The sun. [volume], January 19, 1919, Section 4, Page 11, Image 47

About The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920

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THE SUN, SUNDAY, JANUARY 19 1919.
11
MARINE
By LINDELL T. BATES,
Secretary of the Submarine Defence
Association, graduate of Yale, '10, holier
vl men dearer In law anil the Knight's
( r. i of Isabel la Ctifollrri from the
Aftiir of f'M,,i.
Camouflage has had almost-. as fascl
i tliij? an evolution In m.irlno as In land
warfare. In many respects, however. It
is the youngest science, and until March,
i'US, It might rather be called an art
' an a. science.
The Germans were the llr.it to npply
"in lessons of visual deception to the
on Uarly in the U bovt campaign they
lCgan to paint their veels In various
cslgns to mako them less conspicuous.
In the late nineteenth century British
arshH'S used to be black In color, nnd
..merlcan white. In sea flshta at fairly
.lose range low visibility wan not con
Idcrcd Of great Importance. In the 90's
h C.crmans changed from black to dark
tray Oreat Britain and the other Pow
ers shortly thereafter followed cult, but
Ifferrnt shades of gray were used by
. Ifferent nations. Dark gray, called
"battleship gray," was the prevailing
olor At the outbreak of hostilities the
l'rcnch. Italian and Austrian fleets were
nf a color different from those of the
Itrltlsh and Germans. The former fa
vored a gray and khaki mixture. The
Dutch ships were greenish brown In hue.
In 131 Austria adopted the German
color for tho sake of uniformity with
er ally
Prior to the entry of tho United States
tun tho war the Allies had made no
-ot.ible effort to dlszulso their vessels as
help In the struggle against the U boat.
When America entered the only Instruc
tion to merchant vessels was to paint
i-clr white or light colored upper works
gray or dull stone color. Some fbcls
wero decorated early with false painted
'ons and how waves, or n sjlhouette of
destroyer, a submarine or a slnklns t
fin?
Artlit Took l"i the Work.
I the course of tho war several nated because he was the most nvnlln
Vmcrlcan artists, noll'ic iho ranlrt d. ble. and he had shown tact and ability
wlopment ot land camouflage, beeame ,
,terrstcd Iri ita marine iiosslbllltles.
tVilllam A. Mackay and Lewis Herzog.
to:h of New York, appear to have been
(lis pioneers ot elaborate camouflagi
fcolh of this country and abroad, al
ni:h in lni" attention was beginning
o focus on th's iiucsllon simultaneously
m trany quarters. Gerome Brush. Maxl
nillau Toch and Hverett L. Warner soon
r.t'rtd th" new Held. Mr. Mackay even
k.abll-.hed a marine camouflage school
v'V York city, the first of Its kind.
Thre artists were divided at the out
let into two groups, those who favored
aiming for low visibility and those
wiii favored a so-called "dazzle" sys
tem Mr. Mackay'a original system was
or low visibility, as was that of Mr.
Ilru.-b Mr. Wfcrner consldcied decep
tion of major and low visibility of minor
mporunce. Messrs. Herzog and Toch
sought to reconcile both alms. i bv Submarines," by Llndell T. Bates.
The United States Shipping Board ' and "Protective Coloration as a Means
-ok interest In the possibility of eamou- 0f peOnce Against Submarines." by
.luge as a defensive measure for Amcri- t Llovd A. Jonn.
j.i merchant -hips. On October 1. Dtfference of thr neports.
1T. the Treasury Department through
'he Bureau of War Bisk Inmrancc Is- Tho writer's report gave the history
ud an order requiring under penalty of camouflage, discussed the question of
o '-3 per cent increase in war risk , reduction of superstructure, the meanr
premium tho. painting of ossels for ' of smoke elimination and of making
protective purposes. Ship owners were smoke screen as well as deceptive col
at liberty to select either eC five evstem ' oration. Mr. Jones limited hla study to
mentioned. Should an ovrtier wish to ' low visibility coloration and how to re
f Ills own or a different scheme, the I conclle deceptive coloration at closs
rder required him to obta'n for It the range with low visibility at the blendlne
prior approval of William I.. Saunders,
olmrman of the naval consulting board
Little experimental work was con
victed with reference to marine camou
flage prior to the adoption of the five
s stems. Mr. Mackay had painted some
t t l tXtv x j v t t 'I4
wtWw J V V V V v v V v -I
; v : : v v : v v
Jv!!- 5 5 v v v v v ' v
Dimension illusion of lines; the bands are straight, but you
wouldn't know it.
"iff artne chasers at the navy yard
"d Mr. Hcrzog had conducted vKihlllt.v 1
(pertinents on tho northeast roast of j
" L'nitid States. The other artists
nd not enjoyed suitable experimental
"npTtunitlcF.
li Tulv. 1917. the Submarine Defence
'fociation was organized by the ship-
tir ami Insurance interests in New
Tork in an effort to sec that all j
raurcs were duly taken to sareguaro
'sel.. Nearly a hundred leading
'"rmj and British companies Joined,
snd all the leading marine Insurance
incirn Lucius H. Beers, counsel for
unard tompany, was elected chalr
n J. A 11. Hopkins of Johnson &
'I ns was chosen vice-chairman, and
' in'ton W. Bates chairman of tho en
gineering committee. Admiral William
Benson assigned a naval vessel to the
'fso ation for experimental purpose
M tne new organization, although en
M Independent, enjoyed the closest
r.4 most cordial relations with tho
Tit-'.jn and foreign authorities.
