As the Result of Observing What the British Had Done

As the result of observing what the British had done with its naval fleet in the quarter-century prior to 1900, the U.S. Navy

A) was mothballed out of existence.
B) was transformed into a modern, steam-driven institution.
C) engaged in several wars with European rivals.
D) shrank in size to its lowest numbers since the days of Andrew Jackson.