TOO NARROW AND ORTHODOX.

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2718, 13 March 1916, Page 7

TOO NARROW AND ORTHODOX.

Sir,—The news, that the Press of Britain i 6 clamouring: for the "return of Admiral Fisher makes it look as if Britain's brains are all concentrated , within a very narrow circle, composed of a few favoured families. We seem sto forget that there aro plenty of men m the world able to .do what has been done and better, but lack of "pull" bars them from th 9 honour. When a great man dies we look upon the 'event as an irreparable loss, but the world goes .on without a hitch, and better men arise to fill his place. Cannot this ap, ply also to naval matters'? It seems to me that the trouble is caused by the desire of the few who rule Britain to keep_ the power in their own hands, forgetting that there will be nothing left; to rule over if they do not let men with modern ideas assist them to hold the. nation together. It is the rotten party system .which will eventually destroy our nation—the party system which exploits the great and easily gulled public for the benefit of those who pull the strings, and wax fat on industries that are a curse to the nation—especially at a timo like this. A short time ago. in conversation with a gentleman, who has a very feri tile brain, especially with regard to mechanical ideas, but whose . reserved nature prevents liim from pushing himself. into the .limelight, the factiwas elicited that he had sent' to Kitchener, at tho beginning of the war, a suggestion for the destruction of the enemy's fleet, etc. Ho received no reply. ■ Later, ho wrote to a prominent member of the New Zealand Government, with like result, so he Ms concluded that, a? ho is not of the right colour his suggestions are beneath consideration. Not being a narrow-brained egotist, lie admitted that his soheme might have appeared impracticable, but, he argued, even if it did seem so. they could .have replied, and pointed out the

faults, with a view to overcoming tliem, My informant was confident that if his scheme had hecn tried the onemy would have no fleet now, and the loss in lives oil our side would liave been practically nil. This same man, it.seems, lias had the idea of an electric gun, but, lacking capital, lie can. not experiment, so I suppose this embryo instrument of destruction will | never come to anything. _ It scorns a pity that some provision la made by tho Governments of countries to enablo men to develop their ideas for tho benefit of tlio nation to which thoy belong. We cannot tell what a man's value is till lie is tried, and previous experience is not always essontial to success, otherwise some of tho greatest men of past times would never have been hoard of. Perhaps a mechanic or a lawyer, or any other professional might possess the light quality of brain to conduct the war better than any General wo liave, but, of course, we must always, in traditional British fashion, follow precedent, aiid keep tho civilian strictly in his placo. I dare say tSat the Dardanelles could have been opened long ago with less loss of life and money if tho job had been let by contract as a business proposition. Of course, brains and mechanical appliances would have been Used, instead of the old-fashioned method of suicide on ft colossal scald. But ive must do things in the orthodox manner, and leave it to the other follow,- to try his'new ideas, such as gas, Zeppelins,' etc., on us. Of course, wa adopt like measures —afterwards-i-when a few Blue Books have gone out, a Royal Commission has sat, and due notice lias been given to the world that we are going to break away from precedent. But I suppose wa will muddle through somehow with a hundred thousand more lives _ sacrificed, just because we wish to kill a reptile in the conventional manner. Wo are a funny crowd. —I am, etc., BRITON.