Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1910-12-13
OUR TARS ABROAD.
What England Thinks of Their
Visit

What England Thinks of Thei
Visit.
Every one in this country will join
in offering a hearty welcome to the
United States Atlantic fleet, two divis-
| ions of which will anchor respectively
at Portland and Gravesend, while the
other two Will take their places al
| the same ports in due course. His
| majesty the king. himself q sailor and
the supreme chief of the royal navy
will doubtless take occasion, at the
fitting moment. to greet the Ameri-
| can fleet on it's visit to the shores OF
his kingdom, not merely in the lam
guage Of formal compliment but with
that felicity of sentiment and expires.
sion with which he knows as we'll how
to identify his own feelings with those
of his people. To the royal navy itself
as represented by the first battle di-
vision and the first cruiser squadron
of the home fleet will fall, as it's due
prerogative, the congenial task of re.
ceiving and entertaining at it's head
quarters the first division of the
American fleet, and thereby of return.
ing with a cordial reciprocity Of feel
ing the splendid hospitality with
which British fleets and squadrons
have more than once been enter.
tanned Of late years by the United
States navy at home. There will be
no special naval reception at Graves
end, where the visit may be regarded
q maid 70 %
the nation and its capital But for
that very reason the nation itself
and especially the great metropolis
Of the empire, will assuredly see to
1t that their welcome to the division
| of American warships anchored in
the great historic port of London Is
not less cordial, sincere and hospit-
able than that of the royal navy al
Portland.
Just twenty years ago, in August
1890, Admiral Mahan, that great his
tOrian who has done more than any
other living man to open the eyes OF
all the world to the meaning of "sea
power wrote memorable and
even prophetic article entitled "The
United States Looking Outward" Al
that time and for many years after
ward such a visit as that which the
pay
to British waters would have been in
conceivable. But the United States
has since been looking outward with
ever-increasing range and acuteness
Of vision. The Spanish war and the
assumption by the United States Of the
task of completing the Isthmian canal
have opened it's eyes, and Admiral
Mahan has furnished the optical ap-
paratus whereby these events and
others organically related to them
and issuing out of them can be re-
garded In their true perspective. ffIe
United States has, in fact. become a
world power, and in so doing 1t has
perforce realized the great truth that,
though world power and sea power
may not be coeXtensive and identical,
yet they are organically and insep-
arably correlated. Hence the desire,
perfectly natural and legitimate, of
the United States to make its sea pow
er commensurate with the larger out
look and circuit of its external and
international relations.
The present visit of the American
fleet to European and British waters,
following as it does other well known
and equally significant proceedings Of
the same character, Is thus, as 1t were,
United States looking outward" with
clear vision and well-adjusted per-
spective. One Of the first signs Of
this kind was given perhaps nearly
dozen years ago, just after the
Spanish war, when some of the war
worn ships which had fought and
conquered off Santiago, visited Ber-
muda in February, 1899, under the
command of the late Admiral Samp-
son, and were there welcomed and
entertained by the British North
American squadron, then commanded
by the present Lord Fisher of Kill
verstone. This visit attracted little
notice at the time. but ]. r. Thurs
field. who was in Bermuda, has re-
corded in his Nelson and Other
profound significance Of the occa-
sion. 1.-The American fleet" he says,
was received with the utmost cor
diality. and the birthday of Washing
ton, which occurred during the visit,
was honOred by a salute from the
flagship of the British commander
in-chief.
Il have often thought since that
that salute may have been, in its SYM
bolic aspect, as significant and event
in the worlds history as even the
Boston Tea Party. For, whereas the
one marked the beginning Of national
eStrangement. the other was perhaps
the first overt sign of a growing ma
tional reconciliation That i'm
preston was confirmed by very
striking interview with Admiral
Sampson. which. with the full sane
ton of that gallant and distinguished
officer, was recorded in our columns
at the time. For some reason or
another" said the admiral, '.......~.
a vast and marvellous change, to me
as welcome as it was unexpected. has
now come over the feelings of the
people of the United States. Instead
of regarding England as our only
probable enemy in Europe. we now
regard her as our best and perhaps
our only friend, an@ at any rate as
the friend best worth having
Whether such a change was likely
to be permanent or not. he added.
II cannot say with confidence. but
sincerely hope it is That hope has
since been confirmed by many sig
nificent incidents on both sides or
the Atlantic, and it will assuredly
form the keynote Of the welcome now
to be accorded by this country to the
United States Atlantic heet.-London
Times.