ON TEE SEA.

Taranaki Daily News, 3 November 1917, Page 5

ON TEE SEA.

NAVAL SITUATION REVIEWED. IMPROVEMENTS EFFECTED.

OVERCOMING SUBMARINE MENACE. A SATISFACTORY REPORT.

Aus. and N.Z. Cable Assoc, and Renter. Received Nor. 2, 7.30 p.m. London, Nov. 1. In the House of Commons, Sir Eric Geddes reviewed the naval situation. He explained the measures taken to increase the power and strengthen the control of the naval staff, and anticipated a great advantage from the fact that the naval staff, 'in increasing the personnel, would be in touch with tiie Grand Fleet and other naval commands. He justified tins non-publication of. British tonnage sunk, because it would afford the enemy information which the enemy would very much like to obtain. He was able, however, to supplement Mr. Lloyd George's information showing that we were making reasonably satisfactory progress in overcoming the submarine menace. .Since the beginning of the war, from 40 to 50 per cent, of the enemy submarines operating in the North Sen, the Atlantic, and the Arctic oceans had been sunk. The enemy last quarter lost as many submarines as during the whole of IMB. THE CONVOY DISASTER. REPLY TO CRITICISM.

HOW THE GERMANS ESCAPED. Received Nov. 3, 12.35 a.m. London, Nov. 2. Sir Eric decides continued: As regards tile criticism of ttie Admiralty on two recent occasions, I believe the criticism was bused upon and caused by incomplete information. Taking the first, the Scandinavian convoy, on October 10, the destroyers Strong Bow and Mary Rose, with three small, armed vessels, only one. of which was fitted with wireless, escorted the convoy of twelve ships bound to the Shetlands from Norway. During the night one of the smaller armed vessels, which was fitted with wireless, dropped back to screen one of the ships in the convoy, which stopped owing to shifting cargo. The convoy was then accompanied by the Strong Bow and the Mar y Rose, both of which had wireless, as weil as by two other small craft without wireless. About fi o'clock on the morning of the 17th, at daybreak, the Strong Bow sighted two ships southward, which were closing fast. The visibility was about two miles. The Strong Bow challenged, but received an unsatisfactory answer. Immediately she ordered the crew to their action stations. The enemy's first shot wrecked the wireless room and did other damage. Despite the great gallantry shown by captain officers, and crew she was sunk. The Mary Rose was immediately attacked by the tw T o German vessels and blown up by a shot which struck the magazine. The enemy vessels, which were very fast, of the cruiser class, then attacked the convoy, sinking nine.

Owing to the fast escort vessel whicl was fitted with wirelesa having boon <!e- : tached to screen the sliip whose cargo had shifted, and owing to the Mary Rose < being sunk immediately and the Strong Bow's wireless being put out of action i by the first shot, no message reached the admiral commanding the Orkneys, the commander-in-chief of the Grand Fleet, or the Admiralty, that the convoy was attacked, until the surviving ships, ar- < rived at Berwick, whilst the Admiralty [did not receive information until seven 'in the evening. Sir Eric Geddes asked the House to recollect that the area of the North Sea j.was 140,000 square miles, besides a coast subject to attack of 500 miles, whereas the area of vision of a light cruiser squadron might be under five square miles. The Scandinavian convoy system started in April, Wl7. More than 4500 vessels had been convoyed, and this was the first occasion that a single ship had been lost by a surface attack in a Scandinavian convoy. This convoy was mentioned particularly, but other convoys were continually passing up and down and across the North Sea. The enemy cruisers made the passage at night time, and. owing to the circumstances mentioned were unmolested in daytime, and slipped back again at night time. "After the fullest consultation," he said, "we arc satisfied that the best dispositions were made by the «om-mander-in-ehief, having regard to his other duties and operations." Sir Eric Geddes paid a tribute to the gallantry and devotion of the officers and men escorting the convoy. , OUTPUT OF VESSELS. AN ENORMOUS INCREASE. EXTENSIVE PROGRAMME FOR WARSHIPS. I A. and N.Z. Cable Assoc, and Reuter. Received Nov. 3, 1.55 a.m. / London, Nov. 2. Sir Eric Geddes, referring to the output of merchant tonnage, said that for the first nine months of 1917 it was 123 per cent, higher than for the corresponding period of last year, and very considerably higher than the output of 1915. The standard vessels now. ordered represented nearly a million gross tons of shipping. Over half of these were already being constructed, and the remainder would soon be taken in hand. The vessels on the stocks and launched were limited, and a number of standard vessels had been completed, but the whole of the yards suitable for building standard ships could not yet be entirely devoted thereto, because the stocks were already occupied by other craft. The programme of warship construction now in hand was infinitely larger than was over undertaken before thft war. The history of the output of nava! i craft for the last twelve months showed it was from three ta four times as great < as the annual average output for a few I years preceding the war