T e association's technical staff soon
' about ascertaining which. If any.
five systems was tho best, and
' r.o e was satisfactory, then to devUe
' fvat would bo more acceptable. It
, "po'ed to approach the subject from
l IS e.trt rathe than frnm all nrtltle
andpomt' so the rhalrman of the en-j
.'iseting committee. Llndon W. Bates. ,
n. v, d th aetlvn enonaration of George 1
Hflvtinan and the facilities of the great
sea-ch laooratory of tho Eastman Ko
'k onipanv at Bochester. Lloyd A.
'trf of the Research staff was assigned
' r-'I.aborate with the writer and others
"f the association's organization. From
-e summer of 1917 to March, 1918, ex
utive Investigations wero conducted
' lto. nf.ster. on Lake Ontario and at
1 .pjn the vessel assigned by the
Vaw Department under Mr. Bates's dl
retmns HrltUh t se 'IJiir.!e, System.
L'rmg t.10 timo In which these re
arch labors wero being conducted tho
nntlth and French navies began to look
e-iouuly Into the camouflage question.
r-r,y m 191 S the British adopted a
iazzle mtem devised by Lieut. JCor--n
SUkinson, It. N. V. R , London
r st
a Pebmary. 191S, It was learned In
" .s country that Lieut. Wilkinson was
li be sent to the United States to ln-
iftto our navy Into tho mybterles of the
""v art. Ninety "dazzle" pattern pre-
fld Prior to his arrival tho United
M'e. Navy Department decided to es
'M'sh a camouflage section of ts own
an;! authorized tho adoption of a "daz
! 'Stem Whatever system, therefore.
b adopted had, perforce, to be called
l iJle." and as the meaning or mat
'r was still uncertain, practically apy
"!T f camouflage was authorized
Vs 'no naval authorities wore fsmll-
r 'it the scientific research work
r..e me Suhmarlne Defence Assoc!
itlon nas conducting, the chairman of
h meet Ins committee was consulted
rr?a ,ng the proposed navy organlza
tlnr, i',r triiii'ihc questions In connec
tion ,,in thl subject ll was obvious
CAMOUFLAGE
n! . .
' 5 ' N 'l v 1 First Authentic Account of the De- , ;v ' " 4 'VV
j .', I .' v velopment of Illusion in Foiling .. 5 Vr . - ,, ;v
ivHiflC V. 1".:. : ! Hun Pirates Written by Leader IS
r-v-.v-, -L - , in the Work Here Scien- tt'hm
. . , , ,;,4.4p- u tific Explanation ot Colors, a'-"- : , : ;&v---irv - ,
. I ;- Curves and Lines Used. tAYXrWtf
that Mr. Jonvi was the best equipped i
ptrson , lh country. Ifor iie'Cxtca
live direction under tho IiIkIut naval
1 olllcers Harold Van l'usklrk was deslg-
am' could N released from duty with
the-'nesoclatlon to go to the navy. These 1
men were made Settlor Lieutenant and
they were Lie nucleus of the new Na
Cainouflago Section.
Of tho fUe American camouflage ar
tists Kver'tt I Warner was chosen for
a post with them', but Mr. Mackay re
mained In Nw York as o local executive
of the Shipping Hoard of ship painting
fiom designs supplied by the navy. While
these developments were taking place
Lieut. Wilkinson arrived, bringing with
him ninety more "dazzle" pattern. The
previous ninety wero already consid
ered obsolete.
In March the Submarine Defence As
sociation terminated Its research work
and published two marine camouflage
reports entitled "The Science of Low
Visibility and Deception as an Aid to
the nefence of Vessels Against Attack
.distance.
The association advocated a system
combining low visibility and deception,
recommended' tho abolition of tho nvo
earlier systems and considered that the
British "dazzle'' was subject to crltl-
Design illusion of curves;
clm largely because of its totr.l nfulect
of low visibility. The navy thereupon
adopted for certain war vessels 11 low
visibility color only, and for dcstro
ers and merchant ship a materially
modified British "dazzle," changed bo nt
to give it a low visibility feature.
The Shipping Board organized also a
camouflage section antt applied tne nr
signs received from the navy Je tho
merchant vessel- under its Jurisdiction.
Tno results 01 nn: iret-m.n
the association, the adoption by the
United StatcB Navy of a low visibility,
deception system and tho practical e
pcrieneo at sea led tho Brltlh in tho
late summer ot ii imrauw
abandon their en "dazzle," which dis
regarded tho lov.' visibility factor. Ca
mouflage based o.i more scientific princi
ples then began to take the place of the
original English system. Checker board
bow and funnel patterns and perspective
distortion bands began to appear.
Lieut. Jones has perfected a "colori
meter" to measure, the weather coeffi
cient and two expeditions left In Decem
ber, 19U, to measure this factor In vari
ous teas. Protective coloration for
American submarines has been Inves
tigated and a special color determined.
Navigation signs of a particular variety
and clever navigation light schemes have
also been evolved.
The geographical position of a vessel
at sea and tho circumstances under
which she Is seen have an Important
benrlnir unon her visibility. The suh
marlno danger zono Included all the
Mediterranean, North Hea, and Atlantlo
beyond even the Azores. Cape Verde and
Canary Islands. The approaches to tho
Irish coast were particularly hazardous
as w'ere the other places whero trade
routes Intersect or converge such as the
Strait of Gibraltar.
Hostile U-boats were most likely to
bo met In tho Irish Sea and Kngllsh
Channel. They were frequently eneoun-
I (ered a." where In the .Mediterranean
and North Sea, and In the Atlantic as
far as longltudn 23 degrees west, nnd
as far south aM latitude 30 degrees north.
Tliev wern also encountered near Ma
deira and the Azores. Thirty per cent, of
the shipping losses, according lo Sir
The last word in marine camouflage. This freakish looking craft eluded searchlights and keen -
Krlc Gcddcs, occurred In the Mcdltcr-
ranean.
