SIR J. JELLICOE AND THE U-BOATS

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3033, 21 March 1917, Page 6

SIR J. JELLICOE AND THE U-BOATS

MENACE NEVER GREATER

MORE STEAMERS URGENT

: Admiral Sir John Jcllicoo, the First Sea Lord, recently made one' of his rare and deeply interesting speeches on the work of the Navy on January 11, after the honorary freedom of tho Fishmongers' Company had been conferred ou hiin. He said:

In tho Napoleonic era the ships opened lire with guns at .ranges of about 800 yards. Tho ships of to-day.open fir© at 22,000 yards' (or eleven iiauncal milos) range, and gunfire begins to he very offectivo at 18,000 yards. Tho torpedo as fired from surface vessels is effective certainly up to 10,000 yards' range, and this requires that a ship shall keep boyond this distance to fight her guns. As tho conditions of visibility—in the North Sea particularly— are frequently such' as to mako fighting difficult beyond a range of 10,000 yards,, and; as modern fleets are invariably accompanied by very large numbers of destroyers, whose main duty is to attack with the torpedo the heavy ships of tho enemy, it will be recognised how great becomes the responsibility of tho admiral in command of a fleet, particularly under conditions of low visibility. As soon as destroyers tumble upon a, fleet within torpedo range tho situation becomes critical for tholieavy ships. The submarine is another factor which has changed the situation,'as this class of vessel, combined with the use of mines, - entirely prevent the close blookado resorted to in former days. In addition, those two weapons add greatly to the anxieties of those in .commuS.

. Cautious Enemy. Submarines and mines compel the watching forco to take up their station farther and farther, away. In spite of this, and in spite of ,tho German boast as . to the occasions on whicl; the German Fleet has searched the North Sea for the .British. Fleet, our enomios have only on one ■occasion ventured sufficiently .far with tlieir main fleet to give us an opportunity to engage them. The approximate number of vessels of all classes winch comprise the British Navy of to-day is nearly 4000. Our "activities range from the "White Sea. where we are doing our best to assist our'gallant Russian Allies, past the North and South Atlantic, where cruiser squadrons are at work, on to the far Pacific, where we work in co-operation with the JapanIn tlie MediWranean we are working with the French and Italian navies in tho Balkan campaign and in the Adriatic. In East Africa our Navy has rendered great services, and on the Tigris and in tho Red Sea. I might draw attention to the arduous and continuous work of the Cruiser Squadron in Home waters, which' is preventing supplies from reaching ,the enemy. It examines weekly an average of eighty ships of all kinds. Sir John paid a warm eulogy to the mercantile marine, upon which we have been dependent for the movement of our troops overseas. He continued: Over seven million men have been transported together with all tho guns, munitions, and stores required by the Army. The safeguarding of these transports, both from the attack of such surface'vessels i as have been .at large and from submarine attack, has been carried out by I the Navy. ' ~...-.. •■•. Appeal to Shipyards.

Tho submarine menace to the merchant service is far greater now than at any period of the war, and it requires all our energy to combat it. It must and wjll be dealt with—of that I am confident.. But we have to make good our inevitable losses, and in order to do this we are dependent upon tho shipbuilding industry. Tho first essen- ; | tial is the whole-hearted co-operation of the men in the shipbuilding yards and in the engineering workshops. In the same way as Sir Douglas Haig lias appealed to the munition workers to give up holidays and to devote themselves to the supply of those munitions which are essential for the safety and success of our comrades in the trenches, I now appeal to the men in tho shipyards and engineering shops to put forth their best efforts continuously :and ungrudgingly to keep up tho strength.of our mercantile marine and to provide those gallant fellows who have gone through innumerable dangers and hardships* when their ships have* been sunk, with new vessels to carry on tranport of the necessary supplies of food and material for tile, manhood and' industries of the country. Let there be no question of strikes, no bad time-keeping, no slacking, and let masters and men remember how great is their responsibility not only iowards the Navy and the nation, but also towards our, Allies. During two and a half years of 'war the endeavour to keep the Fleet at a-high pitch of efficiency has necessitated strenuous and unceasing effort afloat and ashore. Tho spirit of,our forefathers lives' on in' all its vigour; No one can ask for a finer personnel than we have in the Navy. ■_'."' Every man in the Navy is eager and prepared to do his duty. I ask that the nation' Shall do itspartby working with equal self-denying diligence as ~«re our soldiers and sailors, so that there may be provided that great variety and enormous volume of material which is required for the fighting forces, and that all men' and all women shall, biVDaictising strict economy, render, possible the maintenance of adequate financial sinews of war. If. all do tlieir part all will be well with us. Of one .prominent Tact I can speak with full confidence born of experience—the nation can depend on tho Navy being ready, resourceful, and reliable. '