Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1862-12-04
The Need of a Navy.

Perhaps the Confederacy has made no error in the
conduct OF the rous than that of taking for
granted presumed inability part to cOpe with
he formd able nava! power of the North. 1t my be
that the South is not maritime country. 1t ~
3e that she has commercial navy, aud that sh
almost destitute of hat class OF population from which
mariners supplied But il is not that these de-
iencs may not be remzded 1t has often en- as
sumtd that there is certain inCompatibilty betwee
military power aud naval power that the nation VIII
strongest land must by sort OF compensatory
urcc So, be- weak on The water, and that the nation
which strong the water cannot be strong land.
1t is likewise often asserted, with good deal of posi-
tlveness that without commercial navy, and matt
ime population, country can hope to become pow
-ru at sea- or to compeTe with adversary posses
sing those advantages All of these assumptions are
hl-Iounded and faacious. They may be supported by
p1ort argumenr; but they contradiced by the
tac!s of history To say that nation strong on water
must be ak on land, or strong on land muat be weak
water may serve to point antthesis, to Illus
rae the doctrne OF compensation, but it really has
very little foundation either IL reason in history
The truth is that salient and remarkable instances may
be found to prove precisely the opp site opinion; and
ii we compelled follow budly in the foot pruts
OF history we might say with some plausibiy, that
naval and military strength must always be found in
combination, and that the can never achieve a
marked and permanent success until 1t is lned with
the other. At the commencement of the Persian
p Ce cia was the dominant naval power of the world,
and PfGncia 10 alliance with Persia. The
Greeks courageous and deermined but they were
wlthout ships and Anthems herself had DOT then be
come commercial community. Yet the Atheuans
created navy; they extempor zad it from the waves
and the victory of Saams saved Greece from conquest
and eubjngation. When the Peloponnesian began
Athens wassupreme at sea, and Sparta held dominion
over the land. The struggle between the rival powers
was characterized by varying fortunes and indecisiVe
results until Sparta, though destitute IF ships and
sailors, had managed to raise and equip and man g
navy and thus to a. qore iDdispatable sscendency
The wars between Rome and Carthage furnish an
other example of the same KIDD. Carthage a com
mercal aud naval power. Rome eXcus vey
military power Yet Rome although, at the beginning
destitute of sailors and Of Ships managed to create
navy and succeeded in bringing the war to SUCCESS
full issue only when she had broken the naval slrengt
of her adversary. Nor does the experience of m0dsr
times tend weaken the force Of the examples draw
from ancient history Those Countries which have *
posed coasts have remained powerful oply SO long
they have been able to maintain themselves at b
decline of the military power of the Italian republic
naval supremacy. The rise of England into the frs
tnaval strength. Perhaps nothing contributed more
of his hes and the annhllation of his naval resource
supiue difference to the naval superiority OF Eaglau
of her troops the skill OF her geoera she ne de the
sistaace OF powerful navy TO enable her to nainta
her position at the head of European nations Victim
{ that the events of the present war have sohcens
shown the advantages derived BY the enemy from b