The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1878-03-29
The Naval Battle Of the Future.
Blsckwood's Magazine.

The question of how naval battle
would now be fought is often raised.
but il exceedingly difficufkf0 aaswes.
One thing is certain-the hostile SQUAD
rons will be kept in rapid motion for
the purpose of effecting as well as eva
ding an attack by ram, which<will be
the first object sought after, Thus the
distance of the enemy Will be varying
constantly, and correct estimation
of the range will he almost impossible;
therefore, the chance of hitting at any
particular part will be very small. 1t
will be seen that upon the judgment
and nerve of the officer in command,
will now, more than ever, depend the
issue of an engagement, The speed of
the ships, the Necessity of closely
watching every movement of the enc
my 50 as instantly to make the proper
onunter-mOve, the absolute need of
prompt decision, will prevent a mo-
ment for reflection or consultation.
The helm and the engines must he
under the captains instant control.
He and those by him on deck will
alone be ahle to see the enemy at the
frequent times when he is obsured by
smoke from the battery below, and to
distinguish between friend and foe;
and his quck perception will be re-
quisite to determine the proper direc-
ton and range for his guns, as well as
avoid firing into friends. The extreme
/ Importance of the life of the officer in
command of II squadron, 50 long as the
battle lasts, must also he apparent. In
the OLD wars, the skill, Judgment and
determination of our naval command
ers were chiefly exhibited by the man.
mer in which they sought out their adj
LIZ L
Hostile fleets were sometimes in sight
of each other for days calmS. light
winds, or f0gs preventing their APP
urOach each commander endeavoring
by skillfln SeamanShip to gain the
weather-gauge. But the actieln fairly
| commenced, there was little maneuVer-
| ing-it was hard fighting; the ships
were laid alongside an enemy, and tine
valor of our sailors settled the matter.
| If the captain were disabled, the duty
| uf MS successor was simple and Self-ev-
| iuent; if he We're Incompetent, his de-
| ficiCncieS could be made up by his
| principal officers; if he lacked courage.
his men supplied the want, Nelson's
genius had made all the necessary dis
| positions for battle both at the Nile
! and Trafalgar long before the action
cen1Henced; the captains had only to
| steer Jnelf SnlpS IOr lnelT alloIleQ au-
versary and the rest was done by the
| crew. Had Nelson been killed by the
| first shot fired al Trafalgar, the issue
of the battle would have ssseR 5tE1e
same. But how different nOw{ From
the beginning to the eld,bf an actioa
rapid and constant maneuvering will
Ire required; the ships must be kept
firmly in hand and skilfully guided;
all the best experience of the Admiral
will be in continual request, and
should he be killed or disabled at a
critical moment, the consequences
would probably be most serious. 1t is
not too much to cay that the result OF
naval engagement In these days
will depend entirely upon the skill oi
the superior officers, in default OF
which the courage and discipline oi
| the crews will avail little.