THE NAVY LEAGUE.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1240, 23 September 1911, Page 14

THE NAVY LEAGUE.

Sir,—lt will be interesting to learn from your report of the conference of delegates from the various branches of tho Navy League throughout the Dominion, which is to be held in the Town Hall, Wellington, commencing on .Tuesday next, what the delegate from Auckland, ' llr. W. J. Napier, barrister and solicitor, has to report; As a diligent student of our local press, I have waited in vain for somo evidence of. activity on tho part of our local representative of tho league. Is there a branch here at all I wonder? Certainly no notice of public meetings appear. About a year ago a paragraph in the local press notified that Mr. Napier would, on an early date, address a public meeting in tho interests of tho league, but no report evpr appeared of such a meeting. Mr. Napier is a prominent public man; he is a member of tho Harbour Board, Chamber of Commerce, Victoria League, Nary League, and perhaps other associations, and ho is now reported, as being a candidate for Parliament. It. will thus be seen that Mr. Napier is well represented; but what has he done, and what is ho doing for tho Navy League in Auckland is the question? • , The writer earnestly believes The Dominion would be better advised if it put all its efforts forward in organising a coastal naval defenco force, a sort Oi amphibious defenco force such as the Imperial Marine Artillery and Marine Engineers, these to man the coastal artillery guns and floating and submerged mines which should surround our coast. This would surely be a far preferable expenditure of our very limited means than to play at soldioring, as we are doing, with a population of 1,000,000 contentious people. In theso sea-girt islands, it is lamentable to observe all our children being, trained as cadets for land forces. How shall New Zealand ..help Britain to continue to rule tho waves? Wo require half-a-dozen or moro Amokuras, surely.— I am, ctc., C. A. YOUNG. Auckland, September 9, 1911. [Owing to pressure on our space, Mr. Young's letter unfortunately has not received publication until now. The main point, however, is still of very general interest.] . ,