Arizona republican., 1918-03-06
SUbMAR|NESARE DESTROYED FAST
 AS BEING BUILT
Sir Eric Geddes Addresses House of Commons Upon "U" Boat Situation; Has Praise for American Aid
Republican A. p. Leased Wire1

Sir Eric Geddes, first lord of the British admiralty. in an address Tn the house of commons, spoke optimisucaHy of the successes that are being achieved by the entente allied warships, whlcn he said were destroying underwater boats in increasing numbers. For some months" said Sir ETC, we believe that we and the Amerl- cans have been sinking submarines as fast as they are built"
 It became increasingly evident, the first lord went on, that as the re- sources for combating the submarines improved it would be possible to turn attention more to the Mediterranean.
 Pays Tribute to America
 It was perhaps natural Sir Eric con- tinued, that cooperation between Great Britain and the United States should be extremely close. On behalf of himself and his colleagues he wished publicly to pay tribute to the whole hearted and generous devotion to pros ecution of the war which governed the action of every representative of the United states navy with which they came into contact. The personnel of all ranks, he said, had the respect and esteem of the officers of the British navy.
 Concerning shipbuilding, he said there was no lack of materials at the present time and that there were more men in the yards, but the output reached only 5S,0 900 tons in January, al- though it should have been much larg- er It was true the weather was ex- ceptionally bad and also that January, owing to the holidays, always was a bad month for the output of ships. One week or one month could not be taken by itself. He expressed the opinion that February would be shown to have made nearly twice as good a record as January although only about two- thirds of what the same yards had done previously with fewer men.
 Submarines Destroyed
 Submarines were being destroyed in increasing numbers, he continued and as the methods employed against them were developed the numbers would be enlarged still further. There was a growing reluctance on the part of Ger man crews to put to sea. The chances that a submarine would return from a voyage in the waters around England were one in four. or one in five.
 The loss for the five months ending with February was ten per cent less than the loss during the corresponding months of the year previous. he added, although during the four months of the latter period unrestricted submarine war had not been proclaimed by the enemy.
 Curve Tends Downward
 "T have stated" the first lord con- tinued that the curve of losses of merchant shipping continues down. ward. This statement is as true today as when previously made. It is true there have been bad weeks and bad months. February was in comparison with recent standards, a bad month But on the other hand, January was a good one.
 As to the curve of the loss in the worlds tonnage. only two months oi the current quarter have elapsed, but assuming the March loss to be as high as that of February, I find that the falling curve continues"
 Regarding the rate of ship production Sir Erie said that instead of a rise there had been a serious drop.
 Why" the first lord asked. "Tht main fact is that owing to the labor unrest and strike difficulties the mel in the yards are not working as if tht life of the country depended on thei exertions. The employers are perhap. not doing all they could. The lons strain of the war must have an effec upon their nerves as upon every on' else. The serious unrest which existed in January will have an effect on com pletions in later months. l am driver to the conclusion that even at thi late date the situation is not full, realized"