New-York tribune., 1897-07-22
PLAYING AT WAR.
WITH THE RISK OF LOOSE PISTON
spRINGs-A CAMPAIGN IN LIBEL
COURT-THE SOUTH AFRI-
CAN REPORT.

sail for the north coast or lrelano ioi ''' "''""'
maneuvres Of the Channel and Reserve squad
rons 1t Is a game Of make-believe war; WIN
the fleet divided against itself and operating by
the rule of three, and capturing prizes ana VIM
ming battles without any burning of gunpowder.
Mathematical puzzles are worked out In nominai
circles of action within ninety hours OF an ny
notbetical declaration Of war; and incidentally
there is fine practice in handling ships ana IN
doing everything except actual fighting.
One OF the incidents Of this sham fght was
not anticipated One Of the newest ana hhest
of the battle-ships exhibited at the naval re-
view was the Mars. monster or l4'"~ 'ohs'
which few weeks before had been put IN COM
mission after a series OF exhaustive steam 'sa'S'
She was ordered to Join the first DIVISION Oh 'ne
fleet at Lough Swilly. reporting to the Aom'ra'
flagship Majestic, for mimic battle against 'he
second division headed by the Magninceh' IN
Blacksod Bay. The orders could not be carr'eo
out for both her high-pressure cyiihoers s'a'
board were badly scored or cut WIN pis'o"
r;rgs and she was disabled before single
mannuvre had been planned Inc MATS wa"
detached from the squadron and ordered isno-
minously to the repair shop. one OF 'he NC"
cruisers the Terrible, narrowly escaped SINH
lar fate for one of her high-pressure cylinders
got out of order through ill-iting piston springs
| and the machinery could be patched up only
|
| after a delay Of twenty-four hours
The injuries sustained by these two spienoio
| war vessels during run through the irish sea
| illustrated the uncertainties connected Win
| modern naval warfare. The Mars was d oa'"e
| chin or the most recent and approved type. and
the Terrible a cruiser representing IN speeo'
| coal endurance and battery power the "a~''
mum Of efficiency; but each was noatins ma
| chne-shop filed with complex ana dehca'e
| ha dfcoh htod
mechanism, and each was liable TO De disao'eu
in an ordinary run through chopPy
| They were playing at war, without 'he oui'e
| shells the roar Of quck-frng guns ana the III
| sidous attack Of torpedoes; ana tne p''''
| rings and springs got loose, and the prouo war
ships with all their costly armamehts anu uv
,ences were temporarily helpless. What VIII
| h.nnor u,ber a fleet is actually under fire and
rxposed to the resources of destruction wnich
| modern engineering science mas de'iseu "'
naval expert attempts to forecast
Tho fighting ships Of Nelson's day were prac-
t,cal nroducts of the genius of sea-power. Inc
| eeat recently reviewed at Spthead ana no"
| manpuvring in Irish waters is, like all mooern
| rovies q gigantic experiment, for when no oe-
cisive test has yet been provided by actual e~-
| nerience in war. When a squadron is piayihe
at war. the damage Is not serious II the mechah-
lam breaks down through an ill-httlng pis'on
sprlng or some equally trivial derahse'ie"''
When the first naval war worthy OF the name
,s fought to a close. the real value OF 'he hooei"
| science of sea-power will be known. IL VIII pe
,ol,owed by the survival Of the fttest, ana q
| oomnete revolution in naval architecture ahu
engineering.
THE BADGE OF COURAGE.
Another method Of playing at war mas peeh
illustrated by the manpuvres OF jealous rNa''
IN a libel case. Two war correspondents nave
been fighting battle in the courts WIFI i''o'e
| audacity than discretion. One has recoVereu
81 600 damages from the other in hpe. suit
| based upon an abusive letter charging him WIN
| cowardice and vile and inhuman conduct tow-
| ard fellow correspondent from America oo
far as 1t is possible for jury to estaphsh repu-
tation by a prompt, emphatic verdict ne mas az
counI,sbed his purpose: but the episode Is
scandalous one from which neither victor nor
vorou,shed emerges with dignity. Journalists
discredit their profession when they ma IL neces
sarv 10 have recourse to the courts IN order 10
prove their personal courage anu ''e'
to their employers.
?, .,,s ,nstance .The Times" correspondent
Mr. Knight was guilty Of the indiscretion OK
making charges which he could not prove he
had sent by a roundabout way letter 10 the
office OF THE Daily Chronicle" which was de-
signed to blacken the reputation or feiio"-
correspondent in the Nile campaign Mr.. Al
ter,dpe by describing him as despicable cow
ard who shirked his duty to his employers Ill
treated his tent companion from America ana
enallv scuttled out of the campaign under a
fictitious plea of illness Mr. knights letter
w.s as childish In it's threats it was mali
c,ous in tone and the object OF 1t was uninis-
,akab,e II was to discredt rival so thor
again obtain em-
n,ovment in a military campaign His own
test,monv tended to emphasize the malicious
ness Of the libel for he avowed his intention
NJ repeating his charges, whatever might De
the verdict of the jury. He will probably tninK
better Of it, now that he has judgment ior
f1.OOO, with costs, hanging over him.
The only point at which any serious enort
was made to sustain the charges by direct tes-
tmony was the absence Of Mr. Atteridge from
the fighting line in the battle of Firket. Sew.
eral correspondents supported Mr. knights ~
sertions by affirming that they were well IN
front and did not see Mr.. Atteridge. Among
these was Mr. Gwynne Reuters representative
in the Soudan and Greek campaigns. whose
recent work in the field has been conspicuous
for energy and GOODNESS. Mr.. Atteridge him.
self declared that he was under fire from the
opening Of the fight, and that as soon as possi-
BILE he Joined the Sirdar. Whether he was IN
the fighting line or not, he seems 70 nave sue
ceeded in sending to London the first complete
account of the battle. and this fact Justines
"The Chronicles" conclusion that war cor.
RESPONDENT Is not a combatant who Is COM
ne,Ied TO take all the risks Of the "fou furieux"
attitude His business is to see the battle ana
TO send off the earliest account OF 1t. In this
respect Mr.. Atteridge while raw recruit. COM
netting with veteran correspondents. seems 70
have been completely successful
English boys in private schools have sim
; ple method Of enforcing discipline. They elect
a CAPTAIN, who is arbiter In all disputes. and
banishes to Coventry youthful offenders by de-
| ..as k,.a,,, mhich there can be no apneal NJ.