The Sun.
London, England, 1852-11-29 00:00:00

UGMENTATION OF THE NAVI

The public will learn with great satisfaction that the
Government has resolved to call upon Parliament to
vote the necessary supplies for a considerable addition
to the naval forces of the country. It is not, as we
have frequently had occasion to remark, in the number
of her Majesty's ships of war that our chief deficiency
is to be traced, and probably there never was a time of
peace at which a more powerful naval armament could
be equipped for sea. But the most essential condition
of our maritime strength is a body of well-trained sea-
men to man those vessels, and to contribute to the de-
fence of our coasts. The Commission which has been
sitting for some time past to consider the best means of
manning the navy, has adopted several valuable sug-
gestions from officers whose judgment and experience
may be relied cn ; and we presume that it is in conse-
quence of these recommendations that the Government
and the Admiralty have resolved to add about 5,000
seamen to the fleet, with a proportionate addition to
the Marines.

The necessity of such an augmentation at the present
time is a subject which we hold it to be unnecessary to dis-
cuss or to demonstrate, for it is universally felt ; and al-
though Lord Derby has omitted no occasion to testify
his reliance on the good understanding which happily ex-
ists between this country and foreign nations, in so
much that we cannot be accused of increasing our arma-
ments with hostile purposes against any foreign power,
yet the general defence of the kingdom undoubtedly re-
quires these sacrifices and exertions to enable us to meet
any contingency that may arise in the present uncertain
condition of Europe. A large and efficient body of seamen
is the most essential of all the conditions of maritime
power, though it is that which it is most difficult to
maintain in time of peace against the competition of the
merchant service, and even of some foreign navies. The
service of the British navy may be made and ought to
be made, the most secure provision to which a seafaring
man has to look. The practice of discharging the well-
trained crews of ships recently paid off ought at once to
be put an end to ; and if other conditions are
required to command the service of this important class
of the community, they should be adopted. We cannot
question that the Government, in taking this step, is
prepared to sanction the measures necessary to give effect
to it, for we apprehend that, in the present state of our
trade, 5,000 seamen will not be raised for the fleet without
some extra exertions.

It would be an error to attribute to this measure a
greater degree of political importance than it deserves,
and although it happens to correspond in point of time
with the proclamation of the French Empire, there is
probably no direct connexion between the two incidents.
But we cannot be ignorant that an extraordinary degree
of activity has prevailed for some time past in the dock-
yards of our most powerful neighbour, and that while
some show has been made of a reduction in the French
army, the navy of that country has been augmented to
an unprecedented extent. To place our own protective
forces on at least an equal footing is therefore the first
duty of the Ministers of this country, and we are satisfied
that the nation will gladly respond to a call which does
not exceed what our pacific policy and our territorial
security absolutely require.—Times.