FBENCH VESSELS SUNK. London, Nov. 1. The French Admiralty reports as follows on the losses from* submarines during the past two weeks:— This Last week. week. Arrivals ........... ..v...:.--.i G3B 930 Sailings ■ 7fl» 1032 Sunk over 1000' tons .. ; ....., 2 0 Sunk under 1600 tons ......, li 1 Unsuccessfully attacked ..., 4 4 ■ AMERICAN VESSEL SUNK. Washington. Nov. 1. The United States transport Finland, howeward bound, was torpedoed and returned to a foreign port under her own steam. There was no loss of life. The Finland was under escort and neither the torpedo nor the submarine was sighted. A PIRATICAL THIEF. New York, Not. 1. Experts have discovered that a German submarine captured by the British contains several stolen American patents. ITALIAN LOSSES. London, Nov. 1. Italian official.—Shipping returns for the week are as follows:—Arrivals 48!), departures 97-6; two steamers were sunk, and one escaped after having been attacked. NORWEGIAN NOTE TO GERMANY. Christiania, Nov. 1. Norway has sent a Note to Germany declaring that the Norwegian people regard the destruction of the convoy and the torpedoing of Norwegian ships as violations of the laws of humanity. STANDARDISED CARGO SHIPS. BUILT IN FOUR MONTHS.

A recent London cable stated that in the House of Commons, Sir Leo Chiozzn Money said Ave standard cargo vessels had been .built up to the 2.5 th inst. of 5200 tons cadi. Eighteen are to be completed by the end of December. The Daily News of August 30 says:— The first of the standardised ships built to the order of the Government has completed her final test 3, and has been put into commission as a cargo carrier for the nation In every respect the trial proved an unqualified success A presentative party, among them Sir Joseph Ma clay; tin Shipping Controller, were on board during tlie teats, very favorable opinions were expressed by the experts.

The standardised ship has been designed with tlie idea of providing a gw type of cargo carried in the shortest possible time with the minimum expenditure of material. The '.ceel was laid in February of this year, and on Saturday—less than the full six months—the vessel was fully loaded and ready to go to sea., She is the first of the series but actually there are two types of vesels of SOflO tons dead-weight carrying capacity. These are classified "A" and "B" the first being single-deck ships and the others two-deek ships. The ship tested on is of the ' : A" class.

It, is also intended to construct two smaller types—Class "C" of 5000 tons, and Class "D," of 3000 tens dead-weight. Other types are under consideration. As in the case of the hull, the Machinery mid engines are all standardised, so that the first engine goes into the hull complete. A feature of the Rencral equipment is the very large hatchways, making the ship almost self-trimming, and immensely facilitating loading aw! discharging. The central idea is that such steamers should he not only built quickly, but capable of being worked speedily. The type of vessel represents a great advance on the road towards producing a ''poor man's ship," as it can be run on the most economical lines. Admittedly there are no "friliings," but efficiency has not been overlooked.

The crews are berthed aft in the poop, instead of the forecastle, and sc-parate cubicles are provided, each fitted with two berths. Messing arrangements are entirely separated from the sleeping accommodation, a smoke-room is provided for general use, and special arrangements are made for steam heating. There is also a bath-room for the crew. The floor and cubic space provided are considerably in excess of the statutory requirements. In an interview during the tests, Sir Joseph Maclay said every yard was full of the work. That vessel, the first standardised ship, had been built in practically five months and it was expected that similar vessels would be turned out in about four or four and a-half months.