Regarding operations which require troops fitted for tropical service, capable officers and forces should be reviewed and inspected during times of peace and made note of accordingly. The division would make a suitable unit for large operations and could be formed from different army corps. These divisions should be so equipped that they could operate independently in customary situations. Fuller preparations should be made for the sending of heavy artillery, the telegraph and airship divisions. These formations would be important problems during the voyage at sea. An especially skilled staff is needed. To this end, loading transports and landing maneuvers for the heavy artillery and other heavy divisions should take place annually in suitable harbors on coasts that present the right opportunities for the troops. An enlarged command of officers and subordinate officers would show sufficient strength in a relatively short time. Incidentally it might be possible to have these maneuvers take place in our foreign possessions, where we could better determine the actual needs of operations of this sort. This training would bring forth the simplest and best means for the adjustment of our merchant marine for transporting troops. All other expedients for the voyage would likewise be shown. Some of this needed experience has already been acquired through our expedition to China.
Just as a detailed plan of mobilization is required for any war on land, a complete plan is necessary for operations over the sea which embraces also the railway trip to the harbor and the rapid execution of the tasks involved in embarking. On account of limited facilities only one division can be handled on a railroad. The necessity for transfer by wagons to the ships requires enlarged railway stations and piers in many places. Furthermore, many different supply depots must be built and maintained. In these depots building material should be held in reserve for the alterations that are needed for the transformation of the merchant ships into transports. All other apparatus for successful transporting, such as extra lifting contrivances, flat-bottom boats, gang planks, and so forth, should be stored in advance. Usually, these adjuncts are lacking in the merchant marine. Light railroad rolling stock for use in the tropics or in difficult land conditions is also recommended.
In addition to these supply depots there must be in all harbors large warehouses containing clothing, food and coal. The small requirements of our transport to China did not emphasize sufficiently the value of advance preparations, but it is evident that within a few days over one hundred steamers should be provided with such accommodations. To do this in an emergency would require too much time aside from the difficulty that might be encountered in securing skilled labor.
For long distance transportation our large harbors on the North and East seas can be utilized equally well for embarkation. Speed is the chief requisite. In order to lessen the distance of transporting, operations toward the west must be conducted from the North Sea ports and toward the east from our east sea ports. This does not preclude the possibility of towing the transports from the east sea through the Kaiser Wilhelm Canal to the North Sea should it be found desirable, but it would involve a waste of time. The smaller harbors should not be used for embarking for large enterprises because they lack the necessary facilities. They might be utilized to advantage in a smaller way, provided sufficient means were at hand to take care of one division a day. Especially suitable harbors on the North Sea are Emden, Wilhelmshaven and Bremerhaven, in connection with Bremen, and Cuxhaven with Hamburg and Glückstadt. These are the harbors that should have complete preparations made for possible expeditions.
Bremerhaven is by far the best. In every respect it would take first place for embarkation, because of its extensive wharfs. From this point two or more divisions could be shipped daily without difficulty. Cuxhaven is not so well situated, but its connection with Hamburg is important. If it were brought up to full development it could take care of two divisions a day which Hamburg could well supply. Glückstadt is an especially important base because most of our live stock exporting business is carried on there. It is recommended that a short double-track railroad be built from Elmshorn to Glückstadt, making a connection with the reserve corps frontier. In Glückstadt one infantry division and part of a cavalry division can be shipped.
In Wilhelmshaven all the essential features are at hand, but it is doubtful whether, in view of simultaneous mobilization of the fleet, this place can be chosen for the embarkation of land troops. In any event, it would be necessary to enlarge the harbor buildings. The railroad facilities would also have to be increased.
While Emden is favorably situated, an examination discloses many drawbacks. It needs better dock facilities and railroads to bring it up to standard and in order to relieve the extensive shipping of troops at Wilhelmshaven. Under existing circumstances Leer and Papenburg could be used for transporting purposes, and these two with Emden could handle one division.
The situation on the Baltic Sea is peculiarly unfavorable, no harbor, with the exception of Kiel, being deep enough to accommodate our larger steamships. At Danzig the dredging of navigable waters and extension of docks should be planned, which are of great importance from a military standpoint. The other smaller ports on the Baltic are at present not suitable for transporting troops.
The Kiel harbor could not be utilized for the loading of large transports because of the same conditions that affect Wilhelmshaven, namely, the delay that might hinder the rapid mobilizing of the fleet, which would not be permitted. The docks at Kiel must therefore be greatly enlarged so that they could thoroughly satisfy simultaneously the demands of the battle and transport fleets. Pillau and Swinemünde should be authorized to extend their very small docks. On the other hand, the large dry docks in Danzig, Stettin and Kiel should be in a position, within the shortest possible time, to provide the necessary buildings for transporting, if the materials and warehouses are planned correctly.
Of the greatest importance in operations over the sea is the provision of the proper number of ships. Defects in preparations in time of peace would hinder successful execution and would give the enemy time to take the necessary precautions to oppose an invasion. Yet it should be stated that England, at the outbreak of the Boer, although lacking full preparation during peace, in the course of a few weeks procured the required number of ships for the first shipment.