THE BRITISH NAVY.

Wanganui Herald, Volume L, Issue 14744, 25 October 1915, Page 6

THE BRITISH NAVY.

AS VIEWED BY SIR THOMAS EWING. WHAT THE DOMINIONS ARE DOING. AUCKLAND, October 22, Of all the returned travellers, who have recently ventured opinions concerning tiie naval and military situation in the Old World, none perl taps are entitled to more credence than the Hon. Sir Thomas Ewing, who, as an ex-Australiah Minister of Defence, took a prominent part in the creatioh of an Australian Navy. After a stay of two years iu England for the benefit of his health. Sir Thomas is returning home by the R.M.S, Niagara. Although it is probable that the Australian knight will never again resume his former Parliamentary activities, he .still retains that force of personality which has made him finch an outstanding figure in Australian politics for a great number of years. He has been greatly rejuvenated by the change. SUBMARINE TACTICS. ' In tho course of an interview. Sir Thomas .said that few - days before the outbreak of war the opportunity was afforded him of going down from Portsmouth in the Admiral's yacht to view the Grand Elect then assembled. To say that he was profoundly impressed with the manoeuvres was hut a mild description. In Portsmouth lie had the opportunity of going through most of the ,-,ubmariucs, which was also an eye-opening experience. “I have since been slrmi ," added the visitor, “by the accurate discrimination of tlic.se British submarine men in foiecasting what would happen if war broke out between England and Germane. They knew exactly the power and limitations of the submarines, and said that if ever they were called into use the Germans would score most of their successes with ji few craft which were wore efficient than the rest. They believed that, moat of thorn were not efficient owing to the lack of instinct among the Germans for under-water work. The.se hardv British seamen even mentioned the numbers of certain submarines which have since appeared in Admiralty reports as having caused most of the damage that has occurred." BLOCKADE A GHASTLY FAILURE. The achievements of the British Navy in hunting down the German submarines. Sic Thomas added, was really groat. They had various methods of dealing with them —using nets, trailing hawsers, from behind boats to trip them np, etc. “There Is no doubt whatever, ’ ho proceeded, “that the reason the Germans met tin* demands of the Americans so readily was because the submarine blockade was a ghastly failure. They had murdered a number of people, tint as fur as affecting the trade of Britain they had done nothing, but lose most of their best b< at-> and nearly all of their efficient crews,” Sir Thomas also said that tho work of the British trawlers in guarding against minee and submarines was wonderfully effective. There were 2000 or 3000 trawlers round the coast of England, and he himself had seen something like 70 lying in one small port. BIGGER AND BETTER-NAVY, While in England Sir Thomas witnessed the trials of several new warships and he declares that any naval losses which we have sustained are infinitesimal compared with tho increased efficiency and fighting power which the navy has undergone since the commbficeraent of the war. ‘ In going round the coast of tiie British Isles,” he added, “one cannot help being struck with the type of men engaged iu our first arm of defence and the enormous body of seamen available for the job. In some of the Scottish villages ami hamlets the men who desired to serve their country declined to join the land forces. They said they were seamen, and wanted to go into the navy even if they had to wait.” THE CALL OF THE BLOOD “After all, it is not, your laws or your treaties or your sealing-wax and tap-e that makes a nation,” said Mir Thomas. “If we depended upon that there would lie no British Empire. It is a realisation of the fact that we are safer and better under the British Empire than under auv conceivable condition, and back of it all there is the call of the Wood. The ic-1-iug that has been created in England hv the action of the Dominions—of which New Zealand is not the least—is astoni hiug. The people feel themselves under in obligation to what they affectionately call ‘our colonies.’ There is a deep feeling of gratitude, and it Ls surprisingly iuteusc.”