Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-06-25

ferred. and a similar battle fought
every day in the week would not trans
fer it. Nothing but loss of men and
money has been the immediate result.
The moral effect upon the German ma
ton has been good, but the grip of the
blockading fleet is tighter than before.
The Germans accomplished what
they did by following the eternal prin-
ciple of successful strategy-so pre-
senting their forces as to have the
greater power at the point of contact
The English retrieved the day by re-
fusing to be beaten and fighting until
the arrival of their main feet shifted
the power. when the Germans, in
formed by their air scouts of the ap-
proach of superior numbers, did the
right military thing and refused to &C
cept battle with A superior force.
Every possible instrument of de-
struction known to mankind was en-
ployed. The backbone of the fighting
line was. all sailormen knew, the
dreadnaughts. They went whittier they
would, and there was nothing but hos
tile dreadnaughts that could stop them.
They We're in more or less danger from
torpedoes, but the experience of the
Warspite and proba bly, the Marlbor-
ough and several German ships indi-
Gates that an up-to-date dreadnaught
can stand hits from one or more tor
pedoes.
The battle cruisers fought in a way
not intended by their designers, and
their unfitness for close work as a
substitute for hattleships was shown
to all who thought the day of the
heavily armored ship was over. But
the need of them a fast wing in
heading off a line in battle is equally
clear, to say nothing of their use in
distant expeditions and in scouting
work.
The slow or lightly armored cruiser.
such as the L. $. s. Sacramento class,
has no place in the line The battery
power amounts to little; they are too
N-r,1t a,-ah TO CT and rira 0h
to get out of the way.
"Destroyers on both sides covered
themselves with glory. the English
almost to a certainty infiicting con-
siderabl damage in the night fighting.
They greatly outnumbere their OPP
ponents and excel them in speed.
These swift. low, smokeless craft, filled
with machinery and torpedoes. respond
to the aggressiveness of the men they
carry, and when they attack in shoals
with the certainty that some will be
lost, with each crew striving to be in
front, where the exposure is greatest,
any ship within 10000 yards is in
danger. Nothing is known of What the
submarines accomplished.
The gunnerv on both sides seems
TO have been. all things considered, ex-
cellert. In the excitement of battle.
when under fire. such scores cannot
be expected as at target practice. The
sea was smooth, affording a good gun
platform: the light was not clear SO
in that respect. but the mist nterfered
with both sides. a times shutting out
the targets completely This prevent
ed firing at long distances. rarely
over 1000 yards, but increased the
difficulty of finding the range. At that
distance a miss in direction is seldom
made.
The obvious lesson to this country
is that. had the entire navy of the
United States been substituted for
either of the opponents it would have
been defeated. not ANONYMOUSLY but
completely. If put in the place of
England fleet 1t would have been out
Unanswered for lack of battle cruisers
and would have been pounded to pieces
by the superior line of battleships IL
it had been in the position of the Ger
man fleet the result would have been
the same.
THE Naval War College has how
eve. taught our officers many lessons
both in maneuvers and in the military
requirements. Congress knows the
needs and the House of Representa-
tives has passed a bill adding many
ships, including five battle cruisers, 10
balance the feet. but the entire add
ton hardly equals the total admitted
loss in the fight off Skaggerak--and
neither side admits Gripping loss.