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The seaplanes too—or hydroa�roplanes as purists call them—present a curious illustration of unexpected and, it would seem, unexplainable expense.

There would be thus concentrated a fleet of several hundred swift scouts, heavy fighting machines, the torpedo planes of the type designed by Admiral Fiske, hydroa�roplanes capable of carrying heavy guns and in brief every form of a�rial fighter.

Nevertheless the incident is illuminating, and the official statement of the Navy Department closed with the words: "This incident emphasizes the need of hydroa�roplanes for naval scouting purposes."