IMPERIAL DEFENCE.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 9539, 10 July 1909, Page 4

IMPERIAL DEFENCE.

The question as to the best means by which the colonies can help the Mother Country in maintaining her all-essential sea power is attracting universal attention at present. On the proper solution of this question a writer,in National Defence believes, the future existence of the Empire will depend. Most naval experts are inclined to think that the principle of "one flag, one fleet," is essential to the British navy of the future. The writer quoted, however, seems somewhat more inclined to indulge the natural desire of the colonies to have a large share both in the making and after-manage ment of the ships they supply. "British subjects inhabiting outlying parts of the Empire," he says, "must feel that their undoubted right to have a say as to the disposal of money which they provide will not be infringed. They must also feel that as far as conditions render it possible, the money which they grant to the Sovereign for naval purposes will be spent in their own country. The wish for this may not survive for long, but so long as it exists it should be respected and complied with whenever possible. If the dominions and the Commonwealth between them could provide a suitably manned fleet of cruisers they would relieve the strain on the resources of the Mother Country. All the localised flotillas that they could contrive to get together would not enable the Mother Country to dispense with the addition of even a singie cruiser to the navy. In time, as the relative greatness of the dominions increased, the reinforcement of the fleet which they could furnish would, no doubt, be carried further, and their share in the naval. defence of th 3 Empire would take the form of battleships or whatever may represent them in the future."