Tho visibility problem Is affected also
by the manner In v,liieh ships voyage,
whether alone or In a group. Prior to
the entry of tho United States Into the
war th escort nnd convoy systems did
not extend to manv vessels other than
transpoita. In 1917 mid 191S, however,
largo convoys of from twenty to fort'
ships proceeded from American and
Canadian ports to Kurope. Merchant
vessels proceeding to the Mediterranean
occasionally so voyaged, as well as ships
coming back from nurono to America
Convoys sometimes split up on the Jour
ney and single vessels proceeded to other
ports than that of the convoy.
An effort was made to group vessels
according to speed. It happened, how
ever, that vessels of less than a certain
minimum rate hamper a convoy over
much and were not Included In It. Fast
vessels were also excluded, as with their
speed and manoeuvring1 ability they were
about as safe alone. There were nu
merous vessels which tvere not given tho
protection of convoy. Such nre. for ex
ample, ships about 1G and below 7
knots In speed, European coastwise ves
sels nnd ships, proceeding to certain
Mediterranean ports. Sometimes there
fore victims were alone on the sea., some
times they were escorted or convoyed.
The visibility problem Is further com
plicated by certain war emergency navi
gation rules. The Instructions to Amer
ican and allied ve-sels called for pre
cautionary zigzag matia'Uvre.s while the
danger zone was being traversed. Fre
quently ships proceeded three miles to
port or starboard of their normal course,
sometimes five miles. Also the normal
course Itself was changed two or three
times a day. These measures meant
that a wide belt was navigated through
the submarine Infested area.
Smoke a Dangerous Factor.
Fueling practice is also a factor In
the visibility study. American vessel
were required by the Bureau of War
Risk Insurance, under penalty of In
creased premium, to burn smokeless
fuel or anthracite in the danger zone.
Inasmuch aa other ship were not nl-
ways similarly regulated ana convovs
I were comnosed of foreign as well s I
American vessels, ftiioko ciouqs niwa
' formed above convoys. It was not pos
slble either In all cases to obtain smoke- 1
lest, fuel or to use It the full time nec- t
essary. Telltale plumes tnererorc lssuea
from the funnels of vessels travelling
alone or In company through the danger
tune.
The most Important of all visibility
factors I weather. The yearly "propor.
tlon of sky covered with clouds" for
the North Atlantic is from 60 to 70 pv
cent, for the ocean off the south Eng
lish nnd French coasts CO per cent . off
the Azores 50 per cent., off the Canaries
40 per cent ar.d off tho Cape Verdo
Islands 40 per cent. In the Mediter
ranean It is from 30 to 10 per cent.,
while hi the waters off Oreeco It Is SO
per cent
Tho ho irs of sunshine a year total
1,300 off the mirth coast of Ireland and
the spirals really are circles.
Scotland. l.SOO off Kngland, 1.700 ..ft
the southern coat of Ireland, :,500 in
thu Meditei ranemi. These aro out of i
tota' of ..7W hours nf da and night a
year. In the Kngllsh Channel westerly
gals-, aio pievalent in the winter inocil.s
from October to March. Inclusive. T'.i
ar-j raro from May to July. Inclusive,
and seldom last long. During twilight
hours lu the morning and evening then
is generally a haze over tho tea. In
the danger zone near tho British Isle
daylight Is frequently further mod, fie l
bv iiioie or less heavy sea fogs, llaa
on the water I "almost constant from
Octcbir to April
V.: .L.. r .i. A,nr ,n'tln mav. however, haven decided In -
"I .'IZ rn"." .. "... Ua". .U..rie'nr. Should one make (he vessel's
near
Hr LI1U ACVirt, unni tc.i nu it, ' "
Mediterranean tho percentage of cleir
diya Is much greater; there aro fewer
stormr, over, in winter, and the atnv.'S
iil.etj is freer.
Visibility Is also concerned with the
cjuestlon of the distance from which thn
observation of the U-boae Is taken. Tne
distance at which a ship Is potentially
vlfible nt tea depends upon the height
ol the point of observation, the height
of the vessel and tho curvature of the
earth's surface
Submarines! aio able to receive and
lend wireless messages carrying marl
tlmo informatlin such as the location of
Allied warcraft. Sound signals may be
used also for signalling between U-boats.
They are now piovided vv.di hydrophones
ble (n de(rjt (he presence ot inner craft
teve,a mltn off. U the vessel or con-
vny I'l found lo be parsing at snnic dis
tance, necessitating considerable iun
nlni on the surface at high speed to
bring the U-boat within attacking dis
tance) tho attempt will tint bo made un
less tho ship or group I knon-n to be
an Important one. If the e-arllest oh.
nervations give encouragement thn sub
irarlne, unless already ahead nf the ves
sel on her course, tikes a direction nt
10 degrees lo the line nf first observa
tion and Inward the vessel's- route
If the ship Is almio and It Is decided
to uso tho naval gun. tho U.imit ap
proaches lo a tango nf from four to
eight thousand yards and opens lire Tho
calibre of the subm nine's deck gun was
In 10H Inches at Ihe close of the
war It was 5 9 Inches nr ll Inches on
BROUGHT TO PERFECTION IN AMERICA
most pubniarlnej'. The puns on iner-
enant vessels were ortfn outranged. Tho
latest U-tioata even dared to uttack an
Allied rrulter
If, on tho other hand, for tactical rea
tons the torpedo Is elected as the
weapon to use, tho submit hi" submerges
when Mill out nf eight and proccedu to
Iho firing position. This Is abreast or
slightly ahead ot the victim and about
1,000 yards off. German U boats have
fndcavored to come as cIoep as 300 yards
before launching the torpedo. 'It the
ship is a part ot n convoy the U-boat
will either attack the convoy flank or
teck to rise In the center. In case of
tuoh attack no particular ship la selected
during: tho early approach.
