VALUE OF NAVY

Hokitika Guardian, 23 September 1933, Page 6

VALUE OF NAVY

PLEA BY EARL JELLIOOE ADDRESS FROM OLD VICTORY LONDON, Aug.B Earl’ Jeliicoe inaugurated the Navy Week celebrations at Portsmouth last Sa tun-day. Taking his stand on the starboard cathead of Nelson’s old flagship Victory, in dock at Portsmouth, lie made a strong appeal for the maintenance of a powerful Navy. Two-thirds of our food supplies and the greater proportion of raw materials for our manufactures, Lord Jellicoie said, come from overseas. The stoppage of food supplies would mean starvation and the stoppage of imports of raw material- and the exports of manufactured goods would mean the ruin of the country and the Empire. On a normal day, though, perhaps, not in times of slump, there were from 1500 to 2000 British ships pursuing ocean routes, in addition to smaller vessels of less than 2500 tons displacement, engaged in overseas and coastal trade. These ships needed protection should anybody be evilly disposed toward this country.

“When the Germans started tliier unrestricted submarine warefare,” Lord. Jeliicoe oontiinued, “we were •very near d'aster. In our worst month, April, 1917, German submarines sank 155 l-’ritisli ships, 1.4 more were sunk by mines and a considerable number in addition, were injured olid took many months to repair. That went on some months, siiiiply and solely because we hsd an , insufficient number of cruisers and fast destroyers to start a convey system complete. It. would lie a very bad tWing should that ever happen again. In those dyas we had well over 100 cruisers, whereas was how have only 50. We had 350 destroyers, whereas now we have only 150. Therefore, nobody can ,say we are erring at the p-roscnt moment Jon the side of safety. - ' ■ “ -

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“We have reduced our Navy by a great deal more than 50 per cent since tlie war. Nobody else, except tlie Germans, wlio had to by force, has reduced her navy. Indeed, every other' country ex'c-pt France has . iqerea.sd her navy since the war. We have put forward what has been called a gesture. That gesture has not been' answered, and a time- must come when we must stop making gestures in order to return t<> safety.”

Earl .Jeliicoe concluded by asking the public not to forget the people who manned the ships, and appealed to employers to give work to ex-sailors and marines. As he ended ;his speech, Nelson’s famous Trafalgar signal was hoisted in the Victory and greeted with cheers.

Portsmouth Gs offering to Navy Week visitors a programme full of interest raid entertainment. The finest ,sltps in the fleet are on view, together with destroyers, airerai't-earv/ers and submarines. There are also a number of displays. Among them a fight between a pirate junk that attacks a merchant ship and a. submarine and “crossing the line” are carried out in full detail. Any v.’stor who so desires may be presented at Neptune’s Court on payment of 3d, and after going through the hands of the “barber and the bears” recieve a certificate from Neptune.

The .attendance figures, in torrid sunshine, at tlie three home ports on the opening day of Nevy Week were: —Portsmouth, 7318; Chatham, 4885; Devonpoi-t, 3462. ■

PICTURESQUE DISPLAYS

This year’s novelty at Plymouth is I a mock fight between a “Q” slip and a, submarine. It can be seen comfortably from the.deck of the aircraftcarrier Furious; while on the other side viators can watch a. meek fight in the Hamoaze, in which a vessel, supposed to be captured by pirates is retaken by British tars. The pirate episode is repeated from last year’s programme, hut the “Q” boat is a new spectacle. This is the first occasion on which the Admiralty have granted permission for the submerging of. a submarine with its .crew as a Navy Week spectacle. There is also an exhibition illustrating the history of the Royal Marines, that proud corps which holds the privilege of marching through the City of London with drums beating, and bayonets fixed and . with colours unfurled. A new idea this year at Chatham is a dramatic display of the Navy in e'eton, entitled “Santa Maria.”- This episode centres in an imaginary seaport somewhere between the Balkans' and the Far East, and shows how a British cruiser on foreign service—with the officers and men of H.M.S. York on board—is instrumental in quelkng an insurrection against King Hildebrand of “Santa Maria.”

An always popular display is that of the blocking of the Zeebrugge staged i-n miniature, with the ships and main features to scale, while demon straYons of the Davis' submarine escape apparatus and diving will be sure of large audiences.