FRENCH NAVY'S WORK.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 206, 8 February 1915, Page 2

FRENCH NAVY'S WORK.

MINISTER'S DECLARATION, HEADY FOR FIGHT. In an interview with a representative of the Petit Parisian, Mr Augagneur French Minister of Marine, has explained the cardinal part played by the French navy in close co-operation with the British in the present war. Mr Augagneur pointed out that the allied fleets, practically without firing a Bliot, have swept the enemy's commerce from the seas of the world, have bottled up her navies, and affirmed their undisputed mastery of the waves. The French, like the British Navy, has not had so far a "scenic" part to play in this great war, and there is a danger that the importance of the services rendered by it may not be fully realised. M. Augagneur points out that the. allied fleet, under Admiral Bouo do Lapeyrer, has shown itself master of the .Mediterranean. .Shepherded by it, Moroccan and Indian troops have been landed in perfect safety at .Marseilles. The Mediterranean, is, says M. Augagneur, free and open to the allies. Questioned as to the activity of German submarines in the Channel, the Minister of Marine pointed out that the enemy's submarine craft had game to hunt, but ours had not. Whilst hundreds of merchant vessels and warships under the flag of the allies cross and recross the Channel, all vessels flying the Hag of Germany skulk in their ports, and for good reason. The Minister assured his interlocutor that French and English submarines were daily executing the most daring and skilful audacious ra,ids. 'Using the phraseology of the sportsman, he said that one must not judge the quality of the shooting by the weight of the bag. "For now," said the Minister of Marine, "there remains not a single German port in the world." M. Augagneur's conclusion firmly and vigorously announced to his interlocutor is this: "Our navy has accomplished all that could be expected of it, and on the day when it is called upon to fight—a day it ardently desires —it will have nothing to fear from any adversary. Our navy is ready."