NAVAL WARFARE.

Press, Volume LXII, Issue 18802, 21 September 1926, Page 9

NAVAL WARFARE.

A GRIM PICTURE. JUTLAND FIGHT AGAIN. REMARKABLE BOOK PUBLISHED. ft? cable— fres3 association - —co?yhight.) (Sytjxey "Sun'* Szrvice.) (Received September 21st. 1.0 a.m.) LONDON, September 20. Newspapers predict rival naval controversies as a result of Mr 11. W. AVilsoit's book, "The Battleship in Action, ■*' which is being published to-mor-row, telling the naked truth regarding naval war.

The "Daily News' 5 describes the book as a startling indictment of the Admiralty's supineness and lack of foresight. It emphasises a statement that if the Admiralty had examined earlier war actions before the .Tutland Battle, it, would have given protection against gunflasb.es before instead of after the battle, and very different results might have ensued. Mr Wilson, discussing Lord Jellicoe's famous turnaway at Jutland, declares that if he had turned to the starboard he would have been in a far more powerful position. This was one of the cases where determination to take the offensive with the extremist vigour might have yielded precious results. The British scheme of tactics was not equal to the occasion.

He gives a grim 1 picture of the sinking of the Queen Mary. Masses of steel and incredible quantities of paper were blown into the air, accompanied by a boat, upside down. The roofs of the turrets projected upwards, and a mushroom shaped intensely black column of smoke rose 1400 feet into the air. The following battleship had to steer through a dreadful shower of all kinds of wreckage. Tho Queen Mary vanished with a final explosion, her stern disappearing, her propellers revolving and men could be seen crawling from the after turret.