Poverty Bay Herald PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING GISBORNE, FRIDAY, APRIL 11, 1930. SUBMARINE WARFARE

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LV, Issue 17232, 11 April 1930, Page 6

Poverty Bay Herald PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING GISBORNE, FRIDAY, APRIL 11, 1930. SUBMARINE WARFARE

In the absence of: any general optimistic note regarding the progress of the London Naval Conference, some consolation may be derived from the measure of success which has attended the work of the jurists committee on the question of submarine warfare. In the earlier days of the conference the stand taken by Japan and France in favor of submarines appeared to negative previous hopes of substantial agreement being reached, so that this week Is announcement of unanimous recommendations on certain points is the more welcome because o,f its unexpectedness. All hope of agreement on total abolition had Jong since been abandoned, and the committee Is failure to make any recommendation on this point came as no surprise. Unanimity, however, has been reached on the question of maximum size and a declaration for the purpose of “humanising" submarine warfare. It is true that these points cannot be regarded as of outstanding importance, but if they do nothing more than go so far as to indicate a desire on the part of the powers to make such concessions as are in consonance with, ov at least not antagonistic to, the policies of their countries. The atti,tude of (.treat: .Britain and .the United States in regard to submarines is already well known. Both countries would agree to the abolition of this class of vessel on humanitarian grounds. It is interesting to note the reasons given by the other Powers for the retention of'this weapon of warfare. Thus M. Leygucs, speaking on behalf of Franco, tabulated his case for the submarine in the following terms: He said that it is chiefly on the submarine that his country relics for (1) protection against enemy attacks on the population and cities along the coast in the absence of the high sea fleets, and the defence of distant dependencies pending the arrival of the supporting fleets; (2) the escort and protection of convoys transporting men and goods between the mother country and the colonies; (3) the guarding of lines of communication over long distances when bases are lacking between the mother country and her colonics, or between the colonies themselves; and (4) the scouting and protection of the high sea fleets. For such operations, he said, the submarine could not be done without. The Japanese view was expressed by Admiral Takoradi in the following terms: “The submarine, ” lie declared, “has its appropriate legitimate uses. It is an appropriate medium of defence as a scout and as an instrument. to ward ofl’ an enemy attack in the adjacent waters of a. country. Japan, consisting as she does of so many islands scattered- so widely on the sea. extending from the tropical to the frigid /.ones, sees in such kind of arm a convenient and adequate means to provide for her national defence. With this comparatively inexpensive war craft she can contrive to look after her extensive waterways and vulnerable points. Japan desires to retain submarines solely for this purpose." A good deal of the recent, discussion on the submarine centred round the question of whether it could be more properly called a defensive rather than an offensive weapon. It is evident that many of the smaller countries regard it as a valuable means of defence. .Such peoples as those in the Netherlands and Scandinavia. who have a definite programme of submarine building, cannot bv any

si retell of the imagination lie regarded as making preparations for oH'onsive purposes. It lias been contended that experience shows that as a means of defence submarines net as a valuable deterrent lo Hie movements of hostile form's, while as an offensive weapon it; can do bill little damage save in an illegal way as directed against merchant shipping. Hut if it is admitted that its chief function is for defence, it gives strength to the argument that the size of the .submarine should be reduced. While it is hard to draw a definite line of demarcation as between defensive and offensive uses of any means used in war, it can at least be said that if the main purpose of under-sen craft is for defence, it is useless to build the huge ocean-going vessels that are even now being multiplied. Many objections have come to light against the submarine as the result of the recent interchange of views in London. One of the greatest is that the submarine is. by its very nature, peculiarly susceptible to abuse, but there are many other objections no less valid. In proportion to their tonnage, it was pointed out, submarines are the most costly of all warships. Not only are they costly to build, but they are costly to jaaiittaitt and require expensive

snore bases and supply ships. One of ( the naval experts writing in the Lon-1 don press has shown a strange cheerfulness over the whole controversy, for he contends that whatever happens in this or any other conference, the submarine has had its day in modern warfare and may now be regarded as having ceased to be, for all practical and effective purposes. The Great War taught the nations how to meet the menace of the submarine, and these lessons have been so carefully pondered that it is u/nlikoly that ever again the submarine will be aide ,to create anything like the same amount of havoc as hitherto. It must not bo forgotten that in spite of the fact that .'the statistical information relative to submarines indicates that they are growing in size, in power and in range, pari passu with that development have gone the greater and moiv effective discovery and invention- of anti-submarine devices of all kinds, many of which are the closely-guard-ed secrets of the powers owning them. The public does not realise just how impotent this .type of craft has been rendered by such means. There are in existence special schools of instruction wherein the use of secret instruments is taught. These instruments can locate the precise spot in which the submarine is to be found, with amazing and uncanny accuracy, whether the vessel is submerged or afloat. The free booting sea. raider is a thing of the past. The submarine can now be shadowed over or under the high seas of the world. Thai fact at once draws .the sting from her most dangerous characteristic, which was the ]jo\ver to steal upon an unsuspecting enemy unawares and deal a deadly blow in the dark. That fact also affocts the validity of the argument regarding the defensive use of the submarine by the smaller Bowers, for inefficient weapons are of little use to the weaker Powers. From every point of view it is becoming evident that every nation concerned would in the long run benefit by the abolition of this type of craft. There is not siitr:cient return in value for the money spent, and competitive building in submarines under modern conditions is the height of international folly. The day will probably come when the nations' will realise the folly of such useless expenditure, and either devote the money to more effective ships or cancel out the expenditure and relieve the general body of flic public which has to fmd the'wherewithal for such unjustifiable extravagance.