in cases of sheer necessity. The gunners stood at their pieces, the mitrailleurs were armed, and the word was passed to watch closely to the accuracy of the aim. On the night of the 14th of August the squadron changed its line of attack to an extended chevron, and off Tackhon it re-arranged itself into two columns representing a chessboard. The object of placing the Admiral Lazareff in front was that it might entice some of the opposing vessels to advance too close, when the fast sailing vessels in the rear could put on full steam and surround the incautious adversary. The vessels of the defending squadron intrusted with the work of reconnoitring were the torpedoboats Revel and Lakhta, considered to be of about equal strength to the torpedo-bearing cruiser of the enemy's fleet. These two vessels were ordered to search any merchant vessels they met with. The defending squadron had also taken many precautionary measures. Rear-Admiral Hercken commanded several vessels drawn up in two lines to close the entrance to the Gulf of Finland. Special signals for night and for day were agreed upon to warn the defenders of the approach of the enemy and of the number of his ships. The commander of the defending squadron assumed that during the night his opponent would not dare to cut off the retreat of any of his ships on scouting duty. In reality this was the prime object of the assailant. All the necessary arrangements were excellently carried out on both sides."

Proposed here to deduce lessons.

II.

Observations on the recent Naval
Manœuvres.

To the Editor of The Times.

Sir,-While the naval manoeuvres recently brought to a close still engage, as I trust they will long continue to engage, the attention of the public, I ask the privilege of contributing to the discussion, through your columns, the dispassionate reflections of an eye-witness.

In the present communication it is proposed to deduce lessons without attempting to review in detail the successive incidents which occurred. Our recent experiences have made it evident how severe is the strain of maintaining a blockade against a steam-propelled fleet. In the old sailing days a blockaded force could only escape with the aid of fair winds. In calms, and when contrary winds prevailed, the blockaders were sure that the enemy would not move. The introduction of the torpedo-boat has been distinctly for the tered the advantage of a blockaded force. It is exhausting to keep watch, night by night, off the entrance to a port, in momentary danger of blockade. attack by a dimly seen enemy.

How use of steam has al

conditions

of a

Opinion,

before

the Man

œuvres, of the relative strength of the

Before the commencement of the manoeuvres it was doubtless the opinion of the Admiralty, as it was certainly the opinion of the admirals, that the contending forces were not unequally matched. Admiral Baird had a decided superiority of force, and the conformation of the coast in the vicinity of Bantry, so closely resembling the approaches to Brest between Ushant and the Raz de Sein, offered squadrons no special facilities for breaking the blockade. Ships making a rush employed. for the open sea from Berehaven are hemmed in on the north by the line of coast stretching in a direction to the south of west as far as Darsey Island. On a S.S.E. bearing from Berehaven the promontories of Sheep's Head and Mizen Head jut out in succession into the ocean. Mizen Head and Darsey Island are nearly equidistant from Berehaven. They lie, roughly, within a radius of 20 miles. Thus, for the first and most critical hour in the operation of breaking the blockade, the fastest ships of Admiral Tryon's fleet were limited, in the range of courses which could be steered, within an arc of 90 degrees. It is certain that escape from a superior force was only possible under cover of dense fog or almost impenetrable darkness.

Admiral Tryon had not long to wait for his first opportunity.

of the

occurred.

On the 27th July the fog was so dense that it would have been Chance impossible for a fleet in the offing to prevent some of the blockaded squadron ships from putting to sea, had it been permitted to Admiral Tryon to breaking though make the attempt so early. After an interval of a week a night of very soon pitchy darkness enabled the Warspite, Severn, and Iris to escape from Berehaven unobserved by the heavy ships of Admiral Baird's force. They passed quite close to the Sunbeam without being seen. The continual flashing of the electric light, and the showers of rockets thrown up from the torpedo-boats on both sides increased the difficulty of penetrating the surrounding gloom.

It is possible that Admiral Tryon's ships might have been intercepted if the blockading squadron had been nearer to the entrance to Berehaven. In conditions of weather such as have been described heavy ironclads close in with the land would have been exposed to continual danger of being torpedoed. Nets are the only defence as yet devised, and they are not available for ships under way.

Our Navy

should

have

cruisers to sweep

Accepting the results of the recent operations, as it is agreed on all sides that we should, as conclusive evidence of the greatly increased difficulty of sealing up an enemy within his own ports, it is clearly essential that our Navy should be prepared to sweep the seas with cruisers. The experiences of the manœuvres will be of considerable value in the selection of efficient types. The most powerful which has as yet been produced was represented by the the sea. Warspite. Having been the subject of much adverse criticism in Warspite. relation to the increased draught of water and the distribution of armour, it is gratifying to those responsible for the order to build the ship that she has been found in practice in a high degree efficient for the duties for which she was designed. Ships of the Warspite type should find a place in the programme of construction to be next submitted to Parliament. In the new ships it would be desirable to give protection, by means of armour, to the guns on the upper deck. Details would be out of place. It will be sufficient to suggest that this object may be effected by concentrating the 6-in. guns amidships, and by taking armour from the inner semicircles of the turrets and placing it on the broadside. Five second-class unarmoured cruisers of recent construction were commissioned for the manoeuvres. In the four Merseys and their four predecessors of the Arethusa type a Mersey success has been achieved. The symmetry of design is attested by a Arethusa fact which every seaman will appreciate. To the eye these vessels class. appear considerably under their actual tonnage. They are splendid sea boats. They have a high rate of speed, a powerful armament,

class.