Whllo submerged the submarine com
mander takes from six to eight perlsco.
pic observations In order to obtain the
conre, range and speed of the mer
chantman or eonoy. These data enable
him to calculate where the tiring posi
tion, will Ijc against it rlnalo vesfel or
whero to attack a convoy. The duratjnn
of tho perlscoplo Eights Is from thirty
seconds to five seconds. In ordinary
perlscopea, all but about a third of the
light 1. lost by reflection or absorption
If there be dust or mniture on the
lenses the loss of light Is even greater.
This defect In the instruments Is largely
compensated among other way,, how
ever, by the natural dilation of tho pupil
of the eye to admit more light.
Normally the vessel's Image I en
larged from 12 to 15 times, but
magnification thren to six tlmea Is not
unusual. To ai-ceitaln rangn from perl-fj-oplo.
ohBervatlons there aro only two
available methodH. Telemeter scales or
cro- hair graduated 'Vertically and
horizontally In hundredthH are. generally
used. The other method Is the double
Imago micrometer. Two imagiv of tho
same object are made to cut each other
In the lens, and are shifted ivlth refer
ence to one anotlRT until the masts, fun
nels or other hISh parts of tho vessel tin-1
der observation are Sn a level with the
water line or deck line of tho second
Image. The angle of shift determine.
the distance.
The range nf a vessel at the various
times that she la observed will give an
Idea of her course unless the Is zlg-
zarelni
At clote ran?') the apparent
perspective in ine snip, iter now posiuen
I mm ui,ii.iiaa ...
indices used. Speed en'' illation I. also
approximate onl. It should be cmpha-
Ized that course, ranee and speed est1
mated from peiitvoplc observation Is by
no means an cxart science. Tim human
DC may be deceived when It view I so
1i..l.J 1 Vi-,f.
limited and brief. i
With respect to pro'eitlve r.imouflago Illusion, even a slight one. nloirg t.iese
there are two purposes which may be lines will bo an advantage, since ,ir
subserved namely, a ledtictlon In the curacy in gun and especially in torpeJo
visibility of vescla In rder that they
may traverse (he danger zone unou
served or fesa vvell observed by subma
rines, and a change In tho appearance
of the vessel so that if observed the cal
culation of her course, speed and range
may be thereby rendered Inari urate.
While U-boats aro equipped with tound
detection apparatus of considerable
hearing radius, the. low visibility pur
pose Ih well worth securing, because the
hearing radius of so.umt .detector does
not in everv raio extend aa far as vision
st sea. Sound, fiirtnermort . does not
give the piedi-f dirci Hon, distance ind
courre of a vessel which nie ncesaiy
fur an approach to torpedo llrlni t6i
tion. Hard o cc, Ilnrd to Hit.
-hip that I hard lo sec I hard
to hit It is still, therefore, a real ad
I'lnmn for n s'lln in he as neat lv In
visible as p-vsslble. This I especially
true fiom the Int , cantlle Marine Company thv the aerial I ,r'" f "kv n"'1 w3tCr' vvl, cn fields vv Ith low visibility requirements. ! silver recognizable as the only when
"TP;- Tfu. beeM,reh of meeUn'- shl I of the w lreleT oHhelr vessel eCuId be I ".' h lLV'. . . 7'1" ' ? K' ! ,1 n,lv' """" ! the leading edge nf f,e be,m. Her
! ',,: v .1 1 Vv Is much smaller than It I rim from one mast to tho funnel and " .,v : n' Vl.. T ? " ' ' -. MI,r,M,?r.n '"mm w M ,n
." , " . , ' iil meet the ieoiilrement of service !-.'" " i - , nnv- a. v. in cinar raiuir a, i,n" sonn as sue got we i nacK m ine iwaill
i.n patrol and be sure ot meeting es-,.iiu meet me leqiiiremem oi sfivicc nlac'tr? them In Fttnng ...k ,i i.,.i.ihiiiit, .t nn vnni. unit ' .hn o e ,v, ,u...hi..,.n
se s more ieu ,, n,. Scenic Artl.fn Kffort.
Were low visibility secured, to cover ,
the same tea area with a submarine! Homer F. Emeus,, the .veil kinwn
cordon would require more Fiibanvrlne. scenic expert, devoted considerable at
If It wero possible so to "dzzle" tlieitentlon to the problem of distorting the
eye as to render It incapable or pait'.y I apparent perspective of the upper works
Incapable of ohservlng the Image nf the nf a vessel. He prepared a mode! in
taigct. this "dazzle" effect would be which a large, triangular screen was
dc -able. As. however, in takli.g the p'aced below the bridge, extending fmm
niu Important porlscnpic obi-ervitloiis i ftr)o to side, the point of the triangle
(lie vessel's outline, masts and funnels t feeing the bow of th vessel. On ci'-b
are chiefly notbed. the prpginnuii" nf side of this triangular screen he painted
low visibility nnd of diturblng range, a perspective view nf the normal stni".
speed and course rslima'e is preferred ture which actually faced the base nf
It I. a fciIous matter to decide the , ,, triangle. The effect of thl was
nature of the deception to be sought to mK.e the ship -when seen from the
Deception as to range can affect gunfire fMf nppear nearly bow on. provided the
less than torpedo lire, as with the error was not corrected by a normal
former "spot niiiig is resorted in in
tho case nf (orpedo aitacK, wnicn is
.. .-1 olti'ivu ttt t inor rnnpo. ihWn
... - -
course as seen from a submarine seem
directed away from tho U-boat or to
ward It? Bach ha its advantages and
disadvantages, depending upon the re
spective pnsltinn, rpeed and other ehar-
acjcrlstlcs nr tne sunniunne and tin get
vessel
11 ine snip is liimiu i" .ipin'n in
coming toward the etibmar.ne. the latter i
may be causecl to mi.iireuere tr, a tor.,
pedo firing position at a range runner
than, and astern of, the normal one.
