GERMANY AND BRITAIN.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1707, 26 March 1913, Page 7

GERMANY AND BRITAIN.

RIVALRY OF THE NAVIES. Tho Gorman Government, through a statement in- the semi-official "Cologne Gazette," has lost' no timo in calming tho fenrs aroused among tho advocates of naval expansion by a speech inado in tho Reichstag on February 7 by Admiral Tirpitz during a discussion on tho German naval estimates for 1913 (saj's tho "Daily Mail"). The admiral announced that the German Admiralty would "feci no misgivings" at' tho standard of 10 British Dreadnoughts to every German 10, which Mr. Churchill in March of last your" declared would ba acceptable. The "Cologne Gazette" stated on February 9 that it was "utterly falso" to construe the admiral's remarks , as indicating any possibility of an agreement between tho two nations. These programmes, as stated by Mr. Churchill in July, were as follow:— 1913. '14. '15. 'IG. '17. T'l. Britain 5 4 4 4 4 21 Germany ... 3 2 2 3 2 12 In addition to these ships and apart from them will bo the ship provided for tho British Navy by the Malay States and the three ships which the Canadian Government proposes to give, should they be built. On tho programmes already in hand, accepting tho British programme for 1913 as 5 ships, tho British and Gorman strength in Dreadnoughts will stand, as follows in 1910, when the programmes of tho present year are completei— British 39 .German .? 20 The New Zealand and Australian Dreadnoughts are not counted in this statement, which shows tlmt in 1910 the British Navy will have a superiority of only 13 ships, or 50 per cent, to ' the Gorman strength.

Tho A'avy Estimates of 1913 are tlio largest that have yet been submitted by tho German Admiralty. The sum to he voted'is ..£2,1,120,000, an increa.se of thirteen millions or 1.10 per cent, sineo 190-1, when tlio rapid development of the German (loot began. Replying on behalf of Mr. Churchill to a question in Parliament on Admiral von Til-pita's statement in tho Reichstag, Br. Macnamara said ho wished to express the general satisfaction aroused bj tlio friendly tone of recent German dfscussions on naval affairs.