ON THE SEA.

Taranaki Daily News, 23 February 1917, Page 5

ON THE SEA.

THE NAVY'S WORK. A GREAT RECORD. SUBMARINE MENACE WELL IN HAND. Renter Service. Received Feb. 22, 8 p.m. London, Feb. 21. In the House of Commons, Sir K Carson, introducing tile naval estimates, said the House had been asked to vote 400,000 men in October last. million men had been moved oversea with only one or two untoward incidents, besides 912,000,000 tons of explosives and war material. Since the war the Navy hp.d examined 25,874 ships. The submarine problem was a grave one, and was not yet solved, but he was confident the measures being devised would gradually greatly mitigate its seriousness. The anti-submarine dep-ytment established was composed of the best and most experienced men. The number of armed merchantmen had increased by over 47 per cent, during the last two months. Arming was improving them weekly. Sixty-nine Allied and neutral steamers, each over a thousand tons, totalling 201,000 tons, were sunk during the first eighteen days of December; sixty-five, with a tonnage of 182.532, were sunk in the same period of January; and eighty-nine, with a tonnage of 2GS.G3I. were sunk in the same period of February. Altogether a hundred vessels' had been sunk in these periods respectively. From the Ist to the 18th of February, 0170 ships had arrived and '5878 had left the United Kingdom. It was estimated there were three thousand ships in the danger zone at any one tiin«,

GIJNS ON MERCHANTMEN.

WHY ENEMY LOSSES ARE NOT PUBLISHED. SHIPBUILDING ACTIVITY. Renter Service. "Received Feb. 22, 10.20 p.m. London, Feb. 22. Continuing his remark's, Sir E. Carson mentioned ttyit seventy-five pe'' (?ent of the armed, and twenty-four per cent, of the unarmed merchantmen escaped after attack., The number of arrivals at and departures from the United Kingdom would henceforth be published; also of the ships that had been attacked and escaped. lie declared that the German- submarine losses had not been published because the policy of secrecy .was most distasteful to the enenjy; also that the Admiralty was unaware for a certainty whether a submarine, was destroyed. The fact that we had forty encounters with submarines in February was an enormous achievement. Regarding the fate of these submarines the official reports showed every degree from certainty to improbability. Regarding shipbuilding he declared that no single slip would be unoccupied in the coming months. While step's were being taken to reconcile the competing claims of warships and merchantmen, he appealed to the nation to consent to a restriction of imports in order To make the Admiralty's task easier.

NAVY DOING ITS BEST.

A TRIBUTE TO OUR SAILORS. SUBMARINE DANGER INVESTIGATED BY DEGREES. Received Feb. 22, 10.15 p.m. London, Feb. 21. In the House of Commons, Sir E. Carson (First Lord of the Admiralty) in submitting the Navy Estimates, said the country was fortunate in having Admiral Sir J. Jcllicoe at tiie Admiralty, for his of the service was unparalleled. Admiral Beatty had the 1 confidence of every man serving under him. Lord Fisher was presiding .over the Inventions Board, and he had associated with him the greatest scientist in the country, Sir E. Carson said lie believed that some of the critics of the Government had suggested that the names of ships lost should not be published, as it gave Germany useful information, but he believed the information would only make the country more determined to achieve victory. Despite the sinkings, there was not a single sailor who wou.d refuse to sail, and neutrals might be nervous and frightened, 'but the spirit of our sailors was going to win the war. Neutrals would soon resume their sailings after being given instances in re. ports dealing with the fate of submarines. The navy was doing its best, but he was bound to say that we must firmly and determinedly take such other measures as could be devised, on t'lie assumption that it was only by degrees that the danger could be mitigated.