NEED FOR A NAVY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 245, 16 October 1935, Page 11

NEED FOR A NAVY.

SHIPS TO ENSURE PEACE. THE NEW ZEALAND SQUADRON. (By Telegraph.—Press Association.) INVERCARGILL, Tuesday. In a speech at the Rotary C'lub today Commodore the Hon. E. R. Drunimond, commodore commanding the New Zealand Naval Station, mentioned that H.M.S. Dunedin and H.JI.S. Diomede were both shortly due for relief by modern cruisers. "The new cruisers are Leander class ships of 7000 tons, armed with eight six-inch guns," he said. "They carry a complement of .550 men. One of these is due next winter, but naturally the exchange will depend on the European situation, because it is, I think, well known now that the British Navy is hardly sufficient to meet the demands that would be made on it in a war. After the last war the cry from everyone was for peace. Our statesmen did everything they could to set an example in disarmament, an exariiple which, unfortunately other nations did no:, follow, with the result that we now find ourselves adrift in the race that has started for rearmament. "Possibly good has come out of evil over the present situation at Home, in that it has shown our most ardent pacifists that treaties and pacts are useless without power behind them, and the whole nation appears now to realise that Britain must rearm, and that the maintenance of the Empire can only be retained by tho possession of forces strong enough to ensure peace. "New Zealand maintains two cruisers. That is the share she has taken in Empire defence. Her commitments will be increased by maintaining the larger cruisers, but as a set-off to this lier contribution to the Singapore Base is finished.

"At the present time we are busy preparing for the new cruisers by improvements, badly needed, at the naval base. An increase in the personnel of New Zealanders is also required to provide extra ratings for manning the larger cruisers. We aim to have New Zealand ratings sufficient to man the two cruisers out here, though naturally there will be a percentage of Imperial ratings in these cruisers, due to the interchange system, this interchange being necessary to allow New Zealand ratings to gain experience in big fleets, and to prevent staleness."