THE ACTION REVIEWED.

Press, Volume LII, Issue 15669, 6 June 1916, Page 6

THE ACTION REVIEWED.

FOUR PHASES OUTLINEDSTATEMENT BY HIGH NAVAL OFFICER. BRITISH TACTICS PRAISED. (Received Juno sth. G. 40 p.m.) LONDON, June 4. Jn an interview with a rcprosentatire of the American Associated Press, » naval officer of high rank declared that further details would have ail even more hoartening offset than the news published to-dayt The officer continued: —"I can only say we wore looking for a. fight when the Fleet went out. The stories that our Fleet was decoyed out by the Germans are the sheerest nonsense. A GERMAN DEFEAT.

"Wo engaged the entire German High Seas Fleet, interrupted their , plans, and drove them back to tbpir harbours. In doing this we sustained heavy losses, which we expected, hpt wo also attained the expected result of forcing the enemy to abandon his plans and take rcfugo in his own waters. , BATTLE-CRUISERS' SPLENDID WORK. "With the exception of two division® ~ of ships, of which a part only Wero partially engaged, the brunt of the was borno by the Battle-Cruiser Fleet) and, with one exception, our Battle Fleet is ready for sea service again. ' ''Wo had exceptionally hard luck with our battle-cruisers, but our loss of ships does not cnpplo our control of tb® sea. - v "The great battle had four pha»e». The first phase opened when our battlecruisers, at a range of six miles, joined action with the German battle-cruisOTfc Shortly afterwards the second phase began with the arrival of the battle ships of both aides. The Gerni*® battleships arrived first, but before their arrival our three battlc-crui«ers were blown up, supposedly as the recult of gunfire, but there is the po?si" bility that they were torpedoed. _ "Such close-range fighting *1® battle-cruisers might be criticised bad tactics, but the Fleet, following the traditions of the Navy, went out to engage the enemy. Owing to the weather, they could only do so at short range. BATTLESHIPS' PART. "In the third phase of the engage* ment, the battleships were never more than partially engaged. This ph**®' included a running fight as the Gorman Dreadnoughts fled towards their bases. All the big ship fighting was over at 9.15 p.m. Then came the weirdest feature of the battle, as the German destroyers made attack after attack, like infantry following artillery preparations, on our big ship ß , ° u these onslaughts were singularly futile, not a single torpedo getting homeWith the morning tho attacks ended. "The battle ground was scoured by Admirai Jellicoc's Fleet, which repo od that not a single enemy ,n sight. THE MARLBOROUGH DAMAGED. "Pending Admiral Jelliooc's coni-

nlete report, only fragmentary incidents arc available. Among these is the torpedoing o, the «ipcr-Drcad-E ou"ht Marlborough, which is now , afc lv in harbour. She must have struck veritable hornets nest of submarines. I3v skilfully manoeuvring, *iie avoided tin ce before she was finally hit. "According to Admiral Beatty s report of the early engagement, a German hattio-auiser, after being hotly engaged, blew up, broke in two, and sank. NO ENEMY SURPRISES. "The Zepoelius did not play up to the part attributed to them. The weather conditions were such that it '8 very doubtful whether aircraft would have been of much sen-ice. The enemy did not spring any surprises noon "us, and no tricks were used which were uot already known in naval warfare.''

reassuring news. ITATCRES OF THE ACTION. LONDON, June 4. Now that the scraps of news can bo pieced together, the public is feeling increasingly reassured. It is an indubitable fact that the Admiralty's first communique came as a thunderbolt to tho vast majority of the population. There was no disguising tho alarm and anxiety pictured on all faces on the receipt of the early news. Though rumours were abroad in the City on Friday. they were discredited as an old story, and the public was caught unprepared. The Admiralty's first communique was reassuring in one respect, becauso ihe public then felt that it had been told tho worst. Indeed, there wero many complaints that the Admiralty was giving the British caso at its worst and that of the enemy at its best. Be.'ides, the public had no means of viewing the battle in its proper perspective. Later there were fragments of news which attempted to indicato that tho Germans wero attempting some drama. tic stroke, either against the Englisa | Coast or seeking to make a breach in the blockade, but that this had failed against Sir David Beatty's vigilance and the gallantry of his battle-cruisers, which, while suffering heavily, had successfully held up a far superior foreo of the enemy until Admiral Jollieoo's battle fleet had timo to arrive.