On the other hand ijiiio .-nurse is
rtthe Ta,",er rXJ, ami
rise at a point wheie the vessel could
run It down
Should an attempt bn made to give
than tho actual? A slower apparent
speed may cause the r.bnat. lu its cost.
to tako leisure In approaching the firing
un aspect of speed raster or slower:
position. An IIIiieIoii of faster speed
may Induce tho submarine tn overrun
the firing position.
Should un effort bo made to give the
range n longer or shorter np(earance?
If the vessel seems to be closer to the
U-boat thill) she rca'.iv is, (he torpedo ,
Low visibility deception system devised by the Submarine Defence Association, using Alpha'
uu
Mtxtruc fivaien
yjnr iknr xvrrr.
i
Periscope of a U-boat, with
r . - . . ,
UUCV.11UU ui aigui. uxi.
flre will be actually at longer ranse
than the submarine captain anticipates.
I If, on the other hand, the ship Is made
I to appear more distant thn she really
Is, then the torpedo may bo aimed to
(pass actually ahead of tho vessel.
i A choice cannot be arbitrarily made
between the alternatives cited, but that
mere snouia n- uice.piion in reisiiou iu
. ....r
(lie rtecepuon aee.req canno ne precisely,
prescribed. It would be vell rot to seek .
course of two knots In speed or of two!
, to three hundred yard In range Is stif-
flolent to add materially to the afct of
LiiAC ba 1 a valntl tnftAiri rlfffljilf till1
a vessel against torpedo attack. Any
flro as well as the moncruver of ap
proach deiiend. Intimately upon cxct
ncss in the estimates of the target's
range, course and speed
The bearing" of vessels are first taken
by a U-boat from oh-ervatlon of smoke
or superstructure. While for ship, in
convoy the smoke, noise and breadth of
area covered lessen the utility ot super
structure reduction to lower visibility It
remains of value ne an nld to tho defe ns'e
of the solitary ship.
The safety of a ship subject to attick
may be said to var Inversely a. (he
area over which she I vble to the
submarine.
On sMllIng ships all superstructure is
! usually needed, but on steamers connd
i erahle reduction Is possible. Masts nn
I modern vessels serve little purpose r.ive
' for the wireless antenna1, the crnw'p nest
and the lights. One mast. In many
caes. will suffice. Tile Marconi Oim
v. 0f 0(he-r portions of tho ship.
i Tne new ,i,p. for tnn Kmergency
rtt. n . , t . ji.,,
.',,,,:.." ..",',,, ' , " ,1V, "". .
' . T"
it i, t. user, n in, r 'tipuu, ' i,u
li'uumu IB ,i,n on muritii' , rtici in, i lie
vessel was a Cunarder supplied lo
Tliomas A. Kdlson by the Subniaiino
Defence Association for this experi
mental purpose. The funnel and maids
were cut f.liort and character deception
was sought by Mr. Ldlson by means
,., ,..,,... .,...,,,., t.r,.,. l,...- ,l,
f , f M, , ,,f
,,.. ,ruc,ur T ' hlo,.. nrf
h ' vnr hnr, Ar fh.
, . . ... , . .
trwlM ln convoy no con.IllMve
i
J '""""'M"
'change tho character of a vessel.
The field of protective coloration Is
I " '. 'Wtant one bn one whirl, Is
1!,llt'rt' n ,,onvoV "r
i M"J0" can 1,ar,11' "nP ,0 " nv llblo
. .... . ... . , i.iu ui.'. tn tin,. ,.,. -.- ...... . irriv iimiiH inn niv in inen I phi i"i-'i , e tn., u,iiiuar.in.... rr 1,1- o-'.t ia j nr
blue, Beta white and Omega gray.
eyed coast artillerymen near by
whatever paint is ued. But paint may, j dark red. olive green, yellow, gray and Kctei llfk determination Wfi.it will dc
render even a convoyed or escorted w hlt. TheMt colors are Ia,ld In large (l.ve on submarine ubsiriet wiii not
vessel less liable to torpedo attaek. as I patches of eontraMlng colors. In wiine delude another. The Submatine lifenc
low visibility and deception are possible. I of the pattrrna the light colot no c-uu-Vessels
proceeding alone cannot expect centrated at ano end of the vessel and
, often to be Invisible to oidlnxry vision the dark colors at the other In order o
wltnill about 6,uu ani'', unless mere '
I Is a haze or n fog or It Is night, a
their bull: dlatlnguU-be them from the
I sky For range" bcjnnd about ,"1,000
yards. In buch a cai-e, low visibility and
I even Invisibility I." frequently possible.
But, If a vesse) lies between the
U-boat and the sun no amount of paint
'will render hr Invisible, sine the side
ot the ship seen will be In the shadow
and the background will bo illuminated,
Deception to ordinary vision Is possible,
on the other hand, within approximately
5,000 yards, or a greater distance If the
periscope used magnifies to several times
normal. It Is difficult to so paint a large
warship a. to cause real deception, be-
1 cause her naval masts and upper v.orks
give away her character ann hearting.
On the other hand low vl!blllty for all
ships la possible.
The- System Annlyznl.
