SHIPPING

Evening Star, Issue 14495, 21 February 1911, Page 8

SHIPPING

THE BRITISH NAVY. Early in the present year nine submarines arc to be despatched from England for foreign service. Six of them arc to go to the Alediterrancan, where they will be equally divided between Gibraltar and Malta, and the other throe to the Far East. Vessels of the C class, of 321 tons, and armed with two torpedo tubes, have been selected for this service. Considerable additions, too. ave to he made to the armored strength of the fleets in the same waters. We have had no battleships in the Far East since 1905. A squadron of four armored cruisers was maintained for some time; but the Bedford, wrecked last August, was replaced by a small cruiser of much inferior power—the Newcastle. It is now understood that the small battleships Triumph and Swiftsure will be detached from the Mediterranean fleet, and sent to the Far East. These ships, originally natuKl Constitution and Liberlath were purchased from Chili in 1903. They are not standard British ships, but their armament of four’ lOin and fourteen 7.5 in guns is powerful for their 11,800 tons, and they can pass through the Suez Canal. As tho result of changes in the Mediterranean, the fleet there will bo reinforced bv 6,400 tons of armored strength, while eight 12in and twenty 9.2 in guns, firing 14,40011) of metal, will replace eight lOin and twenty-eight 7.5 in, firing only 9,6001b. Tho latter force will be a not gain to the China station. SUBSIDIES FOR TRAMPS. Some rather alarming rumors have been in circulation as to a proposal on the part of the Italian Government for securing for Italian ships the carriage of Welsh coal imports. The story took the shape of a statement that, while the Italians recognised that they could not help paying us six or seven millions a year for coal, they had discovered that they could at least provide that Italian vessels should have the freight, valued at something like four millions. Accordingly, it was reported, the Government had introduced a Bill to provide a subsidy for coal-carrying by Italian shipping, and compulsorily dispossessing British tramp steamers from the trade. It now turns out that tho statement is exaggerated, and that tho proposals apply only to the 600,000 tons of coal required for the Italian State railways and tho 100.000 tons needed for the Italian Navy—about one-tenth of the total Italian coal imports South Wales. It is a little odd that much tho same principles have been put in operation by the Swedish Government in connection with tho coal supplies drawn from this country for ihe Swedish State railways. Whether our treaty arrangements with Italy and Sweden are consistent with such action on their part has doubtless been considered. Anyhow, British tramp steamship owners naturally do not at all like this subsidise! competllion, although in tho long run it will doubtless prove unprofitable both to Italy and to Sweden.— London ‘Telegraph.’