The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1915-05-14

before peace was broken. The British
feet has succeeded in combining the
high sea feet of Germany to its home
ports, recent reports of the appear
ance at sea of German battle squad
ron lacking confirmation. Invasion In
force of the British Isles has also
been prevented and the sea has been
kept open, not only for the safe
transport to the Continent of the
British expeditionary forces. but for
the safe escort of the contingents
from the oversee Dominions and In
dia. The feet, moreover. while eff
fectually disposing of the oversee
trade of Germany and Austria, has
given the British military authorities.
as well as the governments OF Bel
GUM, France and Russia, access to
the worlds markets for war NUM-
lions, food and clothing. There can
be no question that British finances
have been greatly reinforced by the
completeness with which the British
navy has from the start supported
British prestige. In the eyes of the
world, any more than there can be
that the supremacy OF British sea
power has largely contributed to
bringing unemployment in the United
Kingdom down to lower figure than
it has reached for many years. All
this has been accomplished with
relatively small destruction of life
and property. and at a comparative
Iy small increase in cost Of the
navy.
What may be called the indirect
military results of the superiority OF
the British navy have not been less
striking. But for the advantage 1t
scored at the very beginning Of the
war the French Republic might have
been crushed and forced to make
humiliating peace. and then the Ger
man army would have turned upon
Russia before the Russian army was
fairly modified. With . navy weak
er than that of Germany, Great Brit
ain could have taken no part in the
struggle on sea or on land, and 1t
would have been the lot of her peo-
pie to watch In impotence the onward
march of German militarism in the
full consciousness. that the downfall
of France and Belgium and the de-
feat of Russia were merely the first
steps toward the violation of their
own Island sanctity and the dismem-
berment of the Empire. Nor should
the services which the British navy
has been able to render to neutral
commerce be ignored. In the absence
OF overwhelming power opposed to
her Germany could have utilized her
geographical position not only to the
detriment of the United Kingdom. but
to the deriment of the world. There
is no trade route upon which dozens
OF herman CruiSeTS anu aIhou mCA
chantmen might not have operated
to the complete dislocation Of the sea
communications Of the British EN-
pire. Had the British feet been en-
gagged for months In struggling to
win the mastery of the seas against
the active naval forces Of Germany
the whole foreign commerce. not on
ly of the United States, but Of every
neutral nation. would have been
brought practically to a standstill.
No endurable rate of marine insur-
ance would covered the risk Of ships
and cargoes falling into the hands Of
British or German men-of-war, and
thus neutral nations would have been
forced by the very weakness of Brit
ish sea power to submit to losses
almost as serious as those imposed on
the belligerents.