Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-05-19
REFUSE TO GET EXCITED
New Plan Of Country's Defense by
Destroyer Patrol.
W0RKNGMEN IN POLITICS
Movement to Fuse the Conservative
and Uniontst Labor Organizations
as New Party.
By PHILLIP EVERETT,

Special CablegTam to The Star.
| LONDON. May 1s.-Tmngs are not go
ing very well with the opponents Of Irish
| home rule. The question no longer real
| ly interests the English people. who re-
| fuse to believe that the granting Of the
desire OF the patriots Of Ireland would be
| a fatal blow to the welfare OF the British
empire. The younger generation Is well
aware that the federal principle is work
| ing smoothly among other great nations.
| There 10, indeed, something that re-
| minds one Of the stone age in the present
| phase Of the resistance Of home rule.
Argument Is practically exhausted. The
fires Of argument burn very low, and
do not respond even to the most ener-
| getic stocking. But the prophets of the
old time still go on calling on their gods
and gashing themselves with knives,
| though they are convinced that their
cause is lost and that 1t would be much
\ more sensible to submit to the inevitable.
| They doubtless will eventually do SO
when they think they have fought long
| enough to surrender without dishonor.
| The tory obstructionists in the path Of
| home rule will not be able to resist any
more speeches like the one recently made
| by Winston Churchill when he intro
| dueed the government bill at the second
| reading.
New Plan Of Destroyer Defense.
| With the transfer OF the Office of
first lord of the admiralty to Winston
Churchill. a new era may be said to have
begun. Even the bitterest opponents OF
the government have not dared to accuse
| the young secretary of the navy Of luke
warmness or lack Of vigilant patriotism
Hardly q week has passed since without
the announcement Of the strengthening
| Of the country's naval defenses One of
the most striking of these which has
just come into force is the organization
of an entirely new scheme of destroyer
defense, based on the idea Of continuous
patrol.
Under the old system both Of the bat
tie sQuadrons of the home fleet had q de-
strOyer fiotilla attached, and there were
reserve flotillas at Davenport, Ports
mouth and the More. Under the new
nently attached to the battle fleets. In
stead, the whole Of England's available
| forces are organized into eight f1ottllas,
four being in full commission and four
| in reserve with nucleus crews.
/ OF the four active fiotillas, the first and
second, thirty-six in all, will be based on
Rosyth, the third on Harwich and the
| fourth on Portland. The fifth (reserve)
/ e,
the sixth Portsmouth, the seventh Deven-
port and the eighth Rosyth. This last
| will be stationed at Harwich until the
necessary preparations have been made
at the Scottish port.
No fewer than 185 destroyers are in
| cluded in the new organization, besides
eight fast cruisers, eight scouts and eight
depot and repair ships. Each fiotilla is
from sixteen to twenty-four strong. Sixty
| eight will be in full commission and
ninety-Seyen In reserve the numbers in
the North sea being fifty-two and fifty,
| respectively.
| In addition to these 1O2 deStroyers there
are fotillas Of twelve submarines apiece
based on Harwich and Dundee. With the
exception of the fifth flotilla, all the North
sea destroyers are driven by turbines, and
/ the majority burn Oil fuel exclusively.
| The change will quite double the eff
/ fective strength Of our advance guard
i along the eastern seaboard, and 1t is
hoped that the new arrangements will dis
courage the growth of the usual spring
crop Of German scares."