most important acts up (8)

5. Mobilization of the Fleet.--By the mobilization of the fleet is meant the placing of naval resources upon a war footing, in readiness in all material and personal respects for hostile operations. A complete mobilization for purposes of practice in peace time would dislocate seafaring life in a manner which would be justifiable only by actual war. Thus no country in peace manoeuvres calls out all its naval reserves, or makes use of the auxiliary cruisers--merchant ships for which a subvention is paid, and which are constructed with a view to use in warfare. Experience has shown that when vessels are commissioned they are liable to numerous small breakdowns of their machinery if they are manned by crews who have no familiarity with them. Many accidents of this kind had occurred in the British navy at manoeuvres, though it could not be shown that the vessel was defective, or that the crew was either untrained or negligent. These experiments led the admiralty to adopt a new system in 1904, designed to obviate the risk that vessels would be crippled at a critical moment by want of acquaintance on the part of the crew with their machinery. Under this system all vessels which are considered to be available for war are divided into two classes:--first, those in full commission which constitute the different squadrons maintained at all times; and secondly, those which form the reserve and are kept in partial commission--or rather partially manned though in commission. These are kept at the home ports--Chatham, Portsmouth, Plymouth--in reserve squadrons under a flag-officer who will command them in war. Each vessel has a captain, a second in command, and a proportion of other officers including engineer, navigating and torpedo officers. Two-fifths of her full complement of crew are always on board, and they include the most skilled men needed for the proper management of the machinery of all kinds--more especially that of the torpedoes and guns. These vessels go to sea for periodical practice. When therefore line fleet must be mobilized for war it will only be necessary to fill up the number of trained men by the less skilled hands from the naval barracks occupied by the sailors not belonging to any particular ship, or from the naval reserve. All ranks of the navy are placed on a roster by which they successively serve in ships in full commission, are quartered in the naval barracks and drafted from them to the ships of the reserve, from which they return to the sea-going ships. It is calculated that there are always men enough in the barracks to complete the crews of a small squadron for emergency service without disturbing the regular routine of the peace establishment. The British admiralty may claim that though the machinery at its command in the past was not perfect it has commonly been able to send a squadron to sea more rapidly than any other power in Europe. Much depends on the arrangement of the stores as well as the disposition of the men. The introduction at the end of the 18th century of the businesslike practice of keeping the fittings of each ship together by themselves, did much to facilitate the rapid mobilization of a portion of the British fleet in 1790 which impressed all Europe. The prompt manning of a special service squadron in 1895 in consequence of the troubles then arising in connexion with the former South African Republic, showed that even before its plans for mobilization were completed the admiralty had its resources well in hand. (R. V. H.)

Other countries.

As regards the navies of countries other than Great Britain, their government is in the hands of ministers or departments variously constituted. The Russian admiralty is a highly organized bureau, divided into departments, and under the supreme control of a high admiral, usually a grand duke of the Imperial House. The German admiralty was, till 1872, a branch of the War Office, though governed by a vice-admiral under a naval prince of the reigning family. In 1872 it was severed from the War Office, though remaining an appanage thereof, and a general of the army was placed at its head. The French minister of marine, assisted by a permanent staff, controls the navy of France on a highly centralized system of administration; but the departments are well organized, and work well. The Italian fleet is governed on principles analogous to the French, but with a large admixture of the English representative element. The American system is worth describing in more detail.

United States Navy Department.

The president of the United States is commander-in-chief of the navy--a constitutional prerogative which he seldom asserts. The Navy Department is administered by a civilian secretary of the navy--a cabinet officer appointed by the president--who exercises general supervision. Next in authority is the assistant-secretary, also a civilian nominee, who acts as an assistant, and has, besides, certain specific duties, including general supervision of the marine corps, naval militia and naval stations beyond the continental limits of the United States. The details of administration are supervised by the chiefs of bureaus, of which there are eight. They are appointed by the president from the navy list for a period of four years, and have the rank of rear-admiral while serving in this capacity. They have direct control of the business and correspondence pertaining to their respective bureaus; and orders emanating from them have the same force as though issued by the secretary.

The bureau of navigation is the executive, or military, bureau, and as such promulgates and enforces the orders and regulations prescribed by the secretary; it has general direction of the procurement, education, assignment and discipline of the personnel. It also controls the movements of ships, including the authorization of manoeuvres and drills, such as target practice. The bureau of equipment has charge of all electrical appliances, compasses, charts and fuel, and generally all that relates to the equipment of vessels, exclusive of those articles that come naturally under the cognizance of other bureaus. It has charge of the naval observatory, where the Ephemeris is prepared annually, and of the hydrographic office, where charts, sailing directions, notices to mariners, &c., are issued. The bureau of ordnance has charge of the gun factory, proving ground, and torpedo station, and all naval magazines; all the details that pertain to the manufacture, tests, installation or storage of all offensive and defensive apparatus, including armour, ammunition hoists, ammunition rooms, &c., though much of the actual installation is performed by the bureau of construction after consultation with the bureau of ordnance. The bureau of construction and repair has charge of the designing, building and repairing of hulls of ships, including turrets, spars and many other accessories. It builds all boats, has charge of the docking of vessels and the care of ships in reserve. The chief of this bureau is usually a naval constructor. The bureau of steam engineering has charge of all that relates to the designing, building and repairing of steam machinery, and of all the steam connexions on board ship. The bureau of supplies and accounts procures and distributes provisions, clothing and supplies of the pay department afloat, and acts as the purchasing agent for all materials used at naval stations, except for the medical department and marine corps. It also has charge of the disbursement of money and keeping of accounts. The chief of this bureau is a pay officer. The bureau of medicine and surgery has charge of all naval hospitals, dispensaries and laboratories, and of all that pertains to the care of sick afloat and ashore. The chief of this bureau is a medical officer. The bureau of yards and docks has charge of construction and maintenance of wet and dry docks, buildings, railways, cranes, and generally all permanent constructions at naval stations. The chief of this bureau is often a civil engineer.

