New-York tribune., 1908-07-25
TWO ADMIRALS
Feuds in the British NaUy-4 Mis-
chieUous Press Gang.

.,on than the faction feuds over the two al
-,i-sls The navy and the press are divided
under the Fisher and Beresford pennants instead
:. being united under the royal standard in an
,,n-ivsIled demonstration of power. The
sbar fights between the home feet defending
-. North Sea flank of the kingdom. and the
(-bsnnel feet reinforced by the cruiser squadron.
,.-htcr7 Is making imaginary attack from the
German quarter. represent mimic warfare. the
-asl %ehtins is carried by the partisans Of the
e5-,irals aaoat and ashore, and il is vindictive
enc nnerciless- An organized attack has been
made upon Lord Charles Beresford. who COM
lands the Channel feet and is the most con-
,ic,nus figure in nnanoruvres employing over
,h-ee hundred vessels of war. He has been
charged with insubordination to the Admiralty.
o-ssl arfronts 20 the First Sea Lord and Sir
.oo-rv Scott and with issuing orders in tactical
.-,ises f,v which cruiser would have been
,,E If the second in command had not dis
L.,-A5 them Sir John Fisher on the other
hand has been accused Of instigating these as
.s,,I+s of bounding his rival into indiscretfons
,-1-olvfne dismissal and Of exercising eutocratic
royrer over the navy. There is little less than
q c,-rlone Of personal antagonisn in this press
cs-7nsfgn between naval factions.
sr John Fisher at sixty-seven is supported by
+tA most Jealous parttsans and attacked by most
-,s1a,-olent critics This is because he has the
s-i,-inr force Of an irresistible will and has re-
o-rsrizAs the navy with scientific thoroughness-
when he became First Sea Lord the ships were
s-sr-e-ed over the face Of the waters, with the
strongest contingent in the Mediterranean and
with millions wasted on useless craft and detec-
-i,-s training Within six years S6 per cent OF
+be e-ec-ive fighting force has been concentrated
= home waters for possible emergency in the
North Sea the useless hulks have been con-
signed - the scrap heap. nucleus crews have
met
.-efr5nr have been rnodernized, E1nnery prac-
~-;ce has been improved and general efficiency
has been secured at z lower cost Only man
Of tremendous force and organizing capacity
could have effected such radical reforms He
has created enthusiasm in the service for the
,e-- system and interested the nation in the
-,snoeuvres Of the combined fleets, and he has
sls7 excited criticism and enrnity by his arbi-
--z-v methods his dornineering personality ana
his absolute faith in his ideas of naval warfare
and supremacy Without making speeches at
f-IiIdhan banouets. or having recourse TO osten-
+s-inus means Of advertisement. he has be-
co-7e The master mind of the reorganized navy.
with swarm of eulogists and partisans around
him and with more enemies on deck and on
shore than any other Sea Lord has numbered
for many generations.
ro-5 Charles Beresford a. sixty-two is the
breeziesr and most popular admiral in the navy
with an unrivalled reputation as a sea dog with
the oIdtirne fighting strain Few officers OF hleh
rank have had any experience under nre, but
his Condor exploit in engaging Egyptian bat
terv for an hour or more without support ana
his ralor in commanding the naval brigade at
4bu Klea and in rescuing Wilson when sur
rounded by dervishes in the Nile. have not been
forgotten. His brilliant personality fasclnates
officers associated with him and friends in social
life and he has a strong body Of followers
whenever he raises any controversial question
connected with the service When he com
uanded the Mediterranean feet he protested
against the policy of the Admiralty in with
holding adequate reinforcements. and he re-
pested his warning when he took charge Of the
Channel feet. For twenty years he has been
The persistent advocate Of a stronger navy, and
his experience in handling fleets and his capacity
II managing large bodies Of men have lent
authority his appeals. II he be forced TO
sign his command in consequence of the par
tisan warfare waged against him he will
undoubtedly stand for Parliament and make as
sturdy and gallant a fight for his principles as
he did when he kept the Condor under fire or
sprsng the rescue Of the beleaguered crews
Of the Nile steamers. The young officers Of the
navy have already made a hero Of him. and
are complaining that Sir John Fisher and the
Admiralty have not treated him fairly and are
seeking To drive him out Of the service because
ne has IDEAS Of his own and does not accept the
new policies final and irrefutable.
These the rival adniraIs. whose partfsans
are arrayed in rancorous warfare: and
each has powerful press. with naval experts
and sarcastic leader writers behind him. Sir
Percy Scott in command Of the cruiser squad
fon- IS an intimate friend and e strong supporter
Of Sir John Fisher, and he has been kept where
ne is, although he offered personal affront TO
Lord Charles BeresforG in the notorious paint
signal. which involved suspension Of personal
relations with his superior officers. Faction
feeling has been increased by irresponsible Cos
SIP about breaches of courtesy between Sir John
Fisher and Lord Charles Beresford and a rnys-
te-7ous Tryon manoeuvre which nearly proved
olsas1rous- There are loud outcries from the
FISHER press for the restoration of discipline
and the removal OF commander who does not
recognize the authority Of the Admiralty in fun
oarnental issues of naval policy. and there are
oonternptuous sneers from the Beresford experts
over what looks like inspired statement 70
the erect that apparatus for wireless teleg-
raphy has been fitted upon the top OF the Ad-
niralty that every ship in the manpuvres
can be manipulated like q piece on the chess
board Altogether there is deadlier warfare on
land than OF sea- and the fleets on the North
Sea are honeyoombed with feuds and personal
an-nostties, instead Of being united. disciplined
and prepared for grave emergency.
The naval press gang is clearly playing into
the hands Of the Germans by these III tempered
attacks upon the best organizer and the most
oashing commander in the British navy. Less
mischief would be caused by packages OF dyna-
mite dropped from feet OF Zeppelin air cruis-
ers from the Rhine than is produced by this
campaign of innuendo and invention against
The tao aduirals, who may differ IN details but
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