TWELVE BATTLESHIPS.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1181, 17 July 1911, Page 5

TWELVE BATTLESHIPS.

FRENCH NAVAL.PROGRAMME. By reletrra-ph—Press Association— Oopyrieht Paris, July 11. 11. Delcasse, French Minister of Marine, proposes that twelve battleships shall be laid down before January, 1917, costing .£-15,000,000. The Minister recommends the building of a like number of battleships for twenty years. DELCASSE TO REFORM THE NAVY. The eyes of all France are turned on M. Dulcasse's administration at tho Ministry of Marino (states a recent message from Paris), and everyone, except the Sceialists, hopes and believes that at last an effort will bo mado to give France a navy worthy of her status among the great Powers of.Europe. The' navies of the world have been growing by leaps and bounds in the last decade, but, though Franco has been spending very largo sums on'her fleet, she has obtained little or no result. Since the time of M. Pelletan's administration there has hardly been a month un which 6ome scandal or other has not come to light. As a witty Deputy remarked last year, "Every day is a washing day at the Ministry of Marine," When the naval estimates came up for discussion, M. Delcasse declared that he would inaugurate a series of reforms, beginning with the improvement of tho arsenals and the abolition, of red tape at the Ministry and the dockyards. Ships have been sent to sea undermanned with disaffected crews. There has been no organised system of calling ships periodically to the dockyards for refitting, with tho result that many have been classed as effective which would be worse than useless if they were sent info action.