NORTH SEA VICTORY.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 233, 11 March 1915, Page 6

NORTH SEA VICTORY.

HEAVY VESSELS WELL MATCHER. t A RACK FOR HELIGOLAND. < 1 (Auckland. Star Co> respondent) 1 London, F«l>ruary •'-. ' < It is «aid 11' at wlu-n tho news of ',be . ' escape (ij tlto German squadron wh;e;i i raided the Yorkshire const t-jwiis ivic.ii- ' i'il a certain '.politically) exaltijd piirson- ' age ho wept bitter tears of mortification ' and used whieli ueuhl iia,c ' reminded Lord Kitchener o ! the tirse ' and expressive cuMiienls passed "regrettable incidents" iu tin' &')iit'o ' African war liy one of bin n<ost liil generals l . It is ,i!?u merrud thiit ' when the crews of vcs>e]s coinpri-ing a , curtain patrolling sqi'miron disci-vcrci! , that tho enemy had * Jijvpud through the , mashes of thp net cur licet had spread ; for tliem, their remarks would have , shocked even the General afororiien , tioned. i Both stories a:c probably not entirely tru?, but >cry possibly have some foundation in .fact. Jt npr.cws that tne enemy's intention, tu mate a raid be-i came known to cur naval authorities', and ]>lans their reception were made. Somvthinjr, however, happened to delay seriously tlir» squadron ei-nt to meet tho enemy on Hi rush towards England, and ' ii Midden fog feven+ed other British ' »h;;i,s c.it uieir de-ign t'i in- ' iowpt the .'aider;, on the': hoiKwaru ■ rim, It i.< illcgod that tin* German | str.ia lieu wusi uci'.wliy tinted by the |sCouL to t.'.e British squadron hurrying lo ,n;.e:c. pi thorn, and o'--at our ships v.cie itipiifly gilting within range I wh.ra the. fo|( dropped doV.I) like, a pall, and rci-lerod n-.continuities of t!~ chase a mere act vl madnes". .The escape of the ru'<ier.", it is nc-' clca", was the result not of aiisrianygemeiit or nick of aicrtNf'is en. ojr Nmy's par'., but of 'dicer kid lue'r. Under the circumstances it is highly rrohabl? that the exalted personage alVrrmenticned, and ihc men of tin- unlucl.y fleet did make observations! which vo'dd art look '.veil in print, or sound appicpriatc at.a mothers'meettr.g. ".Strom; remark?." however, were noi confined to Jack afloat and to Ills morlor.ls on s*ia and land. We all felt very sore over the raid, and sympathised !«i»it heartily nith ,iii;- sailors in their bitter disajipomt'iieiit. and echoed their ; wis is that the "baby-kllk'tV would try | itagain. Wed, they have had their j wish, and if tiny nave tot quite wiped 1 tho floor with the "baby-Killers," they J have, as o;.e (runner put it, given the •Germans "more than a little bit to go on with." We, do net know, and we I may neve.- knoiv. the full c *tti-t oPtnc : damage done by S> David Keatty's squadron to the German Fleet last Sunday, but there i } good reason to believe, that in addition to sinking the Blucher, i Adnural Beatty's gunners wrought such ha.oc on the 28.f00-ton*Derfriingcr and to another of the l-lg German cruisers—the Aloltke or SeyOlite—that they will require the attentions of the German j uaval repair yarda for manv weeks to come. Tho most Hatisfactory fnature of the engagement is tbe sniall cost in human life to our side, and the <omparatively sniall damage done to our ships, 1 not one of which appears to have received injuries which are. likely to keep them in dock for any considerable j period.

_T-h ( . first newn of Admiral Beatt"'s Tictory provoked scenes of excitement in | Miany places where m«n are accustomed to foregather, liufc on the whole the British public did not give wa- to a display of outward and visible signs of rejoicing. There, was no "mafficking," and no general disposition to exaggerate fie value of the victory, but at the same tune there was plenty of evidence that the news had given something more than satisfaction. When London received | the news the metropolis was sufferin" I all the discomforts of the aftermath o*f a particularly heavy snowstorm, and its attendant discomforts and expense. But there waa an infectious cheerfulness abroad that defied the «erk of the Weather's attempts to dispel it, and a sense of the quiet confidence in the air tliat made one "feel good." In the earlier days of the war w e were cautioned by those in high authority not to be "unduly elated b~ news of successes, nor unduly depressed by tales of reverses. Speaking of London, I can honestly avow that her citizens have obeved this injunction in a manner most commendable. Foreigners and -visitors from the King's overseas dominions have now aflfi again taken tb e people of the Old Country to task bocause they have "taken thingu too quietly," and are neither deeply moved by catastrophe or success. Possibly the stoical attitude of the Britisher has been a trifle overdone, but if one takes the trouble to scratch the veneer of apparent indifference you will soon come upon the solid oak of grim determination. Moreover, the average £ngli<thman to-day has adopted a very' judicious "Wait and see" attitude towards war news of every description. He wants to be thoroughly assured that things are as good or as bad as they seem at first glance to be before he permits himself to indulge in ecstatic jubilations or a riot of sackcloth and ashes. And by the time such assurance is forthcoming he has attuned his nerves to meet the necessities of the case. BATTLE-CRUISER'S TRIUMPH. Apart from its military results, which . are as yet not fully determined, .Sunday's engagement illustrates ouce more in a striking manner the value of that much-discussed child of Lord Fisher, the battle-cruiser. The points of this novel •naval design were explained When it was introduced in 1906. They included a uniform armament of heavy guns and the highest speed obtainable on a given displacement. The great increase in striking power in a given time was the argument in favor uf the former quality, and as rigid concentration U one of th\' chief factors of sueee;a in war. ships with the highest speed can concentrate mo»t quickly. The fine spcod and great gun-power of the Invincible, the first of these battle-cruisers, would, it was claimed, ensure that an unwilling enemy should be brought to action, or in an action with one willing to fight enable tlie former to choose and maintain the most advantageous position and range. On three occasions now these tactical advantages have been proved l>v the test of battle. Twice it had fallen to Admiral Bcalty—on Awust 2S in tiie Heligoland Bjght and again on Sunday—to afford a practical demonstration of them, w.'iile Adimral Sturuee was able to do likewise in the action of the Falkland*. Only by the possession of high speed were the Invincible and Inflexible able to reach the right, spot at the right moment to crush Admiral von- Spec. Sunday's action, however, was the first time ships of the Dreadnought class met in action. They were Dreadnoughts representing somewhat different naval ideas. All the big ships of the British force were either of the Invincible class or improvements upon it, while the German ships were more, or less copies with exaggerated secondary armaments. We put all our money on the hi" gun. whereas Germany pinned her faith to a few big guns supported bv a large number of (l-inch quick-firers. As the action was fought, the German Dreadnoughts' smaller guns appear to have been useless against our big ships, because they were quite nutranged. So far, therefore, as the experience of the present war has moved, the battle cruiser advocated bv the Fisher sehnol nf naval experts has anip'.v justified the faith of tin e who .saw in this type of vessel