NAVAL ASPECT

Evening Post, Volume XCV, Issue 41, 16 February 1918, Page 4

NAVAL ASPECT

THE SITUATION REVIEWED WHAT THE FLEET HAS DONE MESSAGE FKOM NAVY LEAGUE j PRESIDENT. From His Grace, the Duke of Buccleuch, President of the Navy League, has been received by the Wellington branch of the league a ,New Year message, tendering-greeting on behalf of the executive to all members, of the Navy League. The message summarises the naval aspect thus:— Officers and Men.—After ; forty-one months of unparalleled ■ strain in the prosecution of world-wide sea warfare, the devotion to duty, spirit of sacrifice, and confidence in ultimate victory stand at a higher level throughout the whole personnel of the British Fleet than at any previous moment in our history. Strength and Efficiency.—ln the development of its; effective power, the Meet has achieved since' the' beginning of the war a degree of superiority and. a standard of efficiency of which no conception could be formed in the terms of comparative naval preparedness in time of peace. It .may, be declared, in the fulness of conviction, that as an instrument of war the British Navy, at the opening 'of this New Year is the most powerful and the most highly developed weapon which has ever been devised: The Air Services:—The recognition that aircraft is an essential part of naval organisation is very gratifying, and there is reason, to beliete that measures are now being taken to supply pur airmen, who have proved themselves so superior, with a sufficient number of first-class machines to enable full use to be made of their skill and courage. Relations to War upon Land.—The three great facts emphasised in the preceding paragraphs will, it is hoped, make it abundantly clear that the' British Fleet, in conjunction with the fleets of the Allies, is now and -must continue to be the dominant factor in the ultimate 'destruction of _ the military strength of' the_ Germanic Powers. The overwhelming influence of sea power upon the whole field of war is amply demonstrated in the practically unchecked continuity ol communication for troops, munition's, and supplies between all the Allied nations and all the .theatres of. operations since the beginning of the conflict. The Submarine Menace-—While the destruction ■of British and Allied commerce by enemy submarines is the most . serious and disturbing factor in' the naval side of the war, it has been officially announced by the Admiralty that the number of Gevman submarines now being sunk in contrast with the. volume of merchant tonnage destroyed by enemy action may ■ be regarded as satisfactory. -Commerce Destruction in Previous Wars.—lt may not be without interest . to direct attention to the losses of merchant ships and tonnage owing to enemy action in former wars.' During one period of five years, 1761-65, in the grea,t sea wars of the eighteenth century,-3300 British merchant vessels were captured or destroyed, the . loss representing, roughly, 35 tons' per annum for every thousand persons of v the population of the British Islands: at the time. The outstanding lesson', of history^ is that an insular Power;"cah"'.•(•never be. crushed as long as it retains command of the sea. Out Indomitable. Mercantile Marine.— On the naval side'of'the-.Ayaiv nothing can be mote calcula.t'ed,,to ; stir the pride of the British' race, than the bravery and chivalry of tho officers and men of the British mercantile' marine. It was the arrogant hope of the enemy that the methods of "fright-fulness" which were so ruthlessly practised in the destruction of merchant vessels at sea would in effect increase the difficulties of manning and . operating the British merchant service. In this respect the enemy has been completely disillusioned, and the fearless bravery, cool skill,- and irrepressible sense of public duty of every section of British seafarers, no matter on \vhat class of craft they have been employed, are the admiration of tho civilised world. . : United States Co-operation.—The advent of the United States^ in the war had enormously strengthened the sea power of the Allies and the co-operation established so effectively and harmoniously between the British and American fleets must give intense gratification and joy to the whole of the Eng-lish-speaking world. The gigantic and comprehensive programme of naval construction authorised by the American Government affords abounding evidence of the belief of the American people in the efficacy of sea power and immensely enhances the future naval position of the Allies. ' Criticism of the Navy.—ln the aatur,e of things it.is obviously impossible that anything approaching accurate knowledge of the conditions affecting naval warfare can b& known outside th& very limited circle of those "immediately responsible for .the direction of naval policy and operations, and it cannot therefore be too strongly urged that illinformed criticism relating to naval strategy and disposition- should be earnestly deprecated. It is respectfully suggested as the clear and unmistakeable dut-y^of all the nations within the Empire to give their unqualified loyalty and confidence to the Commander-in-Chief and the officers and men of the Fleet, in carrying out the responsibilities which devolve upon the Navy from day to day. Nothing is more encouraging' _ to those who man our fighting ships in, all the seas than the solemn feeling that they possess in unstinted measure the trust and the affectionate sympathy of their fellow citizens in the discharge of their duties. . The Public and the Fleet.—lt may be asserted that with the exception of a negligible minority the public opinion of the whole Empire is solidly behind the Fleet. At no time in history has the significance of sea power in the preservation .of civilisation and democratic liberty been more manifest; at no time hasthe relationship between .V.uman freedom and the power of the. sea been more intimately brought home to the minds of the liberty-loving nations of the world. What the Fleet has Done. —At the close of three arid a-half years of war it may be advantageous to epitomise the outstanding features of naval achievement during the process of the struggle: — (a) In consequence of British command of the sea, apart from air raids and a few spasmodic dashes of enemy cruisers the territory of the British Empire has been held inviolate from enemy invasion. The British Empire is the only nation engaged in the war which has conquered enemy territory and lost none of its own. (b) The lines of communication between all the theatres of. war have been amply defended and maintained, and protection for tho transport of over - 13,000,000 men from port to port has been provided. Moreover, under the guardianship of the Fleet over 2,000,000 horses, 26,000,00010118 of munitions and war supplies and : 53,000,000 tons of coal and oil have' been conveyed to meet the needs of the Allied amnies. (c) Within the British Empire itself ihe Navy has safeguarded the ocean carriage of nearly 140,000,000 tons of food and materials. Notwithstanding the vigour of submarine attack the,

number of vessels of all nationalities "'. at and from United Kingdom ports in the week ending 25th December, 1917, was 4960 as against 4941 in tho week ending 25th February last, then un-restricted-submarine warfare began. (d) The maintenance of the blockade of Germany has resulted in the complete stoppage.of her ocean-going commerce. The German flag has been swept from the seas, and only on one occasion—of the Ist June, 1916—has German naval power ventured to challenge a fleet action. (c) The conquest of German colonies in Africa, Asia and Australasia has been the direct result of the application of sea power in support of the operations of military forces on land.