One may now analvze the respective
merits of flvo American systems, the
British "dazzle" and tho navy ciraou-
(lage, for these represent tho systems ot
camoutlsge practiced during the Luro
pear war. The Naval Consulting Board
recorded on July ?. 1317, regarding the
Mackay system :
"Fundamental' It is based on mottling
the. surface with tho three primary col-
nm vehteh nt a rllntnncn blend to nro-
riuce 11 sray having the quality of a gray
light He also rroposes to shado the
tints so as to lower high lights and
raise the low areas of Illumination"
I This was classed as a system for ves
sels "w.ih-h In our opinion will lower
their visibility." The theory of Mr.
; Mackay s low visibility system Is glvon
by him In tho following language:
"The proportion of constituent colors
to give white are: Violet 44, red 36. I
green 20. Therefore areas covered with 1
these three colors lu thl proportion
would give n general over-all gray. With
the colors In this proportion the ground 1
color would be violet."
It Is not clear how three different
color effects can tie produced by tlm
-nmM fnr,.i. i, . ,uv,r.nuent dite Mr !
M,iCka supp
pplemented his "low visibility"
ohJeot "w lt, edaIa . plJrri(15, and pro-1
atlJced A which Ho calls one of I
dlSPVIrJ, !..'.' . I
. '. ,,,! ,, ' ,., a,,. ..ui. 1
l u various irregular patterns are
' . 1
carried out lu the shades red. blue, plk,
green and while Particular stress Is
laid be tV artist upon tho value of
Ktioivj miitiast with a view to giving ,
a deceptive appearance to familiar parts
nf the vesel. But Mr. Warner regards
the question of pattern as of paramount
lm;"rtance. He does not ask to give low
visibility within five miles of a vessel.
The Toch camouflage s.vstcm applies
four colors, a very light bluo gray, a
dark blue grny. a dark green and u
ight pink purple. The colors are said
to have been selected for their so-called
"vibrating" qualities. The dark colors
predominate in the lower part of the
hullv and the lighter lu the upper pjrt
i on k ice s - nn.- nmi ."u v . . v.... t.. . . j nis is snow n oy ,ir. Jones in a scieimne 1 iiuiiuie? nui ni mi i j
All lines, noth vertical nnd horizontal, .llld ronv inclng manner with the aid of,
ar" broken b the nltei nation of colors. ja vj-sibllitv meter" Invented bv luiiil Iteport of (he I or( Test,
The siipei'striieture. masts and funnels , , , cour'.e of the exnerllncntB. The , lule a eoi.s.derable part ot her abl
are ,-ialnted mainly In a ver light blue . VrnMl "dazzle" system, with Its large, ltv to AVol(I searchlights was attrthuteil
gray lnegulaii.v splntcned with a dark i maB.es of black and dark colors. Is par-, to' tie "S" course the following re
gray and a lerht pink purple. The creen ! t,cuiarly vulnerable In this respnrt. No ,aiks were made concerning the vamou-
... ...n.i.T. in , I, a ,in.rf rnetiire. . .... . .. . .... t...'
iu,r n"v ti
Tim cob's are- Intended to blend ar.d
III long UlMilUCL'b III." ine it
contrast and in large tpinicne.
liie Brush sstem seekH low vi'inii-
ltv bv rendering uniform the llliinilna
tlon of the vessel. Dark areas are raised
by light paint and light areas are
darkened Black and white Is occasion
ally used, or a dark gray. Tho result
ing shade upon trending is a gray snmr
what lighter than battleship sra;. but
resembling it.
Minrt ltn Color I cil.
Lewis Herzng devised a si.etem vvlilch
uses (he short ray colors tha( is, those
from the lower side nf the spectrum -
avoiding the ue of red, cl)ow and
orange He renin rlts concerning tins,
svsteni'
"Interference nf -ht r.tyn setting ri
vibrations I sought by means nf moio
"r less conceiKrlc curved sets or panels
of blue, green nnd v.olet as a gray base.
... n .,, -,.. ,ni,., ..
scintillating with the atmnsphero and
blending into U. and thereby Inwering
lOU V ISlllllU-V IM 1 i'l SHU'. .VII ll IK 11 ll-IUS
aie reduced and lllumlr.atu.il nt shadow.. fol. )m. UrlMn,v ,;1V bo dediirnl 'rom
Is given due consideration Tho v eiil- j , UM(, rder averaga w e.uher . nn.
cal and horizontal lines of the ship are I imn,:s ip so painted Is forty-is
apparently hi'okei, by tho llfieren! tn vss vislhln than one palntid a,--curved
lines of the panels." ..idln? to the British "dazzle." On one
Tho colors a' arranged nr disposed ; of ,hc. on- -ew London several i---
In an endeavor to confuse tho eye ami i Mn(, nn shore could not pick up M.
keep It from resting 'n any particular - s. S. at 3,000 yard dista:ve,
spot or part of the ship. The lines of j even with hinei.-ulars. 'There was a
color i.'.iDllcution are broken as mu.Vi as .inr',t min over th water, such mm is
possible and liianso frequency in dlrcc-
tlon All color bands nre applied In
arcs of circles each of considerable ra.. paired battleship gray, were visible ,k j erenseil tlie ciiui 'es m i"i")
dius. Straight lines nre avoided en llie'a ctcaei- dlnanre than 3.000 yards. .ind p'r ''"'
principle lhat the eo Is more confused Tots weir al-o made from ,i sulnni.' .list .i !' sub " ' ' -by
the use of circular forms. r,;,e m foggy wenthne It . ilic rii , the world t" - yn 'A
The etlevt which it Is desired to pro- cess of thm nay which has b d :.,e I , an'outl.ii:c. I' 1 a .. y ."nr i o'i
Hiiift nti thn lel, I liv ll-ilr tilm lu S..si
described a a "shimmer" or "sclntil
ii?di.i'c( "o niiiiiinii.-i ui r, nun -
latlon" very similar to that prcluced
i... v. nr. t .. .u. ...f.. t
by
i'. nn. v,i,m.ii iu rmidiu lt, 1.111,1
or water.
