THE PIRATE WAR

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 109, 25 January 1918, Page 8

THE PIRATE WAR

LORD NORTKCLIFFE ON THE U-BOAT MENACE METHODS OF FIGHTING THE PEST In the course of an article on the menace of the submarine; published in "The World's Work," of New York, Lord Northcliffc makes some interesting observations, and also has something to say of the methods which, in his opinion, should be introduced in order to more effectively cope with Hie submarines. Lord Northcliffc says:— "The war has, in my considered judgment, ceased to bo even niuinly a land war. Since tho Germans accwea to throw away their last chance of living down their crimes and savageries, their last chance of taking their place again in this generation as members of the family of civilised races;' since they resolved to use tho power which tho submarine gave them against all the shipping and lives they conld reach m all parts of tho world, the war has become mainly a sea war. The chief problem we have now to tackle is how to prevent the submarines from prolonging tho war, possibly for another several years.

"Germany cannot -win,the war by means of tho submarines. Her idle hopo of starving England and frightening the United States out of the war has been already renounced. She does not any longer believe that it is possiblo to drive all Allied or neutral shipping Tinder or off the seas." r Lord Northcliffc goes on to show that she can by tho activity of the Üboats keep the war dragging on and hamper the Allies in military operations, and cause discomfort, even suffering, to the inhabitants of the British Isles, who, he adds, are certainly not less likely than the Germans to put up with inconveniences and to bear privations when they know that victory will incline to those who show tlicmoro doaged patience and more determined will.

As Lord Northcliffe holds that Germany cannot be punished for her disturbance of tho peace of the world and rendered harmless in the future without the assistance of American troops, she will endeavour to prevent those troops from crossing the ocean and from being fed and munitioned when they have crossed by attacking transports and supply ships with submarines.

He suggests four, methods of meeting tho submarine menace. /He rules out the netting of the North''Sea. That is a olan which can succeed only in a narrow channel.

Sending submarines to hunt submarines is also impracticable as a regular policy. Submarines are blind like moles; and'one cannot set one blind fish to find another under water.

Bombs dropped from aeroplanes may do a bit of good now and then. That is a method useful only in certain states of weather, and too uncertain at picsent, although it may develop altogether steady results. (Bulkheading, ca as to give torpedoed ships a chance of keeping aflo.it, could only bo introduced easily into cargo vessels, and even then it 15 s unlikely that they could keep afloat long-enough to reach port, and so save their cargoes. Methods of Meeting It. The four modes which Lord Northcliffe considers worth serious discussion are as follow:— 1. To give all ships as high a rate of speed as possible—not below fifteen knots, and increasing as the submarine's speed increases.

2. To" puzzle the submarine commander by camouflage, that is to say, by using smokeless coal or\oil, or by concealing ships in smoke clouds, by altering their appearance, and by adopting other devices which make correct aiming difficult. ■ 3. To patrol the seas incessantly, employing hundreds of small speedy craft —dwarf torpedo boats, let us call them —carrying guns and small torpedoes, to make an Atlantic lane of safety, and hunting and frightening tho submarines, destroying them wherever they can be detected.

4. Mining the entrances to ports from which the U-boats start in such a systematic fashion as to keep them from time to time penned up altogether for short periods, and to make their issue more risky at all times.

Lord Northcliffe holds that speed is tho surest safeguard against being hit by torpedo. An analysis of the figures relating to losses shows that sinkings are in an inverse ratio to the head of spe«d .develope'd. Vessels of ton to twelve knots speed have about 50 per cent, chanco of escape. Fifteen-knot boats are almost immune. The building of sailing ships or steamers that cannot do better than ten or twelve knots is therefore madness. The use of the smoke screen certainly interferes with the calculations that liave to be made before the torpedo is discharged, as it prevents the hull of the target from being visible. In aiming the"speed of the boat must be ascertained and the direction of its course must be noted. Smoke screens therefore hide the hull, dissemble the speed, and confuse the observer. For use by fast ships when they know that submarines are near this form of camouflage is of great value, but a slow vessel would have to envelop itself in smoke for days while passing 'through the danger zone. Submarine Squadrons. ■

He believes that a safe Atlantic lane for ships would be quite feasible if one had a sufficiently numerous service of patrol boats competent to give warning of danger. In the Atlantic this service is already well- performed; but there are not nearly enough boats. Such boats could always give ships information as to the nearness of the submarine or submarines. . '«

He adds that there is reason to suppose that submarines usually move about now in groups of four or six. One is a scout, one carries supplies, the rest are torpedo dischargers. The transfer of supplies takes place at night. This formation makes their work more effective 'ban that of a single boat could be. It should,' however, at the same time give patrol boats a better chance of spotting peri-

scopes. Zig-zagging is another form of strat-egy-which has been proved useful. Captains of Atlantic liners with good -.peed have- often been able to dodge submarine attack by making the ship's course erratic while in the danger zone. Of course, there is always the- chance of a stray mine; and the safety of the seas demands more systematic mine-sweep-ing bv larger fleets. No doubt the United States will be able to- send out mine-sweepers by the hundreds or thousands. Her sailors and fishermen will show tho same quiet daring and the same steadiness of nerve that 'hare distinguished British minesweeping crews for the last three years. In elaborating those methods for his American readers. Lord Northcliffe adds that.the world looks to American inventive genius to take a prominent part iu the solution of this problem