Under the cognizance of the secretary's office is the office of the judge-advocate-general, an officer selected by the president from the navy list for a term of four years, with the rank of captain while so serving. He is legal adviser to the department, and reviews the records of all courts and statutory boards. Under the cognizance of the assistant-secretary's office is the office of naval intelligence, which collates information on naval matters obtainable at home and abroad. The staff is composed of naval officers on shore duty, the senior in charge being usually a captain, and known as chief intelligence officer. Several boards are employed under the various bureaus, or directly as advisers to the secretary. Some are permanent in character, while others are composed of officers employed on other duty, and are convoked periodically or when required. The naval policy board is composed of officers of high rank, and meets once a month; its duties conform to those of the general staff in armies. The board of construction consists of the chiefs of bureaus of ordnance, equipment, construction and repair, steam engineering, and the chief intelligence officer. Its duty is to advise the secretary in all matters relating to the construction policy in detail. The general construction policy is suggested by the naval policy board. The board of inspection and survey is composed of representatives of all bureaus, who inspect vessels soon after commission and on return from a cruise, and report on the condition of the ship and efficiency of its personnel; it also conducts the official trials of new vessels. The boards for the examination of officers for promotion are composed of officers of the corps to which the candidate belongs and of medical officers. Every officer is examined professionally, morally and physically at each promotion. The Navy Department is located at Washington, D.C., and occupies a building together with the State and War Departments (the latter being charged solely with army affairs).

The personnel (see also under NAVY) is limited in number by law. The engineer corps was abolished in 1899, the then engineer-officers becoming line officers in their respective relative grades. Line officers are the military and executive branch, and are required besides to perform engineer duties. They are graduates of the Naval Academy. Vacancies occurring in the construction corps are filled from the graduates of the Naval Academy having the highest standing in scholarship, who are given a two years' graduate course, generally abroad, on being graduated from the Academy, and are then appointed assistant naval constructors. All other staff officers are appointed directly from civil life by the president, from candidates passing prescribed examinations. Each representative and delegate in Congress has authority to nominate a candidate for naval cadet whenever his congressional district has no representative in the Naval Academy. The candidate must be a resident of the district which the congressman represents, between fifteen and twenty years old, and must pass prescribed mental and physical examinations. The president is allowed ten representatives at the Academy at all times, appointed ``at large,'' and one appointed from the District of Columbia.

The course of instruction at the Academy is four years, each comprising eight months' study, three months' practice cruise, and one month's furlough. At the expiration of four years, cadets are sent to cruising ships for two years' further instruction, and are then commissioned ensigns. After three years' further sea service, ensigns are promoted to lieutenants (junior grade). After this, promotion is dependent upon seniority alone, the senior officer in any grade being promoted to the lowest number in the next higher grade when a vacancy occurs in the higher grade, and not before. All officers are retired on three-fourths sea pay at the age of sixty-two, or whenever a board of medical officers certifies that an officer is not physically qualified to perform all duties of his grade. A few officers are allowed to retire voluntarily in certain circumstances, to stimulate promotion. Any officer on the retired list may be ordered by the secretary to such duty as he may be able to perform: this is a legal provision to provide for emergencies. Promotion in the staff corps is dependent upon seniority, though relative rank in the lower grades in some corps somewhat depends upon promotion of line officers of the same length of service, and accounts for the existence of staff officers in the same grade having different ranks. All sea-going officers, after commission, are required to spend three years at sea, and are then usually employed on shore-duty for a time, according to the needs of the service--short terms of shore-duty thereafter alternating with three-year cruises. This rule is adhered to as strictly as circumstances will permit. Shore-duty includes executive or distinctly professional duties in the Navy Department, under its bureaus, and at navy yards and stations; inspection of ordnance, machinery, dynamos, &c., under construction by private firms; duty on numerous temporary or permanent boards; instructors at the Naval Academy; recruiting duty; charge of branch hydrographic offices; inspection duty in the lighthouse establishment; at state nautical schools; as attaches with United States legations; and many others. Naval constructors (usually), civil engineers and professors of mathematics are continuously employed on shore-duty connected with their professions, the Naval Observatory, Nautical Almanac and the Naval Academy employing most of the last.

