FRANCE AND GREAT BRITAIN.

North Otago Times, Volume XXXVI, Issue 9408, 4 March 1899, Page 1

FRANCE AND GREAT BRITAIN.

The Frenoh Naval Budgot for 18 shows a conoiderable increase over that of )«st y<nr. Id provides for tho building of sir eobmirtno veesels, and it la also specially designed to increase the groat power of France in locpedo boats and fast cruisers. Thero Is, of course, no mystery an against which Power these preparations are dlreotod. It la, briefly, that Frtnc,t must never again be caught in laoh » position of weakness as to be compelled to Bdbrait to the dictation of pcrlidtouo Albion. Ib is a pi'y that tho French people cannot got rid of this old »nd ins»no animosity, which has no counterpart on thii side of tbo Channel. Sinoo tho Norman oonqaost thoro his boon war betwoon England and Franco fcrno lens than 262 years, and there ii no one in this country who is not of opinion that tbia amount of fighting ought to oof> lice for all tlmo to como. During the name period thoro have been numerous wars with Spain, Holland, Don* mark, and other countries, bat they havo boon nothing compared to our struggles with Franco. Up to tho reign of Ellziboth thoro were fifteen Anglo French wars, ranging oror 200 yoirs in duntlon, tho longoat belog tho • Hundred Years War, 1 which, with one brief interval, raged without intermission from tho reign of Edward III. to that of Edward IY. After that there wore thmo moro wars with Ftanco before rhe commsneomont of the terrible w»rlike eighteenth century, which oulmiuatod in the Napoleonic warn. It was those last struggles, wblob commenced ia 1793, and went on until thole final osnolusion in 1858, that sent up our Nation* al Dobr from ftboub 240 millions to oros 800 millions.— Home Paper.