This view was quicklv taken by the French Press, and similarly tho Dutch paper* declare that tho result must bo vieiv«l broadly as a British victory, smcc ilipv remain in undisputed possession of the >?flrih Sea and still exist. The latest facts made public by the cy.irtosy of tho Admiralty show that tho reports of Sir John Jellicoo r.ntl S:r David Beatty aro far from eciinplcte, but put au utterly different: complexion on the engagement from that given in the German account, and remove the cheerless impression muted by tho first British communique. The reason for this dismal announcement. was that until Sir John Jellicoo rear hod port on Friday afternoon all tlint wn.s known was that a portion of the Hiitfsh Fleet had mot the whole (.nrniKti fleet, and had driven them back to port; • Even then, only the barest particulars were available, and these were published in the evening, throw- ' >"Z a over England, which '""as unequalled in the memory of any Jiving man. Tho Admiralty hastened to publish tl:o more cheering news contained in the second communique tho moment it tras received. Tile outstanding facts of the reports aro:—

CI) There -wore no surprises. (2; Tlic mythical German seventeeninch guns failed to materialise. (3) The loss of life was very heavy. (4) Zeppelins wero conspicuous by their absence. (5) Gunnery caused greater material loss than torpedoes. (G) The engagement wa s fought at a distance of between 10,000 and 12,000 yards. (7) The battle occurred in four phases, beginning -with an evenly matchcd battle of cruisers, then developing into a fight between light cruisers, and ending -with the sudden appearance of German battleships followed by tho approach of the British battleships, and the hasty retreat of tho Gormans, and finally a German destroyer attack. The fighting between tho battlecruisers began at 3 o'clock on "Wednesday afternoon, and that between the battleships finished at 9 o'clock in the evening. Tho destroyer attack continued later. It is semi-officially stated that there is some mystery about tho German cruiser Pommern, which, it is understood, was torpedoed in the Gulf of Riga on July 2nd, 1915. Experts believe that the Pommern sunk on Wednesday is a new Dreadnought christened by the old name; otherwise it is believed that tho Germans, wishing to gloss over the los® of a vessel of the Kaiecr class, introduced the name 7 ommorn, which was that of a vessel of smaller tonnage. The King's message to Sir John Jellicoo was universally welcomed. Placing the battle in its true tier spective, no ono attempts to minimise the serious loss of good ships and bettei men. hut all arc reassured that, after all, tho battle reasserts Britain's' naval supremacy, which the Germans hav3 not dared to seriously contest with our battlo fleet.

AN ADMIRALTY STATEMENT. SIR DAVID BEATTY'S BRILLIANT TACTICS. THE BATTLESHIPS' PART. LONDON, June 4. The Admiralty informed neutral journalists that they would have an early opportunity of seeing the Warspite, Marlborough, and Acasta safe in port. Sir David Baatty, by brilliant manoeuvring, got between the Germans and their base. That was the timo when the mist favoured the Germans, for out of the mist suddenly appeared the German comcelline. Sir David Beatty

