Naval Rivalry.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 13 February 1911, Page 4

Naval Rivalry.

GERMAN PLANS DERANGED. BRITAIN'S SUPER DREADNOUGHTS. A DRAMATIC SURPRISE. Tlio.ivava] correspondent to the London Daily Tolegraph states that onco rnoro the even tenor of Gonna« naval expansion has beon interrupted owing to an '(Unforeseen change of policy on tihe ipart of the British Admiralty. The latest dramatic incident is rqminiscent of tJio worldwide supriso which was ' occasioned five years ago by the laying down of the Dreadnought, embodying the all big gun principle. TluVrovohitionary vessel caused practically all tlio shipyards of the world to stand' idle

while constructive plans were reco sidored kind amended. We are I

day benefiting by this retardation of foreign construction ; we ipossess ton Dreadnoughts complete, whereas the only other country in Europe which has finished any vessel of the .now typo is Germany, and she will

have Jive in commission by Apri next, when tbo British strength wil havo risen to twelve.

Five years ago the delay was due to a new principle of armament, and now Germany's plans have again been disorganised, in consequence of tlie appearance of the new 13.5 in gun, which is being mounted in the newest. British Dreadnought. The effect of British .policy on German progress lias only recently become known, and it must result in a material amendment of, the calculations made earlier in the year by the Board of Admiralty. Whereas an effort was made in the spring to accelerate shipbuilding on the other side of the North Sea, work has, in fact, been seriously retarded.

When the Prime Minister last addressed the House of Commons, he stated that four armoured sKips of the German programme of 1910-11 had been ordered in April, instead of some four or five months later, and ho assumed that another quartette, belonging to the 1911-12 programme, would bo ordered in April next, when, huilt, building and on order, Germany would havo twen-ty-one ships of the now types. At that date Groat Britain could possess only twenty-five vessels, excluding the two Colonial vessels —

the Australia and Now Zealand. On tbis < assumption, and if Germany utilised her resources to the full, the last of Germany's twenty - one vessels could, it was believed, be completed by April, 1913. Consequently, Mr Aecjiiifch concluded that ai the- appended dates the relative strength of the two fleets in capital ships of the new types would be as follows:

Britain. Gorman v. End of 1911 ... Iβ 11 * April, 1912 ... 20 13 April, 1913 ... 2o 21 ONLY 13 GERMAN DREADNOUGHTS. Those anticipations are no longer trustworthy; indoed, if is now certain that Germany cannot piissibly possess twenty-ono units by April, 1913. The whole naval outlook has been changed by the dramatic appoaranco of tlio new British 13.5 in gun, of unparalleled power arid with a i/501b shell. The Dreadnought parries 12in weapons, with nn 8501b shell, and it was assumed in this country, and! in Germany and elsewhere.' that this gun would ■bo mounted in the later British vessels. The Admiralty kept their secret so well that everyone was deceived. Tt was not until tho early days of August that it became common knowledge that last year the Admiralty placed orders for a number of 13.5 in guns and gun-mount-ings.

The new development had, at once, a surprising result in Germany. The ships ordered—-but not laid down—in April wore to have carried a 12.01 in gun, whereas the earlier German Dreadnoughts h.id leen supplied with an V<\ weapon loioetly the news was -eeeivo- ,1 in G'f.jmany of the action ci the F.-i t'sh Admiralty the pr-j|>a. i * >s f >t the construction of fo;:i ships v-fre suspended, with a view to h reconstruction of their armament. The result is that, whereas they were originally ordered in April— as announced by the Prime Minister—not one of them has, as a matter of fact, been begun, though we are now at the close of October. Instead of Germany having seventeen ships ibuilt or in an advanced stage of construction, she has only thirteen.

This incident illustrates the inherent defect of a. naval law regulating construction over a term of years. The Reichstag having assented to a "plan of construction," the German naval authorities prepared plans of ships in advance so aa to anticipate the customary date of commencement—in fact, accelerate the programme. Onfy just in time to prevent further shins of interior power being bui'.t* they ■joarn of the now depanure' of +ht British authorities. If, as is :n w ■understood, these ships are to have guns corresponding more or less with the new 13.5 in British weapons, they must be re-designed. Ihe effect of such a change in armament on displacement, armour disposition and speed may be suggested by tfhe fact that whereas each of the 13.5 in guns to be mounted in the British ships weighs 86 tons, the lZ.Olin German £nn weighs only just over 51 tons, and tJiero is, bf course,, a vast increase "i the burden imposed, by the mountings and ammunition' The whole of the preparatody work which haa (been practically completed■ m April last will now have to bo done afresh, and it is probable that a good! deal of material in process of manufacture will have to he ''scrapped." Entirely new plans must.now he drawn, and, in effect, not tho, ships ordered, last April -but vessels of an absolutely new design will eventually be laid down. THE NEW NAVAL POSITION.

How long this retardation of German construction will last it is impossible to say but it is practically certain that the year 1910 will close without the keel of a single armoured vessel having been laid in any of the German shipyards. No doubt an effort will he made to fasten matters as much as possible, but with the best organisation the a«a-y in tne completion of the vessels must be coneiderabte-pwA-■ably about twelve montlis. For the present it insufficient that, the ships ■built and therefore the Prime Mi," 2 ant, «J>at»ons (as recorded' above) must bo recast as follows-

VuA nf ion Britain. Germany, lliiid or 1911 ... Jβ -,-, • April, 1912 ... 20 li April, 1913 ... 25 13 The outlook ihas thus completely 1914 X Cera s d » Can not occ,ir - I" Jli ha ?e >een carried out and ~r;Ti J ill + ■ •- fiSh fnr ,S,-n and Imposes ready toi actjon-the quartette of nevt years programme, .h ave "* S n *yf F- months;:- i s fSStei™ complete by April,; 1914/ £t^

us twonty-one Dreadnoughts, and idus number may ; be exceeded. By that date the British Fleet will possess twenty-five: vessels in addition to thos included in next year's programme. "We hare- the benefit of a temporary lull, btub it is only ■temporary. The crisis is postponed. Hub the crisis will come.