Warrant officers (boatswains, gunners, carpenters, sailmakers, warrant machinists and pharmacists) are appointed by the secretary, preference being given to enlisted men in the navy who have shown marked ability for the positions. They must be between twenty-one and thirty-five years of age, and pass an examination. After serving satisfactorily for one year under an acting appointment, they receive warrants that secure the permanency of their office. Ten years after appointment, boatswains, gunners, carpenters and sailmakers are eligible for examination for a commission as chief-boatswain, &c., and as such they rank with, but next after, ensigns. Mates are rated by the secretary from seamen or ordinary seamen. They have no relative rank, but take precedence of all petty officers. Their duties approximate to those of boatswains, though they seldom serve on large cruising vessels. Clerks to pay officers are appointed by the secretary on the nominations of the pay officers. They have no rank and are not promoted or retired. Their appointments are revoked when their services are no longer needed.

Boys between fifteen and seventeen years old of good character, who can read and write and pass the physical examination, may enlist for the term of their minority. They enlist as third- class apprentices, and are given six months' instruction at a training station, and thence go to sea in apprentice training vessels. When proficient they are transferred to regular cruising vessels as second class, and when further qualified are rated first class. All other enlistments are for four years. Recruits must speak English. Landsmen are usually sent to sea on special training-ships until proficient, and are then sent into general service. Raw recruits may enlist as landsmen, or coal-passers or mess attendants. Ordinary seamen must have served two years, and seamen four years before the mast, prior to first enlistment as such; and before enlistment in any other rating allowed on first enlistment, applicants must prove their ability to hold such rating. Landsmen, coal-passers, &c., as soon as they become proficient, are advanced to higher grades, and, if American citizens, may eventually become petty officers (ranking with army non-commissioned officers), with acting appointments. In twelve months, or as soon thereafter as proficiency is established, the acting appointment is made permanent, and an acting appointment for the next higher grade is issued, &c. Permanent appointments are not revokable except by sentence of court-martial, and a man re-enlists in that rating for which he held a permanent appointment in his previous enlistment. All persons re-enlisting within four months after expiration of previous enlistment are entitled to a bounty equal to four months' pay, and in addition receive a ``continuous service certificate,'' which entitles them to higher pay and to other special considerations. The same is true for each re-enlistment. When an enlisted man completes thirty years' service and is over fifty years of age he may retire on three-fourths pay.

The Marine corps (see MARINES) is a wholly separate military body, but it is under the control of the Navy Department.

United States naval vessels are, as a rule, built at private yards under contracts awarded after competition. The government is not committed to any fixed policy or building programme. Each year the secretary recommends certain new construction. The final action rests with Congress, which must appropriate money for the new ships before the construction can be commenced. Repairing and reconstruction are usually done at government navy yards.

Ships in commission are distributed among five stations: (1) the North Atlantic, i.e. the Atlantic coast of the United States, Central America, and South America as far as the Amazon, also the West Indies; (2) the South Atlantic, i.e. the remainder of the Atlantic coast of South America and both coasts of South Africa; (3) the European, comprising the coast of Europe, including the inland seas, and the North Atlantic coast of Africa; (4) the Asiatic station, comprising the coast of Asia, including the islands north of the equator, also the east coast of North Africa; (5) the Pacific station, comprising the Pacific coast of North and South America, and Australia and the adjacent islands lying south of the equator. Each station is commanded by a flag officer, and the number of ships under the command varies according to circumstances. Ships in commission on special service, such as training, gunnery, surveying ships, &c., are not attached to stations. The shore stations of the navy are enumerated in the article on DOCKYARDS. (W. T. S.)

ADMIRALTY, HIGH COURT OF. The High Court of Admiralty of England was the court of the deputy or lieutenant of the admiral. It is supposed in the Black Book of the Admiralty to have been founded in the reign of Edward I.; but it would appear, from the learned discussion of R. G. Marsden, that it was established as a civil court by Edward III. in the year 1360; the power of the admiral to determine matters of discipline in the fleet, and possibly questions of piracy and prize, being somewhat earlier. Even then the court as such took no formal shape; but the various admirals began to receive in their patents express grants of jurisdiction with powers to appoint lieutenants or deputies. At first there were separate admirals or rear-admirals of the north, south and west, each with deputies and courts. A list of them was collected by Sir H. Spelman. These were merged in or absorbed by one high court early in the 15th century. Sir Thomas Beaufort, afterwards earl of Dorset and duke of Exeter (appointed admiral of the fleet 1407, and admiral of England, Ireland and Aquitaine 1412, which latter office he held till his death in 1426), certainly had a court, with a marshal and other officers, and forms of legal process--mandates, warrants, citations, compulsories, proxies, &c. Complaints of encroachment of jurisdiction by the Admiralty Courts led to the restraining acts, 13 Ric. II. c. 5 (1389), 15 Ric. II. c. 3 (1391) and 2 Hen. IV. c. 11 (1400).

Jurisdiction.

The original object of the institution of the courts or court seems to have been to prevent or punish piracy and other crimes upon the narrow seas and to deal with questions of prize; but civil jurisdiction soon followed. The jurisdiction in criminal matters was transferred by the Offences at Sea