to turn off, as liis range vision was not more than five miles. The Admiralty officials emphasise the fact that Sir David Beatty put up a magnificent fight against tremendous odds. It was here that the Queen Mary and the Indefatigable received their death wounds, hut not before making the Germans pay dearly for their success. Sir David Beatty eavs that RearAdmiral Hood led his division into action with the most inspiring gallantry. While the battle was at its hottest, Sir John Jellicoo with his bulldogs arrived, and a change came over the sceno. The Germans scurried home with Sir John Jellicoe in hot pursuit. MARLBOROUGH AND WARSPITE. Eleven British battleships participated in the actual fighting. Four arrived early, and then seven more. Though others were present, they did not fire a single shot. All returned safely. A torpedo struck tho Marlboro ugh, but she got home safely. The "Warspite was knocked about by gun-fire. It is stated that the Quec-n Mary, Invincible, and Indefatigable were blown up, but not torpedoed. Regarding the German battlecruisers mentioned as disabled and stopping, Sir David explained that it was the British Fleet's duty to continue the chase. He hoped to sink and eripplo them on their return, but as it was misty at nine o'clock in the evening, our ships when returning did not find any trace of them. It was presumed that they had sunk. When the main fight was over came the destroyer fight. In this the Germans were absolutely unsuccessful, and sustained considerable damage. ONE ZEPPELIN SIGHTED. Only one Zeppelin appeared, and it did not stop long, our gun-firo quickly imperilling it. A rumour that a Zeppelin sunk the Queen Mary is officially iescribod r.s absurd. Aeroplanes wens used, but to what extent or with what success is unknown.' NAVAL STRENGTH UNAFFECTED. I American journalists asked the Ad- | miralty what effect the action would have on tho strength of the Navy, and tho Admiralty replied: "Beyond slightly affecting tho strength of the battle-cruisers, there is absolutely none. Wo expect to lose ships. That's why wo build thom. Of course, the heavy loss of life is deplored, but in modern naval warfaro that is inevitable. There is 110 timo to pick up men.'' Finally the Americans said:— "The Germans paid a tribute to tho British bravery in tho fight. What have you to say of them?" An Admiralty official replied: "Wc have no fault to find with the Germans ; wc only wish they would como out again and soon." A shell killed Lord French's nephew. SPIRIT OF THE NAVY. Asked whether the British Fleet was looking for a fight, or whether the meeting wa6 accidental, tho Admiralty replied:—"Whenever the Fleet is out, it is always looking for fight," adding that whatever tho German enterprise was-, it did not como off. "V. r o drove the whole of thom to port," tl,o Admiralty's roply continued, "and waited on the spot. Wo searched everywhere until Thursday, but found no signs of them, so ire returned homo leisurely. Our only wish was that they would omergo to-morrow under similar conditions." MOST BRILLIANT ACTION. A distinguished Admiral, in an interview, said: "This is the most brilliant naval action of tho war. Sir David Beatty, with fourteen capital ships, taking on twenty-seven of tho enemy and driving them back to port. There haa boen no disaster, but there has been a victory."

THE BATTLE-CRUISERS. MASTERLY TACTICS. QUEEN ELIZABETH'S SISTERS IN ACTION. LONDON, June 1. Apart from the fact that tho Germans wero nearly three times as strong as Sir David Beatty's force, they took advantago of the light and hugged the coast. The weather changed to a thin drizzle, which reduced their visibility, and the British gun-layers wero thug handicapped, while with the western sun behind them tho British ships were easily picked out on the horizon. There is reason to believe that the new cruiser Hindenburg was heavily ongagod. ! .. Accompanying the Queen | Mary ancl the Indefatigable were tho Lion, Princess Royal, and tho Tiger. The British gunners at tho outset wore plainly superior, and soon tho big German cruiser received a direct hit and became envolcped in flames, and foundered. Heretofore the Germans were fighting chiefly with battle-cruisers, but the Kaiser class joined the fray, their smashing power giving tho Germans an enormous superiority, both in ships and gun power. Having drawn tho wliolo German fleet out of their safe quarters Sir David Beatty, although greatly outnumbered and running heavy risks, determined to hang on grimly in ordei to detain the enemy until the full strength of the British Fleet arrived. It was a daring manoeuvre under the circumstances, for in gun power the battlecruiser squadron was no match for tho Germans. Rear-Admiral Hood's advent with the Invincible, Indomitable, and Inflexible was timely, and none too soon for Sir David Beatty's battered fleet. It was mainly at this stage a battle royal of big guns. Tho conflict was a stupendous one. The Invincible, fighting with the greatest gallantly, inflicted much damage. Ultimately she met her doom, and eank quickly. Further more formidable aid was forthcoming in the Valiant, Barham, Malaya, and Warspite. Tho last-named bore the brunt of a terrific attack by five battleships or cruisers. Sho put up a glorious fight, ana sank or seriously damaged three of her assailants. The Valiant rammed a submarine. After the German retreat with the approach of darkness, the biggest sels ceased firing, but the action was continued all night by the smaller craft. One account says that shots were cxat 25,000 (?) yards, wards the end the range ~

yards, which represented the class of vessels engaged. Firing point black and pounding each other, these atoms were dominated by a resolve to win or sink. Despite the possession of admittedly good range-finders, tho German gunlaying was inferior to ours. During the fight, the enemv destroyers were swept like chaff off the sea, only smoke and ashes indicating where they were engulfed. Our destroyer Ilotilla did marvels, and their feat wii! ever be memorable for their daring, and skilful seamanship.