French Fleet at Portsmouth.

Timaru Herald, Volume LXXXII, Issue 12796, 30 September 1905, Page 2 (Supplement)

French Fleet at Portsmouth.

WHAT THE GCESTS THOUGHT-. (' Daily Chronicle" Xaval correspondent.) I hive incidentally referred once or twice to the Frenchmen's impression* of tieir visit, but I have" thought it best to keep any general account of this till the visit ii over, so as to giw the suzu cf as many opinions as possible. The impressions I am about to give hete are not those of one man only, bat, so far as 1 have been able to collect them, of the mass of Frtnch naval officers. I have alteady in a previous article stated that they think our men better than our material. When we have been showing them our best there has always been a sonpcoa of tolerance. There wair an exception, perhaps, in the case of torpedoes, etc. But these, of course, are pretty much the same all the world over. Of onr " personnel," the Engineers carry away the laurels. These earned esteem, particularly in the Good Hope and Monmouth. The Ft Mich found our engineer officers goad. For seme reason Uiey had a notion to the contrary wbea they came here. The status of our naval engineers, in their opinion, is now "very good." but of the officials controlling things in the department, " poor." * They do not think much of our engine design—" Too short a stroke they say. Our gunnery folk they do not esteem to the degree that might have been expected. "They are not," in the French view, "engineers enough.'' The visiters are so reticent in criticism that it was difficult to get this view, and impassible to obtain a foil criticism. But it is toWahly clear that they do not regard us as leading the world in the matter yet. Our prize firing records tend to promote a, smile, which indicates an opinion more or less suppressed, but still present, to the effect that prize firing excellences are the " split and polish" if the thing rather than much else. SMARTXESS ADMIRED.

What they liked most wax tbe general smart alertness of British bluejackets ud their officers—" The sense of capability," u one of them pnt it. These technical impressions are, bowerer, only by the war. To expert feted French guests to express criticisms o) the useful as opposed to the merely polite and pleasant sort is too much. The " e'est magnifiqoe " typo of criticism serves no end. Tbe correspondent, who asked a French officer, "Do yon admire the British Xary!" and was answered in the affirmative and superlalatve, got a true answer, bnt I doubt if he got all the answer. Doth navies found that the other was not perfect—bnt perhaps this is enough of that subject. Let me pass on to the Frenchmen's impression of their welcome xnd of England. I have tried hard to discover what the Fiench lealiy expected. So far as I can make ont, they expected to be entertained with stiff official pcliteness. They expected "Le Grand Roi Edotutd" to do something or other tactful and considerate, and they expected a perfunctory civil welcome from London and Portsmouth. Some even expected ruled hotti itv. Of this last I am absolutely certain. We were at the best going to be like tbe society hostess—very polite, very charming, and quite insincere. And they have found "tbe officers, the officials, so nice and so kind, but the people—ah, it is that which we can never forget." Of London, French impressions are chiefly ] memories of enthusiastic crowds. I beard j nothing of its buildings, its streets, or its palaces, whence from evidence of admiration elsewhere one infers tbat nothing architectural impressed them. The people did. "So glad to see at. and such cheering." " London and Paris are like two pictures by two great artists; quite different. Von cannot, compare them." Xone attempted the comparison.

One individual stood out from the mass of those they met in London—the Lord Mayor. Frenchmen hare a. wonderful regard and respect for mayors. Tbe Englishman's disregard for civic officials puzzled them much. THREE ENGLISHMEN*.

Three Englishmen hare tnade special impression* on the French—Hi* Majesty the King, the Lord Mayor of London, and Sir Arthur Canan Doyle. Of their mrard for the King I have already spoken. The Kine Mrnek the right chord, and he is an ideal hero with thcai in consequence. So, too, the Lord Mayor of London must hare, bat a-< I was not there to see I cannot ditcan this. I tow onr guests, however, with the Mayor* of Portsmouth and Winchester. Both there civic dignitaries had a way of p'acine themselves at the riit-jKAaI of their goe«ls—a. thing that appealed. The Lord Mayor of Portsmouth bulked larger in their eyes than Mr Balfonr. and no one mentioned Mr Chamberlain. Saving Sir John Fisher, the French had no interest in any of onr admirals. Kir John Fisher they did want lo we, and many were disappninted they had cot. He was " Le Grand Amiral -Ar.pJsi*." I mentioned Kir Craan I>oy!e as standing oat amongst other Englishmen in Frcrch esteem—indeed, as the one and only cooofficial Englishman. They had all heard of Sir Conan as an author, hot "SherlockHolmes" had nothing to do with their Tegard. The big b'nfT man struck Ihun as " tin vrai Anglais,"' and a welcome (mo a "vrai Anglais*' war dear to their hearts. He. ten, jrtt-ark the riaht chord. Xothing iniprcwel »h: French officer* »o much as the Hindhead Itin. It outshone Westminster Hall. "The best has been at ■the lu: *' they said, and rndoubteily Hindhead was cnmulative. These are iome of the ll'.ir.rs that made it *o. A wnnderful rtimber cf n!J rf-Vicrs: lir» along the ronte Thefe *1! turrei <.-3t with their nip3a!s o\ and salcted. It was "msgnifiqne." hM • :'(* Frerch. THE PEOPLE'S WELCOME. Then an astonishing comber of crijip'od people had been brought out to see tLem. At Liphook, for instance, an old lady in a bath-chair waved a. handkerchief when we went up, and three hours later. when we returned, she was still there. Ail the Frenchmen noted this. It is so kind that they should tats trouble to welcome us," they said. " You know how lo F«nt« Paris U France, tad

