232 OUR ENGLISH LAND MUDDLE. 



undertaken by the ' ' Royal Commission on the 

 Supply of Food and Raw Materials in Time of 

 War," appointed in 1904, and which reported in 

 1905, very voluminously, and on the whole 

 fairly soundly, in view of the naval position then, 

 though the Commission failed to take into con- 

 sideration some important factors which, it is 

 now clear, would act on the supply of food in 

 time of war. 



Between 1904 and 1913 there have been great 

 changes in the different military and naval 

 forces of Europe ; and all the changes have 

 weakened the relative strength of Great Britain. 

 In military forces our weakness has been accentu- 

 ated by a great growth in the armies of other 

 nations. In naval strength we have come down 

 from a position of overwhelming superiority over 

 any combination of nations to a recognition of 

 the fact that it will be hard work to maintain 

 an overwhelming superiority over a single nation. 

 But of greater importance is the change that 

 has come since 1905 in our knowledge of the 

 probable course of a great European war. 



In 1904-5 it is clear that the Royal Com- 

 mission of experts had in view, as the war pos- 



