ON THE SEA.

Taranaki Daily News, 2 June 1916, Page 5

ON THE SEA.

A FIGHT IN THE BALTIC. SUBMARINES ATTACK WARSHIPS. FEW PARTICULARS. Received June 1, 10.30 p.m. Stockholm, June 1. The Tidning publishes details of a reported engagement in the Baltic near Oxelcesund. Four German warships, with torpedoers and trawlers, convoyed steamships with cargoes of ore, and one or two submarines attacked them. A hot fire was exchanged. All the vessels were travelling at high speed, and disappeared in the dusk. The result of the battle is unknown. THE PRINZ ADALBERT CRUISER FATEB TO FALL VICTIM TO BRITISH SUBMARINE. Copenhagen, April 6. The Ribe correspondent of the Stiftstidende has obtained some details hitherto kept secret of the fate of the German armored cruiser Prinz Adalbert. The vessel left Kiel on August 14, 1915, for Libau, but never arrived there. She was torpedoed by a British submarine, and was towed hack to Kiel the following Sunday 'by two large tugs. She was towed stern first, as her bows were shattered, and all her heavy guns had to be moved aft to prevent her sinking. Later an attempt was made to get her under 'her own steam, in order to avoid attracting unpleasant attention, but the experiment had to be abandoned, as she began to sink as soon as her engines were started. The cruiser was eventually gat te port and was thoroughly repaired. Then the Prinz Adalbert, again started for Libau about October 3 last, and met her fate on October 24, being again torpedoed by a British submarine, and going down with a crew of 600, of whom only SO were saved. When the German Official News Bureau published a statement of the German losses in the Baltic this incident was not mentioned. (It was announced on August -21 last that a British submarine in the Baltic had torpedoed the German cruiser Moltke, or a vessel of that type; and the loss of the 'Prinz Adalbert through being sunk by a British submarine was announced on October 24). THE DAY OF THE SUBMARINE. Expert naval opinion is pretty well agreed (says the Navy), in the light of tlie experience of the present war, that no limit can be placed upon the development of the submarine as an instrument of offensive warfare. The old doubts 9nd prejudices which were entertained towards under-sea craft arc completely exploded. Nothing can he said of the enormous strides which submarine construction has made in this country, but, if the facts were available, the retired officers of the old school would be amazed. Questions relating to modern submarines have been recently debated at length by the American Navy Committee, and certain views set forth' in a report submitted to Congress. It would appear that the United States has information pointing to the building of German submarines of over 2000 tons displacement. This will not startle anyone who has been carefully following the evolution of the submarine during the. past five years. As is pointed out in the Naval and ulilitary Record, the size of the submarine is only limited by the depth of water in which it is intended to operate. The submarine is no longer a coast defence vessel, but a very important and very effective striking unit as part of fleet organisation at sea.