January 29, 1503] 



NA TURE 



291 



These are : — 



Court-martial procedure, 



International law, 



Knowledge of British and foreign warships, guns, 



'orpedoes, &c. , 

 Naval history, 

 Signals, 

 Strategy, 

 Tactics and battle formation. 



This examination as it exists at present in the scheme 

 is to be undergone alike by those who are engaged in 

 the specialised scientific duties in the ship, with all their 

 responsibilities, and those — under existing practice a 

 much larger number — who have under the scheme no 

 specialised scientific duties. Now it is obvious that these 

 latter will be under much better conditions for preparing 

 for an examination, and that the former will have no 

 opportunity of letting their specialised duties tell in the 

 examination, so that the effect of it will be to favour the 

 promotion of those who were not selected to perform 

 specialised duties. 



The Engineer Branch. 



On this differentiation, the engineer officers, sub- 

 lieutenants about the age of nineteen, instead of going 

 to sea for two years like the executive officers, will go to 

 the college at Keyham for a professional course, the 

 exact duration of which will be subsequently determined. 

 At the expiration of this course, a proportion will be 

 selected to go to Greenwich for a further course, while 

 the remainder go to sea. They will then, if found quali- 

 fied, all be promoted to be lieutenants under the same 

 conditions as the executives. The nature and duration of 

 the special course at Greenwich will be very carefully 

 determined, and an opportunity will be afforded to those 

 officers selected for it to make themselves acquainted 

 with the latest developments of engineering science, not 

 only at Greenwich, but at the great civil engineering 

 establishments and institutions which are to be found in 

 the country. 



The engineers are now to be put on an equality with 

 the executive officers, the ranks and uniform being as- 

 similated, but with a difference, for while the executive 

 officers specially trained for navigation (N), gunnery (G) 

 and torpedo (T) lose these letters when promoted to be 

 captains, the engineers are to retain the special (E) to 

 the rank of Rear-Admiral (E), and as a solatium for not 

 being allowed to command a ship are to receive higher 

 pay and are promised "high appointments." Whether 

 this arrangement will be carried out when the time comes, 

 some twenty years hence, the future will show. In all 

 the discussions on the complexity of the machinery of 

 the modern man-of-war, the as great or greater com- 

 plexity of the old sailing three-decker seems to have 

 been entirely lost sight of. 



The Royal Marines. 

 With regard to the sub-lieutenants drafted to the 

 Royal Marines, we read as follows : — 



"After his final examination as sub-lieutenant along 

 with the future executive and engineer officer, the young 

 Royal Marine officer will receive his special military 

 training during the next two years partly at the college 

 at Greenwich and partly at the headquarters of divisions 

 or the depot ; the training of all these officers will be 



N0 - '735- VOL - 67] 



extended so as to correspond more closely to the training 

 now received by the young officers of the Royal Marine 

 Artillery ; and after this two years' training, the young 

 Marine officer will receive the rank and pay of lieutenant 

 of marines so as to put him financially on an equality 

 with the executive sub-lieutenant. As in the case of the 

 executive lieutenants, specially good officers will qualify 

 as gunnery and torpedo lieutenants, provided that they 

 have kept watch at sea for one year, have passed the 

 test examination for qualifying for gunnery and torpedo 

 lieutenants, and have been specially selected and recom- 

 mended. . . . The future Royal Marine officer will thus 

 become available for keeping watch at sea and lor general 

 executive duties on board ship up to and including the 

 rank of captain of marines." 



Such is a short abstract of a scheme which we believe 

 will be of the utmost value to the Naval Service. 

 Educationally and scientifically, it has so much to recom- 

 mend it that its authors, and chief among them, Lord 

 Rosebery tells us we must hold Sir John Fisher, are to 

 be warmly congratulated. 



Only one conclusion can be drawn from the scheme as 

 a whole ; many of the anticipated difficulties will have 

 vanished before it comes into full operation some ten 

 years hence, and the effect of the practical work in pure 

 science now to be generally introduced for the first time, 

 and the opportunities the officers will have of becoming 

 acquainted and being responsible for every class of duty, 

 both scientific and administrative, will weld them into 

 a homogeneous body each member of which should 

 have had his brain-power so thoroughly developed that 

 the greatest scientific skill will generally be combined 

 with the highest powers of organisation. At present, it 

 would seem, the very opposite is the case, for otherwise 

 the present Admiralty system of promotions cannot 

 be defended. Nor is the difference in the treatment 

 of the various branches limited to the promotions. 

 Certain lieutenants are at present selected for certain 

 specially scientific duties ; this leaves a large residuum 

 not so selected. Special allowances are given to the 

 navigating, gunnery and torpedo lieutenants in a ship, 

 but the first lieutenant, who may be taken as the repre- 

 sentative of the large body of non-specialists, not only 

 gets a smaller allowance, but has to spend money in 

 eking out the Admiralty's meagre supply of paint. 



The allowance paid to the navigating officer is the 

 highest, and it might be assumed, therefore, that his 

 duties are considered important ; but what happens to 

 him? We are informed that of 187 commanders pro- 

 moted captains between June, 1892, and June, 1902, only 

 16, that is 1 in 11, have specially studied navigation and 

 all that navigation means, and had the real handling of 

 battleships in tactical exercises. Further, that these 16 

 have been promoted so late that none of them, in 

 ordinary circumstances, can become admirals on the 

 active list. 



Recent sad experiences both with flag-ships and 

 smaller craft — 100 "accidents" to torpedo boats and 

 t.b.d.'s in two years — have taught us that the best admiral 

 and the best commander even of a torpedo boat will be 

 he who knows most about what ships can do in various 

 circumstances and how to make them do it. The most 

 instructed navigator will always be the safest tactician. 

 Leading a great fleet into action and drilling men in the 



