THE BRITISH NAVY.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 9045, 21 March 1908, Page 5

THE BRITISH NAVY.

DISCUSSION IN THE HOUSE OF LORDS. Received March 20, 8.3 a.m. LONDON, March 19. In the House of Lords, Earl Cawdor, who was first Lord of the Admiralty in the Balfour Administration, criticised the Admiralty policy. He urged acceleration with regard to the building of a naval base at Rosyth, and insisted that it was necessary that Great Britain should maintain her unassailable supremacy against any two of the greatest naval Powers. Lord Tweedmouth, First Lord of the Admiralty, replied that Mr Asquith's recent declaration regarding the two-power standard was most decis ive In 1911 no combination of two first-class Powers would be equal to Britain's strength. He preferred a standard e:iual to that of any reasonably probable combination of foreign Powers. Lord Tweedmouth added that he hoped to finish the work at Rosyth in seven yeais. UNIONIST PRESS COMMENTS. Received March 20, 8.36 a.m. LONDON, March 19. Unionist newspapers describe Lord Tweedmouth's conception of the twopower standard as absolutely unsafe and untenable, inasmuch as the attitude of a foreign Power must always be liable to unforseen changes. Speaking in the House of Commons recently, Mr H. H. Asquith said the country must maintain an unassailable supremacy. The two-power standard was good, practicable, and workable. "If we find," he "there is a reasonable probability of the German programme being realised in the way the paper figures suggest, we will feel it our duty to provide—and shall provide —a sufficient number of ships, and shall lay them down at such dates that by Novembeiy 1911, the superiority of Germany which Mr Balfour foreshadows will not be an actual fact." I NAVAL BASE AT ROSYTH. Received March 20, 10.25 p.m. LONDON, March 20. Mr G. Lambert, Civil Lord of the Admiralty, speaking in the House of Commons, said that he had promised the contractors a bonus if they accelerated the completion* of the naval base at Rosyth, on the Firth of Forth. He stated that the two docks at Gibraltar were capable of taking Dreadnoughts.