Mexico weekly ledger., 1917-11-15
BRITISH NAVY 100
PER CENT STRONGER
fReslr-s-al New se7ieel

impressions E -Gat ne hEIs1 NaFt
the keystone OF Allied power. IS a
least one hundred per cent stronge,
thar al the beginning q the var ans
fifty Per cert more efficient than !,
the days o. the Battle q Jzslzaa III
g. uithgu; taking into account thoss
sections q the Amersrz- Navy a.
t5ys,y engaged ~ cooperation VITA
the British.
TheSe estimates arr not based or
any ofFscal statement but are ny oEH
gpiuio1. after 8 visit 10 the Grand
Fesl living on a famous battIeship.
the flagship Of a suI more famous
Admiral mixing freely with officers
and men, and visiting every port of
craft in the Great Northern Base in
which the biggest concentration Of
sea-power the world has ever known
happened 10 Re IT those days. Nor
did ! talk only with those who have
believed from the beginning that the
British Navy was perfect and all pow
erfuI. The keenest sailors and fight
ters among them were never under
such delgsion. Perhaps the most
surprising, impression Of al, was tina:
even today. after more than three
years Of war. and after a wealth Of
scientific Improvement, which can
only be made public after the war,
there is stlu . buzz and furry Of III
venagn ard reform such as one nigh.
imagine peculiar 10 the days Of mob
IlizatioH.
Every one Of ire privileged few
who have visited the Grand Fleet has
spoken Of the continued Eeenness Of
officers and men, with an inexhausts-
tie admiration for the manner il
which they support their apparently
tedious exile. But I find that the
keenness IS something more than
readiness and fitness and the daily
hope n battle; il was not SO much
the virtues u patience and discipline
that struck ne, bat the intensive az
gyity q men. wao every day awake
anew 10 the task q making that day
their individual bit Of work in this
vast machinery a war. As 10 whaE
the shp builders and muniton max
ers behind The navy have beer doing,
= tsgk al The days ! was there TO ge.
any clear idea q the extraordinary
.rre& 81 the feet and o. the var
ey Il her instruments q power add
90 70 Il You would lie passing Eome
small rather bz1sere3Iooking vessel
la e picket boat and ask . sailor.
What. .has e3d ship" and n
wgz1 laugh and tell you the very
DAY last E-cu.h Or last year when she
-a1 them with : cloud Of mystery
sg her And tal wg1E happen
-s and again. 30 effective Il tha
sr eye z he natural ezmuf-
age r tse growing Nary. Of course
these novelties czan9t be described q
Ssszl any mgre taan the tanks could
ne described before they went into
acta1. but : good way 70 realize what
has been going On Ia the Navy during
these years, is to consider the deyel-
opment Of land warfare in the same
period-taHks, steel helmets, new
types Of grenades. gas, flame throw
ers and air craft and the revolutionary
changes in tactics all these things have
involved. The Navy has not had
such continuous fighting as the land
forces, but it has had enough to slim
ulate invention and reform to the same
degree.
Furthermore, the public has been
grossly misled as to the real activi-
ties Of the Navy, soreheads at home
and in Germany are fond Of represent
ing a powerful fleet Of battleships
powerless in their northern rat-hole.
/ found this was a standing joke
among the officers Of the Grant
Fleet. The truth is they never know
from day TO day where they will BE
next. The Base in which / found
them was a buster spot than New
York harbor, not only were there
more picket boats, launches, drifters
and supply ships moving like ferry
boats to and fro insi9e that immense
expanse Of protected waters, bp.
there was scarcely a moment that ono
could look acress them without seeing
ships Of war entering or leaving them,
sometimes singly, sometimes in squad
rons. From an observation balloon
in one half hour, l saw come in from
various directions a flotilla Of de-
stroyers, a light cruiser, and four Of
the most modern battleships. 1t was
one of the morning delights TO go on
deck before breakfast and see what
new ships were in and what had left
their moorings. always with the help
of some expert, for to distinguish
these changes in such a vast assembly
of ships was no early morning task for
landsmen.
Amy American, who hopes that the
weight Of the American Navy may
be Of some use in this war, must ur-
gently desire a closer cooperation
with the British Navy than has yet
been attained. There have been
such changes in all departments Of
the service that participation in bat
tie would be quite useless without the
thorough cooperation Of training in