: i*ow Londvn thiuls it Lug]sad. But ■it is nut so. It is people hke this dear old lady. whose kind welcome we J«1 «„.*• I And they meant it. I Again, at Hindhcad n working man approached one of the motor-cais, and, with in any asked a French officer whether he would accept an English hazel stick which he had cut* Tbegrav e old gentlemen who stood by the road and lifted their hats; tie posies t'f wild Sowers thrown to the visitors bv the democracy's daughters; things like this appealed to tie Frenchmen irresistibly. They talked of nothing else after the return.

„ 7^, e r*-°P]e —the kind welcome of the English people. We never dreamed tie people so nice to us." This was the bedrock, thing about the «nt«nte, the that went to their hearts, and which thev will ever tern ember—tie "warm heart. the English people." And winn one comes to think of it it is a woncerful thing, all the more wonderful because it was no spontaneous and unexpected. TL tie people all over Hampshire, Surrey, and Scsstx were not rightseers. They were the people of Rhgl&nd intent on wishing the French God-speed, and it is they—not London and Portsmouth —who have made the entente real in French eyes. For tie prcttiness of English scenery the French cared little. They called it "calm." but it' left them, untouched: What litr cid admire were big panoramas. Thev als'tt admired English roads—which no one expected them to do. The women of England int«**tcd the French a great deal. it was to ha expected of *o gallant a nation. Undoubtedly they found ti«n prettisr than they had expected. At the garden parties which the French enjoyed very mocii they wtre greatly pleased will the way in which all ladies who could speak French dispensed with formality and introduced themselves. And they liked tie old ladies. " Old ladiei in England are so interesting to talk to," they said, and several limes they sought introduction to snch, so it cannot be put down to Gallic politeness. THE FRENCH OFFICER. Her*, perhaps, I may be allowed to digress into some impression of my own during tie visit . I have chiefly sought out tbe young officer. junior lieutenant iU)d such like. From tbe man who is going tv be, one learns most of the raloe of a Navy in the immediate future, and 3 must say bow extremely favourably I was impressed with tie young French officer. The young Frenchman of tradition is a *otnewhat blase and depraved person, with a penchant for intricate vires. Now, I think I bare run the gamut of the Fretici junior officers, and this is exactly what they arc not.

We have iky larked together and been en famille, and I found the young Frenchmen excellent staff. They are no Mich strangers to the ~ fhnple life" as tbey are" supposed to be. They like the harmless joke, the mi'd skylark. They like playing with chi'dren—always a sure test of a man's worth. 1 am "he owner of a small diuiphter. who numbers fi imuf 3 a most -of the navies under the tun, asd she was somi bosom friends with the young Frenchmen. It is the man whom childiea lore, who goes ahead when war is the business in hand. They wtie all keen. th<*e yonng officers. They gladly talked "shop." They would tell yon of Paris or of London, if vou wished it and asked for it, hot if yon left themselves iher much preferred to tcU yon of their ship—what ihey admired in ftaral architecture, what they thought good and had on the sea. Their sweethearts, lb fir wives, their mothers asd their homes they also loved lo talk about. Tbey w«i« healthy-minded, homely fellow*—men with rbjects in life. They are the navy of the future, the men who will fight with us if the great war comes by and by. Tbey wt.uld talk of horscf—riding horses, not betting on them; of shootiing—a good day's sport with the gun. Nat a battle; of motoring, doing the work about the tar, not merely bung ro"led along in. it; of football, of playing it, not just looking on. Men who are thus neither blase oor depraved nor useless—thev are men. On board their ships they styiark less boisterously than their Enjrlish confreres, but with full enjoyment all the came. The F:«cb is an extremely ahslcttritmt navy. At a"l the entertainments the Wench drank very little. They got merry, bat it was not their cups that made them *o. Fun i« thf breath of life to these young French officers. What Ihey loved was to drop all ceremnjjy and show politeness and just be friends in the war. A Fmirhmaa

