Maritime Activities

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 181, 9 January 1915, Page 5

Maritime Activities

ADMIRAL JELLICOE'S TASK. T.l DESTROY THE HERMAN FLEET. COASTAL RAIDS NO]' HIS AITAIR. BRITISH NAVY'S WORLD SUPREMACY. OBTAINED AT LITTLE COST. Received 8, 10.15 p.m. London, January f.. Lord Selbourn, in the House of Lords, in asking whether the Government would make a statement on the recent naval operations, said that Admiral Jellieoe's sole task was to destroy the Gorman fleet if the Germans came out. It was not his business to try to prevent such a raid as tile Scarborough raid, and therefore it was no reflection on him. The Admiralty had known such a raid was possible. Lord Crewe, in replying, said that never had there been a naval war wherein the supremacy of the British fleet all over the world had been obtained so readily, and at so small a cost. They must not forget, of course, the assistance given by Australia, France, and Japan. No activities of German spies had had any bearing on the east coast raid. Any pinning of the. fleet to the coast because of raids would be unwise and almost suicidal. The captain of the Formidable, he continued, in ordering the other vessels not to stand by owing to submarines, had acted in a manner worthy of the highest traditions of the navy.

LOSS OF THE FORMIDABLE. SUNK BY SUBMARINE TWO GERMAN TORPEDOERS. London January 8. Lord Crewe, in reply to Lord Selboriii>. said, that the Admiralty's definite opinion was that the Formidable was struck by two torpedoes from a submarine. The captain signalled to another ship to keep oil', because he believed there was a submarine in the vicinity. THE GOEBEN'S INJURIES. SEVERELY DAMAGED IN ACTION. London, January 7. A neutral from Constantinople states that some of the Goebcn'a boilers are burned out as the result of rapid steaming from the Black Sea to the Bosphorus. There are three large holes in the starboard mechanism, and the aft turrets are severely damaged. Fifty Germans were killed during action and forty-eight buried secretly in the Embassy garden. Two hundred wounded were treated on board. During the recent bombardment of the Dardanelles five forts were put completely out of action. WHAT GERMANY WANTS. BUT WHAT BRITAIN WILLPREVENT. Copenhagen, January 7. Herr Ballin, president of the Ham-burg-Amerika Line, interviewed, said (here would never be a lasting peace wiles? Germany got a station for the fleet on the North Sea, securing the same advantages as Britain's. MINED OFF SCARBOliu^u.

Received 9, 12.30 a.m. London, January 8. A steamer was mined off Scarborough, The crew was saved.