The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1903-01-27
SUBMARINE
Engineering Calls on England to
Build Destroyers-Must Keep ACE
With france.

Inc results Of the experiments ar
ried out by the French with various
types of submarine boats in the Eng
lish Channel at Cherbourg again
brings forward the Importance Of this
question. The value of such expert
ments cannot be overrated, especially
as We ourselves have not, up to the
present. had similar opportunities for
studying the practical utility of sub
marine boats on so broad a basis. the
French have now for many years been
giving their best scientific and expert
mental study to this question:: they
have built many different types of
boats, and they may now be said 20
have proved their value. The recent
are of special significance
to ourselves. as they have taken place
so closely to our important harbors
and in a locality which would PROBABLY
serve as a base for preparatory mobi-
liZation for an attack on our principal
anchorageS. Moreover, while the
value of the submarine for the defense
of ports and channels has been ac-
cepted without challenge, the utility
of such craft for offensive attack has
not been definitely established until
now, when the accomplishment of the
objects of the experiments at Saint
Vast Ia Hugue has been demon
strated.
Such experiments have clearly prov
ed. as recorded in the official report
published in "a Moniteur de la Flotte,
that submarines can leave their CEN
trail station unobserved by vessels
placed for the special purpose of
Watching them. and that a fleet Will
never be secure in an anchorage Sit
uated within their radius of action. In
fact. for a fleet to be really safe it
y-n116 no nn6nCcnru for ~ 70 hn Sht,s
up in a closed harbor, the entrance Of
which is protected for it's whole depth
against submarine attack. Otherwise
it will be necessary for it to take the
sea. and to steam at considerable
speed, in order to obtain security.
ARTILLERY NO PROTECTION.
The maneuvers have also proved
| that q naval force would commit a
| serious fault in anchoring within the
radius of action of submarines: and
| thirdly, that the lookout On vessels or
other positions to obtain evidence Of
the approach of submarines is futile,
and that the protection of ships at
anchor against such attack cannot be
secured by means of artillery. Such
deductions as the French experiments
have established suggest great changes
in naval tactics n point to the adj
vantage of submarine boat f1otillas.
At the present time the government
Of France have at their disposal thir.
ty-fiVe submarine boats, and will POS
sess in Il very few months some sever
~ in all, capable of taking the sea
OF course, all of these seventy boat:
are not equally efficient. for the FrencT
experiments, o in the Mediter
! ranean and in the Channel, show tina
far greater service can be obtained
from the large boat capable Of keep
ing the sea in ali weathers. with
fair amount of comfort to the c-ews
han could possibly be obtained +!
the smaller craft. But these latte
have their duties which would prin
CipaIly lie in the direction of tn,
coast and harbor protection, and the.
would constitute a great menace L
even 4 blockade by small vessels Q
the destroyer type. The large Frencl
Sumbersibles-such as the Narval. III
Espadon, Sirepe. Silure, Triton, etc
are formidable weapons. as they cal
proceed from the security of harbor
on the French coast, and, withou
I'VE coming to the surface, can at
tack any vessel cruising even 1T higI
speed. providing h passes With
torpedo range or they could sinl
some of the heaviest and most i'm
portant mercantile marine vessel
making passage in the Channel. TT,
same would applv 20 tn
O DCA'il-liIS ~ lIiS Il liz
government, provided they could man
age to get within torpedo range, whici
is now 1000 meters.
ENGLAND SHOULD HAVE THEM
1t is reasonable to suppose that
should we. unfortunately. find Our
selves at war with France, the Frauci
government would at once place eve
the small and comparatively inofi
cient submarine vessels in the Brit;s'
Channel, and dispose them at cartai
intervals. so that if a vessel passin
up the Channel should come betwee
the line or lines of such boats the
would be within effective torpej
range. 4 successful shot from one @
them against a first-class battiesni
might. at one stroke, wipe out Il mil
lion sterling, and some 500 or 900 train
ed seamen who could be i'll spared
The scofiings of ignorant people At I'll
submarine boat would then be of n
avail: and surely 1t is time that, 1