"NO NAVAL BATTLE—WHY?"

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXV, Issue 10713, 29 December 1914, Page 4

"NO NAVAL BATTLE—WHY?"

A valuable article, which will reassure those who are perturbed by the occasional losses of lour -navyj appears in' the "Fortnightly .Review" by Mr' Archibald Hurd, entitled "No Naval Battle—Why?" In summing up ho remarks:—"lt seems probable that the German licet, whatever the strategical situation, will eventually be driven to justify its existence. At present it has completely failed to fulfil any single one of the hopes on which it was based. It lias not beeff able to protect German shipping- it has not saved from stranguM : on German sea trade; i t 1- , )ot ■£ m a portion Germany's col- " 1 he whole fabric, represented by German welt politik has fallen in ruins, despite the £300,000,000 expenditure upon the navy during the past fifteen years. The reason why j there has been no naval battle is thus, on a, cursory examination of the situation at sea, transparent. While the armies of Germany and AustriaHungai'y proceeded to invade the, territory of their neighbours, their navies evacuated the seas in face of superior force. They relinquished without a struggle all the advantages which sea command confers. They had claimed, and Germany in particular had claimed, that she had > as much right to use the seas as the British people. When the war opened, both the enemies abandoned, this claim and withdrew their fleets into strongly-defended harbours. Without skiking u blow the navies of Great Britain and France thus achieved the object for which they were created.

rf an enemy nuts away, leaving bis opponent with aU the- spoils of victory, tho latter has certainly no ground for complaint."

WILL THE CONFLAGRATION SPREAD?

"Wars resemble, conflagrations. Both have a. natural tendency to spread, unless they are kepi under strict control." The.t,> are the opening sentences of an article, in the "Fortnightly," by "Fabrieius." He suggest?* that the (Germans, having taken Antwerp, w;ill Endeavour to seize the Flush i'ng fortifications by a coup des main, pleading necessity, and as Holland cannot lose Flushing and yet maintain her neutrality, this wo.uld mean that she would be dragged into the war. Then there arc 'ndicat'ioriK that the force of publie opinion will lead Italy to occupy the Italian territories of.. AustriaHungary. Roumania. is in a position similar to that occupied by Italy, and if she wished to advance a claim on the unredeemed Roumanian provinces >'n Hungary, she must do so before '\t is too late'. So Roumania may come in shortly. Then there is Bulgaria—'she may be expected to follow a polity which promises to be most profitable to her, axtd she i«( not liScely to be found on the losing side. An attack on Turkey by Greece'is very probable. Before long, the armies of Holland. Italy, Roumania, Greece, and perhaps of Bulgaria also may be drawn into the war. All nat'on 3, it is added, are vitally in Germany's failure, and the United States may at last bo forced to intervene in the interests of humanity, and of thei. I'own security, i