The British "d.izz1" 1 made up nf
buch colors 4n black, dark blue, f 'lift.
s
distort uio ajparciu neauiiiK aim view m
the vebMl.
This scheme Is based invm the idea
that Invisibility at ma being unattain
able, some .protection may be nfforded
by painting ships In uch a way as to
confuse the enemy and by causing aonie
doubtas to tho couvse, speed and dis
tant. It may bo seen from this brief re
view upon how frigll a liaise the early
systems rented. They wero lmpiessiou
Istlc systems devised by artists, and not
bclentltio systems devised by ligh,t and
eojor experts. Their eponaor. deserve,
however, the greatest credit for intro
ducing the subject and for opening: a
new Held for rersearch.
In his elaborate technical icport upon
Protective Coloration a a Means of
Defence Against Submarines" Lloyd A,
.tones expressed tho physical laws and
'factors hlch govern vMhillty. For
fpecial research ho determined that low
' vlslbiUty 1 attainable and that a par-1
(t - cuiar suaae, 01 gray ivncn ne cans
unieKH K'n.v n ueii euiicu mr 3?fib .vu uiu vnu ui me tinu ,m. h
navigating the northern portion of the j straight through a channel at .1 dl-.-danger
stone, where the average, wuathe.r tance of about 3.000 yaid.- frum the
Is 70 per rent, cloudy, and below that line I nearest searchlight.
wherw there Is tiequent Haze. For the Although tho approximate tliue nf her
houtheru portion of tho danger zone a departure was known she pnti-ed nmugh
bluer tone of gray called psl gray was all five seaichllgnts wholly muleiected
found the best. Latitude t." degrre-i north and was picked up only when, utter pass
.s a MilUible dividing line of the are ts In tug through tne channel hho turned 011
jt:!:::!:!:::::
i
At
L
k -, H t -i t, 4 W - I lit lit 1
f F
WW
Direction illusion of lines; figures on the right showing 'Jie
true relations. The letters are really straight.
'which a ship should am ar omega nnd,
pf( gray, respectlvch .
, of supreme Interest to note the
Nncrlflce nf low visibility bv the various
ramoullaso systems heretofore pics entcd.
; unc oi inese syonis piouuce ine uhsl ,
; visibility attainable. Omega and pslj
foggy weather 0.1 at S00 vnrd. Thou-nlur as the beam Itself Of cnuise It
i averHe leather coefficient for tlir rorth-
ern. met hazardous portion of tho dan- blanketi a target In the centre nr tear
ger zone. Is calculated as .13 edge thereof, but tli-.x was more pro
It is posslhlo to compare tho lowest ' r.ounccd In the rare of tho ."
vi-.ibr.lty nf (Mnoga gray and that nf the ' The United States Navy f'epartment
vatlnus models of (he camniillagu sys-1 l ad the benefit of much prior expert
(ems heretnforo proposed. Invisibility . nice when it en. no to adopt a navy
is represented by zero, while tlio most ystem. It i 'ie use to i laiv evtent
vislhle model of' all. solid black, shows nf tbe data previously n.it-.ined Tho
a visibility of 2. All He stenis p t d endnniight- and s tbmarlne . iiaier
range between these, two extreme. Th vre riule painted with low vis vllltv
vlKibtlltv U rate.) as. viewed a; n.s nay. For trilnnt if"li. . outrag
,in0l, nf fi nnft .Mr,jt. i imega u-.'nv
I j.repared for lower visibility even f,
, n,0,jels F 9 nnd F "0.
than
Weather ViM-
1 e-oeitiewnt oiiur.
IV 1,'ltl rr.iv.
' 3
n,K" io-' viib'iilt.il!ile
; Mfck.iy. inw , i.tiimj i.Mrie
; ' ",'''
""'I . .
Itm.h Inu- vl.lhlllle
.41
Mrnka. low viitihty
I Jirl,uli'V
,v,.. c,,-rlr.lt. f .m,,.-
j ncipieiuly noted In the northern iKir'I'ii
i of the danger zone. But other vcse'H
i 14 "hltie.evren.irra V ." j.iul i,.i, l.eer.
- . United Stales navy to use It upon wa
, , un... ... ,. .... - I 'iln,l 'h,
1 ships, such a. thn New Mexico, and unm follows smne . I Main e i,mi
I w,.i. .-I.... l,,.,rt rim -;,....- u',.l,.Mitni nf il h I I'.l M.nedLi I '
irut ii .1 p. ,,.,
Ington. which carried the President
France, was so painted. The r!r h
lien reb.iptlzed. It Is bonietlnie Uimv n
as "blue-green-grsj ," nnd has bei n
designated n half a dozen dlffe-ei i
wavH, but it Is really Ihe n: Islnal
omega gra."
l'alo bows, sterns nnd bow wave
have licquently been painted on vese
and are nf value. It Is i.r little ue
, ...... I,A ..,...A.,f ... t ...
i- ' ,, tr tiu-.s .it. pa i t ;i t!,.
snip "it e t. .i" sucn oe epiinu ai lenuus i
too much to u 'compllsh nnjthlng But'
i by a false painted bow and stem placed
as to distort the apparent pvrriicj
II vi) tho course may be made to appear
fumowlmt other than It Is.
t'hookerboatd iiattcnis blur outline.