is rol rnStirally ever pnlite. It w with him his envelope, like she Er,2]»hmaa"« envelope of haughty sliffncK*. Englishmen ■»!>» are friends are col haughtily siiff to each other. Frenchmen, as a mailt of friendship, drop their excessive politeness. Till he ceases to be very polite yon are not friends with a Frenchman, and yon know little about him. Well, I hare got through the envelope and found the coming French admirals lo be far superior to popular conceptions of Frenchmen, end 4 great ileal more " manly." Incidentally I discovered sereral strange things. For instance, to be a member of <J'« old ct'Vecse i» a great thing 5n tie Fietxh Fleet. A respect frr aristocracr is raj'? in Se the rice of all democracies, tierlainly an aristocrat is a nitre anjwrtaat person in tie French Xary thaa in nut Brit'sh. Off <?rly the man of oldest family is the most important person in a* French wanhip. Aboard an English one, there is a democratic_ equality amongst the officers. A lord is no more than a commoner, while She son of a wealthy man reoeatfr got *el basted in a certain" warship for having an undue str.se of his own importance. Bu. the French aristocrat mar give himself airs if be will. Being a real aristocrat, he does cot But that is the chance of things: he could if be wished.

From this it is easy to dednce something > about democratic France bringing the aristocratic cult to England, bnt actually it means that tbe French aristocracy has bent through the fire and the remnant* taught not to be eSete. I gather from French Usejackets that all the, good republicans lit* to hare tbe aristocrat, officers. It is an. interesting sidelight on tilings. Tbe relations between French officers and their men are an interesting study. Discipline is at one and the none time very bad and very good. It is very reminiscent of that in the Japanese any. When a French officer says to bis men, "Me» camarades," be means it, and they mean ft, too.

The geeneral altitude of the French binejacket to his officers swans to be, " Yon xre tbe persona appointed to rale our ship," and altogether it is something »l-im to an Englishman's altitude to tbe police. -Tie efficacy of this sort of thing in battle wotdd depend entirely npon wham the French were fighting. It would be all right Against Germany, for instance. THE GERMAN* NIGHTMARE. During the whole of the visit the French looked keenly for any «rmpt<ona of Engli»h_ senthnenV towards Germany. Germany is France's asgbtanare. • The French want peace, and hare an aneasy dread that Germany wants war. They see in the entente the promise of peace for France. They regard ns a* people cheerfully indifferent to the German btily—for to a Frenchmen Germany is a. billy among nations.

If it may be *»id without offence, tie wider idea of Jhe i« protection. From Ike French utiaadpoint, we ate tie man. I-<i Hfl't France the woman';" Ger> many sxjMijcx man- Xo Frenchman put it lint into words, but one could read it so wt plainly. Tint is why tie French general]*" seemed » moou to fed tlx jisV of the people, as iput from the eflicia!* of England. Some of it all, perfmps, was pretty coapUu>ent._ But tie French warned glad to find in u« any evidence of tie *V«trong nation."* So car general goodwill loathed tbem deeply. was always the one point So which they Juried hack- "Tie wdeome of the people has been *o kind." I found so Frenchman regarding war with *h{ caßous readiness ftr a) of the British sailor. A BK!j«i offi. tr who lacked of *w m a " learttlAle aec«»iir."' v- :-nld be regarded by his mow-msies a* a hypocrite;, and rightly mo regarded. "If aaiyone want* to go for tut we'll do onr bent to make them with they hado'l," U the British Savr'i menial attitude. It u not the French one. Tbe French ™» i« more lite the Russian one. "Tbm Rossiant—though in this country ihty never got the credit for it —were Viih lie exception of one man most advene to going to war. Unfortunately, however, they were much too convinced Out they would win if tlwy did.

The French differ here. To the- French naval war is honestly the ''regrettable necessity " for which it is needful to " gardez bien." This saving clause makes for efficiency. -It is strauge to think that a fewyears ago we regarded the French Navy as spoiling for a fight. One day perhaps we may learn the same thing about the Kaiser—stormy petrel though he seems to be. Who can tell? If the French Fleet is called upon to fight, I think it will do well. There will be more Captain Lucases and fewer Dumanoire to-day or to-morrew than in the .Trafalgar period.