Republican farmer., 1918-03-08
NAVAL WARFARE
RESULTS STILL
FAVOR BRITISH
Sir Eric Geddes Reviews
Situation On Sea for
Last Year
LOSS OF BRESLaAU
SERIOUS TO HUNS
Mediterranean Sinking
Will Need More Attention,
Says Admiralty Lord

London, March 6.-The introduction
of the naval estimates in the house
of commons today was made the &C.
casion by Sir Eric Campbell Geddes
first lord Of the admiralty, for a
lengthy speech in which he summed
up the naval situation during the last
year. (Copious extract from the first
lords speech were received by cable
from London yesterday.
"On the whole, naval warfare dur
ing the last year has proceeded in
creasingly in our favor said Sir
Eric. ut has continued chiefly to test
the strength between the enemy sub
marine and the measures we and our
allies have taken for combating that
menace. There have been occasional
interludes, such as the exit of the
Goeben and the Breslau and the re-
cent raid by enemy destroyers on a
Dover patrol. Occasional raids on our
conveys and the English coast are a
natural outcome of the blockaded en-
envy trying to harass the blockading
fleet. The exit of the Goeben and the
Breslau (frorn the DardaneIles) was a
raid of a similar character. The Goe-
D6n Was TG-I1Odleus duu "4I4IO LhC 1C-
ports Justify the belief that she was
damaged, we must for the present
| treat her as a still efficient engine of
war The loss of the Breslau is a Sc
rious one for the enemy in that area,
and much outweighs from the military
viewpoint the loss of our Raglan and
MS CBritish monitors sunk during
the engagement with the Goeben and
the Breslau outside the Dardaneles).
1.-THE Dover raid is, in a way, a
| satisfactory incident. 1t has been
commonly believed that the passage
of submarines through the straits of
! Dover had been prevented by nets
and distractions since the early days
of the war. That is not true, and
undoubtedly a considerable number
of submarines passed through, even
toward the end of last year. A
more vigorous policy was adopted re-
Gently and the surface barrier is now
maintained day and night across the
channel. At night patrolling craft
numbering more than 100 burn flares,
| so that any submarine attempting the
passage has a reasonable chance of
being engaged.
ITO raid this barrage the enemy
came out on the night Of Feb. IA. /
cannot comment on the incident, be-
cause the admiralty in Dover has or
| dered a court martial to elucidate it,
but I can pay tribute to the heroism
and devotion of the men who, after
being hammered by the warships
maintained their patrol and went out
again the next morning and ever
since. Everything possible is done to
protect them.
might raids of this kind always
can be undertaken by a determined
enemy and are a tribute to the eff
ficiency Of the work of the barrage.
"In previous statements I dealt
chiefly with the naval situation ii
home waters. That is not due to q
lack of appreciation of the Importance
Of the other theatres, including the
Mediterranean"
Sir Eric alluded at this point to the
fact that the waters around the Brit
ish Isles had been the enemy's CHIEF
field for submarine operations anG
that with American help the greatest
successes against the submarine haG
been obtained in those waters. He
said, however, that 80 per, cent. Of
the losses Of merchant ships was &C
counted for by the Mediterranean, AMI
; that conditions there had been more
difficult to meet, the resources hav.
ing been less adequate and success.
against the submarine less satisfac
tory.
ut became increasingly evident,
continued Sir Eric, that as our re
sources improved we would be ablt
to turn our attention more to tn,
Mediterranean. I recently went t
Rome for a meeting of the Allied
; naval committee, and inspected tn,
naval establishments in the Mediter
ranean, including those of the Greel
navy British naval officers are as
sisting the Greeks in the reorganiza
, ton of their navy, which already i
cooperating in the Mediterranean
and rendering valuable service"
Il '"The meeting of the committee il
o Rome was representative of all tn
). Allies with naval forces in European
a waters. 1t accepted fully the anti
submarine proposals put forward b,
Vice Admiral Calthorpe, British com
d mander in chief in the Mediterranean
: It agreed we should forthwith adop
r and adapt to the Mediterranean tn
same measures that have given sue