Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 14.djvu/340

* NAVAL SCHOOLS OF INSTRUCTION. 296 NAVAL SCHOOLS OF INSTRUCTION. CDUiM' is two vfar.-- and includes iii^tnioliuii in M'anmnship, navigation, mathematics, and tech- nical subjects. On completing the Hritunniii course the cadets or midshipmen are appointed to sea- going ships carrying a naval instructor who, in conjunction with an officer of the line and an engineer, supervises their instruction. After passing the necessary examinations and complet- ing the required amount (about live years, in- cluding time spent on the Britannia) of sea service the midshipmen undergo an oral examina- tion in seamansliip carried out by three captains. Upon passing this they undergo a college exam- ination at (Greenwich, receiving certificates of the hrst. second, or third class, according to qualifications. This certificate materially affects promotion to lieutenant. After leaving the col- lege the acting sublieutenants go through courses in pilotage, gunnery, and torpedo instruction. The men of the Royal Xaval Reserve arc drilleil on board widely distributed ships for the greater convenience of the merchant sailors who form the principal part of the reserve. The training of firemen, machinists, etc., is carried out on vessels attached to the different dockyards. The Italian naval academy is located at I^eg- horn (Livorno). The instruction is in two parts: (a) the normal course, and (b) the superior course. The limits of age at admission are thirteen and fifteen years. The normal course is five years in length, the theoretical instruction continuing during eight months of each year and the practical work on board the practice ships about three months. At the end of the course, having passed all examinations, the cadets are a])pointed midshipmen. They then are sent aboard cruising vessels for at least a year, after which they are commissioned as sublieutenants and are sent to the academy for the superior course of instruction, which comprises two ses- sions. The first session is obligatory for all sub- lieutenants, and the examination which takes place at the end fixes the rank of the officers in their grade and affects greatly the question of their advancement by selection (one-third are promoted to lieutenants by .selection and two- thirds by seniority!. To the second session only those are admitted who have attained a certain standard in their examinations, and these more fortunate young men receive a diploma which has an important inlluencc upon their naval carix-r and their eventual promotion. The naval con- structors, ecmstructing ongitieers, and commissary officers are also gradiates of the naval academy. The schools for the enlisted men are five in num- ber. There are also training ships for seamen. Officers are supplied to the Japanexr fleet in four ways: first, from the naval academy at Kure; second, by cadets sent to foreign naval sehools; third, by promotion from the ranks (rare) : fourth, by appointment from the marine school for merchant masters at Tokio. There are also torpedo, engineering, and gunnery schools, and several training ships fur seamen and boys. The naval school for the Dutch navy is located at Willemsoord. The age at entrance is fourteen to seventeen years and the course is four years. At the end of the course of four years the cadets pass examinations and are ajipointed as cadets of the f]rst class. After two years' service iti ships of the nnvy they are again examined, ami. if found qiialifjed, commissioned as second lieutenants. The school for naval engineers is at Hellevoets- luis. There are also gunnery and torpedo schools and school-ships for training seamen and boys. The Suriciyiun naval school furnishes not only the ollicers of the regular service, but also those of the reserve. Candidates for admission to the school must not be over nineteen years of age and must have served for twenty-one months in the merchant marine. The course at the school is in two parts, inferior and superior. The in- ferior course is three years long and at the end the cadets become ensigns. Those ensigns who are not destined to form ])arl of the regular navy arc, after two years of ordinary service, made lieutenants of the reserve. The superior course has two terms of eight months each. After eigh- teen months of additional service the graduates of the superior school are promoted to the rank of lieutenant. There are also gunnery and tor- l)cdo schools and training ships for I lie enlisted force. The naval school of PortiKjal is a polytechnic institution. The course for executive officers con- sists of three months on a training vessel, one year at the naval school, three months on the training vessel again, and la.stly, another year at the school. The gradiuites are then appointed midshipmen, and after two years of service are conmiissioned as ensigns. There are gunnery and torpedo schools for both officers and men and training-school shi])s for boys. The pri!ici]>al source of supply of officers for the Russian navy is the naval academy at Saint Petersburg. The candidates for entry must be between fourteen and eighteen years of age. The course is four years. At the conclusion of the course the cadets become midshipmen. There is also at the academy a post-graduate course for instruction of officers in strategj', tactics, inter- national law, etc. The other source of supply of officers is the school of navigation and ordnance at Kronstadt. The course is foir years and the in- struction similar to that given at the naval academy. There are also training schools for the enlisted men with several training ships. The executive officers in the Spanixh navy are graduates of the royal naval school. The age of candidates at entrance is from thirteen to eighteen years. The course is three years, after which the cadets become midshipmen, and then serve one year on board a ship detailed as the school of application, one year on board the sailing vessel aulilus. and one year on vessels in service, .fter a final examination they are connuissioned as sublieutenants. There are also floating gvinnery and torpedo schools and ves- sels for the training of seamen and of boys. The executive officers of the active list of the f^iredixh navy are graduates of the naval acad- emy at Stockholm. The limits of age of candi- dates at entrance are thirteen and sixteen years. The coiirse at the naval academy is six years (eight months in each year at the school and four months on a practice ship). I'pon gradu- ation the cadets are made sublieutenants. They are then sent for six nmnths as instructors in a school ( ICxrrrixskoIan). where the enlisted men receive their naval instruction. This is followed by six months' service of various kinds, including some time spent at the dockyard. They then >pend terms with the mobile defense of the coast and the gunnery school, and after eight or nine months in cruising ships they are commissioned as ensigns. There are also schools of the mobile