WASTED ENERGY.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXV, Issue 58, 11 March 1915, Page 4

WASTED ENERGY.

For a British warlike expedition to Constantinople, \ve are reminded by the writer of a very interesting account in the Lyttelton Times, we must go back more than a century, to the famous expedition of Sir John Duckworth in 1807. This was one of a series of extraordinary enterprises on which the British energy was uselessly expended. It ranks with .Moore's expedition to help the mad king of Sweden, and with Eraser's disastrous excursion to Egypt. Russia was at war with Turkey, and Russia at the time was Britain's ally against Napoleon. An urgent appeal' for help reached London from the Czar, who had a far more serious menace than the Turkish to face, in the shape of a. campaign' by the French. Why the British Government responded it is difficult to understand, because there was small prospect of serving any good military purpose, but the instruction) was issued to Sir John Duckworth to take his fleet to the Dardanelles, force the passage, and present himself before Constantinople. The habit of the day was to leave the commander of such an expedition to work out his own salvation. He had to construe his instruction as best he could, enter upon delicate diplomatic negotiations in the name of his country, and make up his mind whether to compromise or attack as occasion suggested. Duckworth carried out his instructions boldly. He braved the dangers of the forts, happily finding thein poorly equipped, and emerged with trilling loss in the Sea of Marmora. He took and burned such Turkish ships as lay before him, and proudly appeared before Constantinople. The capital was defenceless, and Duckworth had it at his mercy. A more aggressive man might have demanded and obtained whatever terms he wanted, but Duck-' worth allowed himself to be put off with negotiations and promises, until the Turks had time to put their defences in order, and to man the forts in the strait. In the end, as military support was not forthcoming, Duck l worth had nothing left but to make his escape as best he could. The problem of getting out of the trap was a good deal more difficult than that of entering had been, and in the passage to the Aegean the ships had to run the gauntlet of an incessant artillery fire that severely damaged his fleet. It was a bold and attractive enterprise, daringly carried out to a point, but rendered worse than useless by subsequent developments. •