Excerpt from Hunting the German Shark: The American Navy, in the Underseas War The American Fleet is made up Of a composi tion of battleships, dreadnoughts, destroyers, scout-cruisers, submarines, armed yachts, coast guard vessels, mine-layers, and repair ships, manned by a personnel of more than forty thou sand men. TO this now has to be added over a hundred Chasers and their crews; many thousands of men serving on troop and supply Ships, naval transports, as armed guards; radio and signal men; naval gun crews furnished to merchant vessels; lastly, ten thousand men of the American Naval Aviation Service. Lump ing them all together, a hundred thousand men would be a conservative estimate of the Ameri can naval forces, either serving directly under the command of Admiral Sims or coming and going in the transport service.

Judged by any standard, this is a large fleet, and one Of the most satisfactory things about it - to an American, at least-is found in the fact that its upkeep has laid no additional burden on England, already over-weighted with her own war costs and those of weaker allies.

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