THE BRITISH NAVY.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1570, 14 October 1912, Page 5

THE BRITISH NAVY.

MR- CHURCHILL'S VISIT TO

NEW ZEALAND.

MAY PROVE IMPRACTICABLE.

.VIEWS OF "THE TIMES."

By Telceranh—Press Assoclatlon-Oopyrieht

(Rec. October 13, 5.5 p.m.)

London, October 12.

"The Times" welcomes the suggestion ■that Mr. Churchill, First lord of the Admiralty, should visit New inland, though the proposal may prove impracticable. The German Navy and the change of Ministers in some of tho Dominions have aToused a desire for a conference at which the new situation could bo discussed. Mr. Borden believes in a single Imperial fleet, but tho problem how the separate' Cabinets aTO to maintain tho single fleet. The best step is that a delegation consisting 1 of a Minister from each Dominion to the Committee of Defence. The Dominion Governments would then have a safeguard against tho intrusion of British party exigencies into Questions 0 f Imperal concern.

THE BATTLESHIP NEW ZEALAND. London, October 11.

In the House of Commons, Mr. Winston Churchill, First lord of the Admiralty, replying to a question, stated that the warship New Zealand would join the first battle cruiser squadron after her return from New Zealand in the summer of 1913. He denied that the Australian Fleet would alone in the future maintain the British position in the Pacific. The battleship New Zealand made a successful thirty hours' steam trial.

MR. MYERS'S QUESTION. Mr. A. M. Myers, member for Auckland ' East, recently gave notice to tsk the Prime Minister in the House of Representatives: "Whether, in view" of the suggested visit to Canada of the First Lord of the Admiralty (accompanied possibly by a battleship squadron) with the object of placing on a firmer basis the Imperial relations between Canada and the Mother 'jCountry in matters of defence lie will comnmnicato with the Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia, with'a view to sending: a joint invitation to Mr. Churcliill to extend his visit to the Australasian colonies so that the Commonwealth and Dominion Governments may be in a position to obtain at first-hand reliable information which will enable them to formulate a policy of common defence based on a, practical federation of the Empiro?"