COST OF ARMAMENTS

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1392, 19 March 1912, Page 5

COST OF ARMAMENTS

GERMAN TREASURER RESIGNS

Bj Telecriph—Prcis Association— CoDXTtcto* Berlin, March 1". Herr Wermuth, Imperial Treasurer, has' resigned, owing to tho Government financing tho armament bills by means of anticipated surpluses of existing- taxation, instead of by reintroducing the inheritance tax. Herr ■ Kuehn .succeeds, Herr Wermuth. " -- , "- , ' l " -' ''''.' DIFFERENCES OVER THE NAVY. (Rec, March 18, 10.13 p.m.) : Berlin, March 18. Herr Wermuth had repeatedly opposed tho projects of Admiral vou Tirpitz, Minister for Marine, on tho ground that Germany's financial position did not justify the maintainence both of a supreme army and a navy rivalling that of Great Britain. INCREASED NAVAL BURDENS. It is understood that a change has been mado in the proposals for tho further expansion of (lie- German fleet, which is in the nature of a compromise between the views of the Admiralty and those of the Imperial Chancellor. Whether this variation has been duo to tho result of tho late elections is not known. It was intended to lay down eighteen Dreadnoughts in the next six years, but it is now proposed to build only fifteen ships. This change (says tho London "Telegraph" of February 9) has been referred to as a possibility by our Berlin correspondent, and it is now understood to havo been adopted by tho German Government. The new scheme, adds the Telegraph s naval correspondent, will be as follows:— (a) Steps.will be taken to lay down during the next six years three additional battle-cruisers, swift Dreadnoughts, in addition to the twelve ships of the Dreadnought type, twelve protected cruisers, and seventy-two destroyers provided for under tho present Navy Law, and a larger number of submarines than ever before. (b) The new Bill will also make provision for constituting a new battle squadron of tho High Sea Fleet (the Third), with tho necessary allied cruisers and torpedo'craft, thus adding approximately one-third to the number of vessels now in sea-going commission. (c) Steps will simultaneously ba taken to authorise the raising, year by year, of sufficient officers and meu for this new division of the High Sea Fleet, increasing tho number of rfficers and men from G0.805 to about 80,000. It is understood that tho threo additional armoured ships will be laid down in alternate years between 1912 and 1017.