In art and arrlillevtural drawing llio
principles nf ptrspi-ctlve ropri'M-niatlon
liavo been i .etitlfically Hudlcd for cen
turies. It l. quite feasible to paint a
Vessel in Mich h faMilou a that tho
apparent perspective la different fiom
tho real. This will Induce nn error In
course istltnate. A vessel painted with
eonvri grins bands of colnrn properly
conttnsted will offer a deceptlw iip
pcaraiiip an to course. It Is possible
also to distort perspective by curves or
by vertical bands 'close, together at
tho Ikiw or stern of the vessel thjn at
the opposite, end.
Mimt Ilrnik the Water I, Inc.
Inasmuch as the water -lino of a sl-.n
li known to he horizontal the bandit
thi'Uld breik the water line. This point
R of great moment. No .two ships should
be (Minted exactly alike In regard 10
pattern and convergence of lines. Per
tM...llv.i .U.fUI(iil pJltein ilmuld blend
at a distance whet deception I, no
lonaer possible but low visibility Is no"-.
1 in bit
1 It should bo carefully borne in mind
l lhat th'j blending distances or s.ands
and patterns are iMped upon the hypoth
1 hIs that the pericopo does not enlarge
i the lm.iFj much above normal vision. If
' ui.iKtdttentlon ot three to six time.' ioi
mul should bo resorted to the blctinitii
(.(stances Hiumld bn reduced In ordci tn.it
low visibility be not sacnuced. It nuy
u'ko be. nt.-ebfary to modify the blending
diHtamas of the bands and patterns lo
mem a potvdblo attempt to nullify by
light Illtcra and deceptive clfects.
Oeenptlon la a matter of psv lioloy
mill Is lestl etlf.-i .itltite lliti lMiltlutv nf
Ataocl.it lull has experimented ivuh pui
epectlvc dlstoitlon bands and U.' act'
board outline blurting njttrrn- i'MVcih
who viewed the U S. S. as alio
entered .'ew Haven hatbir said tho
diamond patient on her bow gave Jur -t
scow bow. The British towaid the end
of the wnr rame (o favor alfi Mich
checker board p.itternr for ccit.iln por
tion. of the ship.
"Dazzle." putt-rn have been tiled on
Ann-rlcan Mnrshlp, but ro lone Jn
the upjvrr work. ami masts ntr n' their
ipeclal ehanicii r no r.ullcil drcjilou
If. poflhle. lixperlmenta have .'een
made with equates, rectangle, par lie,
t'.ind. ..in other designs to over "in thl
handicap, but without suc esM m far It
It. for this reaoll ttiat the low visibility
object alone Is favored for t1"' lirgir
warships.
Tests were also made In .lul.v 11!n, off
Fort X to determine the efftict of a low
visibility deceptive coloration- - upon the
ability of coast defences to r 1 1 . , v
vessel with searchlight at tilgb Tl v
1 U. S. S. proceeded between Point Y
and J1.lu.t1d 7. at s.mjO yards 111-iin r.mge,
siuwriiis suiuuui euuiet- un n !.-
her own light. This tva npea'ed on
another occasion with a modii'. at mi in
programme, fhe leit a known noint at
;i known time nn a known l,i.- .ourse.
1 The vessel .as Incp.tcd f.,r
i'ii' threo
nase etrect
vt the
tanee 9.000 yards) she gavo
rrrn v
' Iri -.vrl! kr.&r.n that a searchlight beam
ing iiihi . and lui'ijs or ni.i !: mue.
"tii. v.l He na,-e cnieny neen usen.
I In rejrnnl to the'si,eees nf rainmiflagi
(hero Is practically no iiatn avjn ime,
save n liermpti iian-l. Peejiise it 1
hard to determine to what cause ecapi
from a submarine has been din. It l
' largely a matter nf guesswork lmw much
nnrlrie camniiflage hr.n added 'n a vsi.
5 sel's safety, b it that It had n nlwaji
.'.' tlal elTeei Is nnt ope'i tn iiietln'i
n ship In rnnvnv nr psng each nih-r at
''! sea have In en ilree'.vcd as to the , nursa
nf the camnut'aced vesse' We d I now,
l.nwiver. that of ahout 1.30,1 m-ncan
vr-.clK pal'ted with the nav i -'em,
nr.'i.v eleven have been In.-' ic " M.',-b,
191V The convoy sfstetc, icz.i.'glnie
and improved armvmert hav. n ibt,
cnn ributeil mateiiilly to this p-'ilt ml
prnbibly nil nf them much rcn tha'l
h s iioteclUc inlnrailnn
Shnuld the w titer liavsui ar f-nian
he " mild 'n.i' n ' -
callinull.'ici be-elnfiire lived 'i
ot
I
Pt )
. !r..
l. th
irreil .11 trnlll U 'III'" l'-'
-.ien.i
Pr.icti'Jl uoplicati"" l -yn
:n- an-
re-
........ - ,i , i I , , il.r-.
tn j scircn, so nun m.
" i Hn did m re.n'h a Dual for'ii . tne
gieat will"
The low visibility color it rn neter
i,,,,,., I. bill (lie tnc-lliJ of revoni'ili '1J-
I repl Ive painting vv lib It requites tu ther
I traii-foniiatin . in prjctii." s i-m ha
pi. Ind d nu' t'i .Hreeilni, "''' ' 1 1 1 1 "
j he t.i'.i Tin i .n't.ipie . -lvi
, ,,t,,i a' ,n i e t't "" f'l'
.... i.l V.I 111.4C U
he-
I trj
"U
c ta
r j , .,,,:, r,i t ".' ff . -.t, .. ,.' '
u ign win in in "
ble rule n .aval warfare
FE
m
vt!