Cruisers

now building have very great speed.

and protection for buoyancy and machinery by armour and internal subdivision. As cruisers intended to keep the seas, their lofty sides and ample freeboard are a valuable feature. Great as the improvement has been in the vessels recently completed, we are promised a decided advance in speed in those now building. The armament will be lighter, but the guns will be of the latest pattern. The tonnage will be less than that of the Mersey class.

It is difficult to fix a maximum for our requirements in the class of cruisers under consideration. The Merseys are a success. The vessels we are now building will be a valuable addition to the Navy, such as the and we want on our list such cruisers as those lately built by the Piemonte. Armstrong Company for Italy.

We want cruisers

Archer

class.

Speed at sea with

reference

to

measured knot speed.

The

From the Warspite and the Mersey to the Archer class we descend from 8400 tons and 3550 tons respectively to 1630 tons. Archers, eight in number, were represented in the recent mobilisation by six vessels. They sit well on the water. End on to the wind, they ride the sea with easy motion. They are powerfully armed; they have good coal endurance, and a high speed on the measured mile. It has been objected that we have attempted too much within the limits laid down for displacement, that we have carried reductions of weight too far in hulls and engines, and that the ships are overloaded with armament and overcrowded with men. It would be easy to reduce the weight of armament by substituting 4-in. for 6-in. guns. It is more difficult to devise a remedy for the shortcomings of the Archer class under steam. It would obviously be unreasonable to rely on a speed at sea equal to that attained at the measured mile. The Admiralty tables point out that not more than about two-thirds of the full power developed under fixed and most favourable conditions can be expected in continuous steaming at sea. The measured mile power and speed is a standard performance, absolutely identical for all ships of war, and is needed by shipbuilders and engineers for comparisons of form and proportions. The Archers could work at sea with two-thirds of their extreme power, or even more, if, like mail steamers, they made definite runs at an unchanging speed. What tries the boilers is to lie still or crawl about with banked fires, and then make a rush at full speed. The ordinary work in the engine-room of a man-of-war is a poor preparation for a sudden and excessive strain on men and machinery. It is when the utmost effort is called for that the disadvantages are felt of the want of that ample space and good ventilation which are easily afforded in a merchant ship, where there are fewer compartments, and where there is no necessity to keep machinery below the water line.

in regard

In the manning of the Navy the blot which it is most urgently The prenecessary to remove is the defective training of the stoke-hold and sent blot engine-room staff. The mobilisation puts numbers of young untrained to our personnel. artificers and stokers into the ships, and difficulties must be expected. We are making progress in the management of the machinery of torpedo-boats. We are training men to this work by keeping a few boats, manned from the torpedo schools, constantly under way. A vessel of the Archer class, and another of the Severn class, should be kept in commission at the home ports. All young engineers, artificers, and firemen should go through a course of instruction in these vessels The in the management of engines at full speed. At Spezzia an ironclad Italian of the Italian Navy is daily under way for a similar purpose.

practice.

Regula

tions respecting speed

trials con

It is a question whether, even under the new regulations, the trials of ships are sufficiently severe before they are passed into the service. A voyage at full speed to Gibraltar and back for cruisers of the Archer class, and to Halifax and back for larger vessels, would sidered. discover many weak points, and afford a much-needed opportunity of training for engineers and firemen. I would not recommend additional vessels of the Archer type.

From the Archer to the Sandfly, a type represented in the Sandfly. manœuvres by three examples, we drop from 1630 tons to 450 tons. A force, and a considerable one, of effective sea-keeping torpedo-boats is an evident necessity for the British Navy. If Admiral Baird had had more Sandflys at his disposal the blockade of Berehaven would not have been broken in the circumstances of weather in which the Warspite and her consorts got clear. Our shipbuilding should be More vigorously pushed forward on the line of the Sandfly class. The the class construction of these useful vessels is due to the wise initiative of are the present Board.

vessels of

required.

Future

ships

should

have better sea

While we have reason to be satisfied with the types already produced, in the construction of the future it will be desirable to secure more power to contend with weather, and more convenience and comfort for a long service at sea. These objects can only be attained keeping qualities. by adding to tonnage.

class.

Turning to the battle-ships which were brought together in the Admiral recent mobilisation, our most recent creations, of the Admiral type were generally approved. When the squadron under Admiral Fitzroy passed through The Race, off Portland, going down Channel, at the commencement of the manœuvres, the Rodney's upper deck was dry, while that of the Devastation was awash and her crew were driven below. Physical deterioration must inevitably result from prolonged confinement under hatches. All naval construction for