The Daily News. TUESDAY, JUNE 25, 1918. THE QUESTION OF A SEA BATTLE.

Taranaki Daily News, 25 June 1918, Page 4

The Daily News. TUESDAY, JUNE 25, 1918. THE QUESTION OF A SEA BATTLE.

In considering the question of whether the German Navy will venture on a conflict with that of Britain we have to remember that with Germany it is a case of being "all out." It would seem quite impossible that any final decision in this war can be obtained without a naval fight, for Germany's aim is quite as much to obtain control of the highways of the sea

as to capture Paris and the Channel ports. A victory on land would be of little service to the Huns, so that it may fairly be assumed that sooner or later there will be another Trafalgar. At the present time tßere are very sound reasons why, when German soldiers are dying in thousands and their offensives on land are fruitless, resort should he had to the power of :her navy, on which such vast sums have been expended. There are two ways in which the enemy might think it advisable to operate—an attempted invasion of Britain designed to create confusion in British military arrangements, or a battle to clear the way for fast cruisers which would interfere with the passage of American troops—possibly a combination of these aims might be alluring. At any rate if the holding up of American troops has a place in the minds of the German High Command, a delayed naval offensive would be of little use, for these troops are pouring in at a speed that may well make the Germans alarmed. Madeira and the Azores lie open to a coup de main, or some sort of an attempt might be made on the coast of Ireland. Assuming that German warships got out to sea, they would probably be able to maintain themselves by piracy for a considerable time, and the convoys of American troops would have to be of exceptional strength, and even so disasters would probably occur. Before any danger of this kind can happen, the Germans will have to prove either too strong or too skilful for the An trio-American- Japanese fleets, so the chance is very remote. Still, they may try in sheer desperation. Well, let them; the British Navy is ready and willing. Britain is, of course, staking a great deal on her sea supremacy, and with good reason. The strength of the German Navy is fairly accurately known. The names of the three" new battleships and three new cruisers that have been mentioned merely signify the completion of the German programme, and it is not considered that Germany has any surprise in store either in guns or special devices. It would be quite out of the question to use super-guns except on ships specially designed for the purpose, and they would be less useful at sea than the twelve' or fifteen inch guns now in use. The submarine campaign having failed, they might call in all their U-boats, and might also make a bold and skilful use of their formidable torpedo flotillas, but the British flotillas and submarines, supplemented by those of America would amply_ suffice to deal with Bueh flotillas as the enemy could muster, while as regards battleships and cruisers the preponderance on the side of the Allies is so stupendous that no wonder the Germans hesitate to advance to certain defeat. Superior strategy alone could give them the slightest hope of breaking through, for even if they succeed in dividing the Allied fleets they could not gain a victory, though a few of their warships might get through. 'They might possibly, by the aid of Russian warships, make a diverRion in the Eastern Mediterranean and threaten the communications of the Salonika force, and possibly, in some degree, the force in Palestine, but it is not probable that such an operation would he cf any service, as the resources of the Allies are far too vast to permit of such raids attaining any ?reat success. In previous wars the opposing fleets have almost always met at last, for instance, l3uiberon Bay, The Saints, and Trafalgar. The events which led \o Quiberon are, perhaps, the m«st instructive. Louis Xl—or rather Choiseul—found the strau-gle-hold of the British Navv intolerable. The French troops were withdrawn from' the Coniinental campaign and massed for *n invasion of England. Then O'onflans was ordered out to clear ■■* way for them—and a complete ■lefeat, in the most wonderful battle of naval history, was his reward. History has a way of repeating itself, and should the Germans attempt a similar move their fate will assuredly be similar. We may expect a great naval effort by Germany, but can await its adrent with the utmost confidence. For the Germans to preserve an inferior fleet if their armies sueimmb would profit them nothing.