Nelson Evening Mail TUESDAY, JUNE 8, 1900. SEA POWER. HISTORICAL RESULTS OF ITS LOSS.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XLIII, Issue XLIII, 8 June 1909, Page 2

Nelson Evening Mail TUESDAY, JUNE 8, 1900. SEA POWER. HISTORICAL RESULTS OF ITS LOSS.

IN his book, "Tho Influence of Soa Power upon History," Captain MaHan, D.C.L., LL.D., of tho U.S.A. Navy, deals, among other matters, with the decay of such maritime nations as those of Carthago and Holland, and in regard to tho latter he says: — "The wheat and naval stores of the Baltic, the trade of Spain with her colonies in the New World, the wines of France, and the French coasting trade were, little more than two hundred year? ago. transported in Dutch shipping. Much of the carrying-trade of England, even, was done in Dutch bottoms. It will not be pretended that all this prosperityproceeded only from the poverty of Holland's natural resources." ...... Tlie writer had in a previous paragraph, argued that the poorness of their native soil had driven the Dutch to the sea, and ho quotes ah authority to provo that ftt tho height of t.'ieij greatness Holland could support but one-eighth of its population —to which the present state of England bears closp analogy.

*•■_>•> "Something does not grow' from nothing. What is true, is, that by the necessitous condition of her people they were driven to the sea, and were, from their mastery of the shipping business and tho size of their fleets, in a position to profit by the sudden expansion of commerce and the spirit of exploration which followed on the discovery of America and the passage round the Cape. Other causes concurred, but their whole prosperity stood on the Boa power to which their ' poverty gave birth. Their food, their clothing, the raw materials for their manufacture*, the very timber and hemp with which they built and rigged their ships (and they v built nearly as many as nil Europe besides), were imported; and when a disastrous war with England in 1653 and 1654 has lasted eighteen months, and their shipping business was stopped, it ia said 't_o, ( sources of revenue which had always maintained the riches of tho State, aueu as fisheries and commerce, were almost dry. Workshops were closed, work was suspended. The Zuyder Zee became a forest of masts; tho country was full of beggars; grass grew in tho streets; and in Amsterdam fifteen hundred houses wero untenanted! A humiliating peace alone saved them from ruin."

• • • • • "This sorrowful result," continues Captain Mahan, "shows tho weakness of a country depending wholly upon sources external to itself for the part ; t is playing in the world. With large deductions, owing to tho differences of conditions which need not hore be spoken of, the case of Holland then has strong points of resemblance to that of Great Britain now; and they are true prophets, though they seem to be having small honour in their own country, who warn her that tho continuance of her prosperity at home depends primarily upon maintaining her power abroad. Men may be discontented at the lack of political privilege; they will be yet more uneasy if they como to lack bread."

' «'•«„•_■ Here Captain Mahan has put the position in a nutshell. If there be any man who cannot perceive the truth of his contention, that man is Vind. And, moreover, the quesl»ion, is not so much what is tbe exact size of the necessary fleet, as that there shall be absolutely no doubt that it is sufficient to meet all possible emergencies. Furthermore, that fleet, protecting as it does every part of the Empire, should be built by tangible monetary contributions from 1

all the concomitant parts, each giving | in proportion to its population. What j ' that proportion should be can be deter- ' mined only by a representative body, duly convened, to decide this and ] [kindred questions; and if this step! bring into existenco an Imperial ■ Federal Parliament, happy will bu the any and ha.pj>y tLe Empire, when I hut august body meets to presido over the momentous affairs of the most Widelyscattered, if not the greatest, brotherhood of peoples whioh the world has ever seen. • • • * • That New Zealand has offered beforehand her contribution to the Imperial Fleet is a circumstance that I makes the gift of double value, since it acts as a fruitful cxamplo to other dependencies, and produces in tliem n generous spirit which is productive of similar contributions to that brand of defence on which the Empire depends for tho protection of her immense sea-borne trade. Upon that trade depends the very existence of Britain and the prosperity of the Oversea Dominions. It is for tho forthcoming Defence Conference to decide what measure of protection shall be provided by the Empire how the necessary expenditure shall be r*eij in what manner the defence forces shall be organised. But whoever be delegate from New Zealand, one thing is absolutely certain, namely that unless he is prepared to support the creation of complete, and nothins short of complete, protection of the ocean-borne trade of tho Empire, in all possible circumstances, not only in times of peace, but also in times of war even when a combination of the strongest naval powers is made, ♦rith the malignant purpose of destroying that commerce— unless he be fully prepared to go tho full lengtn of advocating the creation of an absolutely supreme Imperial will be unworthily and inadequately representing the convictions and wishes of this country.