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Star (Christchurch), Issue 8376, 24 July 1905, Page 3

After having been a kind of pet Weapon for years, the observation mine is to be discarded. There was (says a Home contemporary) something that appealed to the in the picture of the watcher in his station ashore letting his own ships pass in safety and blowing up those of an enemy, by just pressing a button. The V fiaval authorities have, however, come to the sensible conclusion that it is better to trust to guns than to observation mines. Unless he had first ■ Bilenoed our gtmfe, It is very improbable . t*-at an enemy would get near enough , to be in danger from an observation mine. And if he had been so far vie- , torious he would be careful to remove all mines from bis path. Although observation mines, which are elect rically fired by someone ashore, are obsolete, contact mines are not. These can be sows anywhere, and many prove very destructive, as events at Por£ Arthur have shown. As a* matter of fact, the submarine mine has rather appreciated than depreciated in favour. It is simply one form of it -that it is : judged to be not worth retaining.