SUBMARINE MENACE.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 871, 18 July 1910, Page 7

SUBMARINE MENACE.

HUDE CERMAN FLEET. BUILT UNDER VEIL OF SECRECY. By Tclegrnpn-Prcss Association-Copyright. London, July 15. The "Standard's" Berlin correspondent reiterates the statement that Germany, under the veil of secrecy, is creatine a huge Hoot of' submarines. WAR IN THE FUTURE. IiIVAL VIEWS ON SUBMARINES. Certain'views on naval warfare, likely in provoke animated diVciiscion, arc *et forth in the June " Blackwhod's" by Colonel A' Court- Itopington, the able military correspondent of "The Times." He oonteuds that Great Britain must be prepared for war of a character wholly cHffn-ent from that which the majority nf people, even professionals, have hitherto anticipated. This is because of the development of the aiTship, the submarine, ,the torpedo, and the mine. Position of the Cruiser Shaken. The latest type of submarine has a surface speed of 15 knots, aiid a range of 2500 miles, with a submerged speed of about 10 knots. Motive power on the surface can easily be increased, until the submarine is able to do much more than the destroyer can do now. Though Great Britain 'is still ahead, Germany is pushing on with the construction of torpedo craft, and submarines in particular. Mino warfare has advanced quite as rapidly. . The position of the battleship and the cruiser within the range of submarines, airships, and torpedo craft has been seriously shaken. The submarine has not .yet found, its destroyer, nor is it open, except accidentally and by chance, to any known form of attack by ships in fair and normal fighting circumstances. In time of war, writes Colonel Kepington in "Blackwood's," the North Sea. will v«ry soon be, if it is.not now, no place for a seagoing fleet:—"Swarms of destroyers and submarines, and every year more of the latter, will infest this area, and the existence of every great ship venturing into the area controlled by these pests, which are almost unassailable by naval means, will be most precarious. -Our great and costly battleships and cruisers must be stowed away safely in some distant, safe, and secluded anchorage—Scapa Flow and Portsmouth to-day, Berehavon and Lough Swilly perhaps to-morrow." The Other Side. In a criticism of fiolone! Repington's views, Mr. 11. W. Wilson writes in tho "Daily _ Mail":—"The submarine above water is extremely vulnerable, at tho nvercy of the weakest ship which mounts a quick-firing gun ami hns men behind it who can shoot. Under water it moves so slowly that it can accomplish nothing against modern warships on the open sea. Its. range of vision is so limited, if it shows only its periscope, that it cannot easily detect, uu enemy. There nro great difficulties of navigation, therefore these vessels are usually accompanied by a'parent ship. "All that we know of the submarine has boon learnt in ]>oace. Now, in peace these vessels cannot Iμ thoroughly tested. In peace there ore no destroyers hunting them and shooting ut them when tlie.v rise. There nrp no cruisers attacking with live shell their mother ships. The advantage is all on their side. But with war the conditions are transformed. The submarine becomes n partly blind, very slow vessel, whoiis movements linmper u fteet. She can obtain security by diving —that is, by hiding herself—but tho larger she is the longer it takes to dive. Before she can do auy harm she has to find an pneniy, to got within range of Hint enemy with a speed which is half his, and finally to hit the enemy with her torpedo, a projectile which travels very slowly compared with a shell. • All these things are extremely'difficult if the enemy is on the alert and has. cruisers and destroyers willi him. ■'< l'< '•■■- Desperate Men Needed. "The submarine closely resembles the fire-ship of the past. The fire-ship, , manned by absolutely desperate men, could destroy the mest powerful warship at quite insignificant cost if phf could once get near. Sho was a terrible menace. But in actual war means of meeting her were discovered, because men desperate enough to handle her effectively could rarely be found. There is a limit to human courage, and the fire-ship crews, lighted then , ships 100 soon, before they were close enough to the enemy. In this way they wen sure of escape, but. they did no damage. So with submarines, either they will remain under water , and invulnerable when they attempt to attack big. ships, in which case they will move so slowly as to effect little; or they'will run on the surface, where they will be seen and will be a good target, but will have a better chance of sinking the enemy at the price of their own lives. But such deeds will be few und far between."