"THE NAVY'S HERE"

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27570, 12 December 1950, Page 6

"THE NAVY'S HERE"

It is one of the functions of a navy that it should provide a floating and mobile bastion on which a mauled army can, in emergency, retreat, and be saved to fight another day. And because of the nature of these occasionally unavoidable operations the navy that participates in them earns for itself a special place in the public heart and affection, for the rescue of large numbers of men from the clutches of an enemy has a response in an upsurge of public gratitude and confidence. The latest of such exploits has been carried out by a combined Australian, Canadian and United States naval force in North Korea. The feat was accompanied by all the hazards that are traditionally attendant on such desperate excursions. For thirty miles these Allied destroyers and transports threaded their way in the dark through the ' shallow waters of the Daido Ko Estuary, where one error in navigation would have spelled disaster to the whole expedition, and returned with more than 7000 civilian refugees and military wounded from the Pyongyang battle, area. “ The Navy’s here! ” With what joy despairing men have heard that reassuring signal on beaches the world over. In the days of World War I the Navy stood guard as the tired men of Anzac retreated silently from the ridges they had won at grievous cost. In World War 11, “The Navy’s here” brought new freedom to the British seamen imprisoned beneath the decks of the Altmark, which had sought illegal refuge in Josing Fiord. At Dunkirk the Navy was there, and under the cover of its guns the greatest evacuation in military history was achieved. On countless beaches of Greece and Crete groups of despondent, battle-weary soldiers heard the message, “ The Navy’s here—time to go,” and submitted themselves gladly to the orders and ministrations of the kindly sailors who had braved the risks of sea and air attack to rescue those who had fought on land. The history of naval warfare is studded with brilliant victories, but the British Navy has won its greatness as much by its support of its land forces as by its victories over opponents at sea. That co-operation has been possible because the British were the first people in modern history to recognise the decisive role of sea power. Gallipoli, Dunkirk, Greece and Crete would have ended in complete disaster had the Allies not held control of the sea. Military historians have pointed out how closely some of them came to failure because the new requirement, control of the air, had not been won. It is a factor which will intrude even more prominently in the planning of naval operations in the future, but while “ The Navy’s here ” soldiers will have confidence that they will not be let down in any emergency.