RIVA ARMAMENTS.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXX, 1 August 1912, Page 6

RIVA ARMAMENTS.

HOI” THE WORLD’S FLEETS SOM PARE. AN INTERESTING "WHITE PAPER.’’ Based, as it is on a. rigid and artificial test of efficiency—that of age—the White Paper of the fleets of the work! issued by the Admiralty last month (states the London ••'Telegraph”) is a misleading documentThis is not the fault of the authorities, but necessarily follows from the terms of the order of the House of Commons, whi h is for a return “showing the fleets of Great Britain, France, Russia, Germany, Italy, AustriaHungary, United States of America, and Japan, on March 31, 1912, omitting battleships and armored cruisers over twenty years old from date of launch, and distinguishing both built and building, battleships, cruisers of various grades, torpedo vessels, tor-pedo-boat destroyers, torpedo boats, and submarines.’’ A German “battleship” of 4034 tons figures side by side with the British battleship Orion of 22,509 tons; both have a “nose,” and lioth count equally. Moreover, the age limit does not apply to torpedo craft, and thus it happens that torpedo boats built in the early ’eighties have their place in the return. Nevertheless, the return is of real value, handled with judgment, as an index to the progress of the great fleets. Interest centres in the largest armored ships, and the totals are as follows: BATTLESHIPS.

* These; ships are all Dreadnoughts, of which, built and building, Great Britain .possesses 34, Germany 21, Italy 6, and Austria 4. This statement does not convey, a correct view of the relative strength of the battle fleets of the Great Bowore. Examination shows that five of the German battleships are of about 4000 tons, and that ten others mount nothing more formidable than an old type of 9.4 in. gun, and that there is a ship launched in 1892 with the old llin. weapon. These men-of-war belong to the second line or the scrapheap; at least 11 of them are not effective, and thus the total for Germany is reduced to 22. But this corrected German figure must not be placed alongside the British aggregate of 55, for that includes three ships of the 1 loyal Sovereign class, the six vessels of the Canopus class, which will never he seen at sea again, to say nothing of the 9 Majesties, launched between 1894 and 1896, and now fast approaching final withdrawal from the fighting line, though they are to ha manned next month in order to take part in the forthcoming manoeuvre®. If the Majesties are excluded, the number of battleships remaining is 37, and if they are retained it- is 46. In •other words, in effective ships, making allowance for the inferiority of tv no of many of the older German vessels, and not ignoring the battle cruisers, we have reached a standard of two keels to one! against Germany, iii comparison with six keels to one in 1888, when the first German Navy Act was passed- If w.e can maintain such a lead as we now possess, wo should have no reason to complain, and it would be wise statesmanship if this margin of safety—against invasion, injury to commerce, and Imperial disintegration —were assured in future years.

Great Britain Built. ... So Building.* 10 France ... 21 7 Russia 9 7 Germany ... 33 9 Italy ... S 6 Austria-Hungary ... 12 4 United States ... 31 6 Japan ... 16 2 BATTLE CRUISERS. Built. Great Britain ... 4 Building.* 6 Germany ... 2 4 Japan ... — 4