BRITAIN'S NAVAL MIGHT.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXVIII, Issue LXVIII, 19 October 1914, Page 2

BRITAIN'S NAVAL MIGHT.

A DRAMATIC FIGURE

Yvhen the histcvy of this war comes to be written, three names will be assoei-

atecl ".nth the imperishable glory which 3ir John "Jellicce, we feel confident, is 'about to earn for the Britisil i\avy vsays Mr Harold Bagbie, in the London Daily Chronicle of August 22). £'irst of all will come the name of Lord Fisher, creator of the modern navy, and the bravest, wisest, and most hated iailor of our generation; .then, perhaps, 20 the surprise of some people, will some the name of-Reginald McKenna— A chivalrous, loyal, and courageous apirit, who stood fast in a dangerous hour; and finally, the.name of Winston Churchill,- a politician more hated1 than Lord Fisher as a sailor, hut the most imaginative, most brilliant, and most audacious statesman that ever handled the British Navy. It is a piquant and curious fact that before to was at the Admiralty, Mr Churchill r-^s..a fervid economist, and was one of I;fr McKenna's keenest critics apsHs-b the fervid programme of 1009 and 1910, which produced the very shr"* which are now our first fighting line. It is impossible at the present moment to give any reasons for this prophecy, but the public will assuredly learn that but for these three men our whole position at the present moment would be precarious to the point of death. Instead, wo have the jmightiestfleet in the world, oiir communications are as open as they were before the declaration of hostilities, and the enemy's fleet is in hiding and his merchant vessels carry him not one ounce of food. But.it is possible, of course, that the German navy, even though its orders come from'the Prussian generals, may yet strike a death-blow at the "'British fleet. We_are perfectly, secure now, but when the battle begins the continuance of that security will depend upon the destruction of the German fleet. Accidents occur. The German fleet is a formidable corps d'armee. It may "be that we shall be crippled, it may even be that we shall suffer defeat.. If so, nothing but surrender can sav e us from starvation. But here comes in the human factor. Our fate is in the hands of a young and resolute Admiral, who is I wise and courageous and resourceful. The Commander-in-chief is the absolute best we have got. In his iron hands is an insti'Uir.er-t or' war superior io the German. We can trust Jellicoe. We can ; trust the British Navy to follow up its first blow with, another which will end the war on land and sea. We can still sleep quietly in our beds. THE SOLITARY COMMANDER. . There is no figure in the world at the present moment so dramatic as that of Sir John Jellicoe. A British Admiral is always a solitary man; but in war,, and such a ,war as this, his solitude is appalling. When he stands on the bridge there is no one at his side to consult with; he looks over the sea, and on every battleship, cruiser, destroyer, and torpedo boat swarming around him a man with a spy-glass watches his face; | >f he. were-, to be seen, like a general, consulting with his staff, the whole fleet would curl its lip and fed a sinking heart. No, he stands alone-, and in an instant he must make up h^s mind, in a flash, his. orders must be given" to every ship under his command, in the twinkling of an eye h© must decide for every ship at sea. It is a one-mat? jbo';: the1 whole "issues of the British Empire, hang upon .that single brain. Sir John Jellicoe is England as Nelson was England, and he is Europe and'the world as no other man that ever lived was- EWope and the world. When one thinks of the burden of re- ' •sponsibility the very thought of it is almost crushing, almost intolerable; But what must the thing itself be,-the actual ..fact, day after day, night after' night, watching, waiting, thinking, ami till the very moment comes never knowing how the challenge will issue? j If. men pray for victory, let them prayabove- all others for this solitary com- I mander of our forces on the North Sea. But let them pray without doubt and; without, - misgiving, taking confidence^ from this unchallengeable fact that such ! is the British Navy at the present time' that Sir John Jellicoe, the greatest of. [ our captains, is in supreme command..! (to the considerable .astonishment of theJ Germans), and that all the drawing-1 rooms of London and all the powerful.l cabals of society have not been able to,' place either a gilded blunderer or a" second-best at the head of the British | forces. To give England her greatest, j captain, Mr Churchill not only had toi ignore the-social world, but had actually ' to pain a number of very able and brilli- j ant seamen—Sir John's seniors; It. was ' an act of high courage, and an act that I could, only be justified by the immense issues that hung upon it. And by that' act of courage, Mr Churchill gave in- j spiration to the British Navy, for Sir John Jellicoe is the Navy's choice Our fleet will fight with a good heaut, not only gloriously, but with its tail; lap and laughter in its eyes."