March 14, 19 18 
Land & Water 
employers. So that there are unfavourable elements on both 
sides which create a situation of the utmost gravity. 
Contributory Factors 
In the course of the debate and in subsequent newspaper 
correspondence, many other causes have been suggested, 
either in substitution of Sir Eric's or as complementary. 
The responsible heads of the shipbuilding firms complain 
that they have been superseded by the Government, and 
have neither the authority nor the incentive to hustle things 
in the yards. Others point out that in the craze for stan- 
dardisation something like the reverse of it has been brought 
into being. It is surely absurd to talk about "standard" 
ships when 345 of 40 different types are in course of con- 
struction. Other critics have condemned altogether the 
attempt to establish national shipyards on the Severn, on 
the ground, first, that the enterprise was started without 
the advice or, presumably, the approval of the shipowners 
will) advise the Admiralty ; but, chieflj', because it has 
deflected and made immediately unproductive labour that 
would have been available in the private sliipyards. and 
would, in the long run, have given us more shipping more 
quickly than can possibly be the case now. 
But more important than any of these criticisms are the 
allegations that no systematic effort has been made te deal 
with the false labour position on the Clyde ; that the 
settlement of labour difficulties has been made dilatory, and 
therefore the position everywhere endangered, by Govern- 
ment machinery intervening between the masters and men. 
Finally, it is said, the question of shipping is now in the 
hands of so many authorities of such conflicting powers 
that no one knows either the actual state of things or the 
best course to pursue now. One authority, ic despair of 
any other way out, has suggested Lord Pirrie as a kind of 
Shipping Dictator. At the time of writing, the First Lord 
has not dealt with his critics either within the House or 
outside. But it is clear that the utmost effort of statesman- 
ship must be made if a very ]f)erilous situation is to be put 
right. 
One of the First Lord's revelations astonished the House 
of Commons, and must, one would think, have astonished the 
country also. It is to the effect that a considerable number 
of merchant ship masters have not yet been brought to 
realise that the dangers of navigating their ships without 
lights are trivial compared with the submarine perils when 
they burn them. It seems extraordinary that in such ele- 
mentary matters discipline should be unenforced. The 
Admiralty has unlimited authority over merchant skippers, 
and a Board that is in constant session has power to with- 
draw the certificate — that is, to cut off all the means of 
livelihood — of any offender. Yet our own submarine captains 
report ship after ship travelling in the danger zone with all 
lights showing, and on one occasion seven out of eight ships 
passing a certain headland were seen to be acting in this 
manner. Is the First Lord sure that the Admiralty is really 
using its authority in this matter to the utmost ? 
It rather looks as if the First Lord intended to carry on 
with somewhat less mystification and secrecy than has pre- 
vailed hitherto. It has long been maintained in these 
columns that the Army and the Navy can be trusted to do 
all that is necessary for victory if only the civilians will hold 
out. There would be no danger at all from the civilians if 
every one understood the issues at stake. And the way to 
make every one understand is not to make eloquent speeches 
or to write convincing articles, but to see that all the facts 
of the war are known. Mr. Asquith and a good many othef 
people spoke strongly in favour of this view last week, and 
perhaps before this article appears the Government decision 
in the matter may become known. At the moment, the 
obvious thing to tell people, is the truth about the shipping 
position. In this matter the Government, for the moment, 
still considers itself tied by some undertaking given to 
France. But, where he was not so tied, the First Lord threw 
a good deal of new light on recent events. For the first 
time, we have had it explained to us what the Channel night 
barrage really means. We heard more, too, about the Goeben 
and Breslau incident ; and a little more about the Lerwick 
convoy. I hope my readers will not misunderstand me 
when ,1 say that it was with extreme satisfaction that I heard 
that the raid on the Dover Patrol had been made the subject 
of a court-martial. Every incident of this kind ought to 
have been so treated from the first The lay reader must 
bear in mind that it is not the primary purpose of a court- 
martial to find a victim to punish. It is to ascertain the 
facts and give a verdict that should be. a guide to other 
naval officers in similar circumstances. For a long time 
after war began no courts-martial were held at all, and when 
the first exception was made, it is doubtful "if the conduct 
of those most responsible were brought under review ; if, 
as I have always understood, the evidence and verdict were 
not circulated, then nine-tenths of the value of the inquiry 
were lost. Court-martial proceedings, while perhaps reason- 
ably kept secret for a certain period during the war. are, it 
should be remembered, those of h public court and should, 
be communicated to the public the moment it can be done 
with reasonable safetv. 
Rules oF Promotion 
The First Lord's hints about recent operations call for 
more extended discussion than I can give them here, and 
I pass on to another matter of great interest, viz., what was 
told us about the promotion of Sir Reginald Tyrwhitt to be 
Rear- Admiral. The rule that the .Vdmiralty have laid down 
is that a captain, when selected for this rank, will hold it 
until he will be entitled in the ordinary course to his flag. 
If, during this period, he has used his opportunities to the 
satisfaction of the Board, he will be confirmed in the rank as 
from the date of the first selection. If his conduct is not 
approved, his seniority will date as if he had never been 
selected at all. From one point of view, this seems fair 
enough ; but a case can, of course, he. made against it 'For, 
not bfing confirmed as from the date of appointment must 
certainly be the equivalent of very grave censure. No 
course, however, can be free from objection, and almost any 
course is to be recommended that encourages the Admiralty 
to hasten the promotion of young men of energy and ability, 
though many, of course, will maintain that the Admiralty's 
present powers are ample if only they were used. What 
probably few members of the public realise is that war has 
been very far indeed from hastening promotion. Eight or 
nine years ago the senior captains were given their flag after 
less than ten years of service. There was at least one promo- 
tion on exactly nine years. If the list permitted of such 
promotions now, not only would Sir Reginald Tyrwhitt be 
a. rear-admiral without any special exercise of Admiralty 
powers, but a dozen officers junior to him would be in the 
same rank. 
It is a curious fact that Rear-Admiral Tyrwhitt, who now 
gets his flag under quite exceptional circumstances, and after 
more than three years of extraordinarily distinguished and 
continuous service at sea, is about six months older than the 
Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Fleet. Batween these two, 
there figure in the Navy List about one hundred and fifty 
names, only just over a dozen of which are those of Rear- 
Admiral Tyrwhitt 's juniors. 
Is it not a reflection on our methods of peace selection that 
more men, young enough to take risks and learn from them, do 
not get equal opportunities ? In one sense, we are far more 
fortunate than were our ancestors at the outbreak of the 
great war with France. It was in February, 1793, that war 
was formally declared against the Revolutionary Government, 
and' it was just four years afterwards that the real Nelson 
was discovered at the Battle of St. Vincent. And, dvuing 
those four years, the Navy was for the most dominated by 
cautious and conservative elder men — and with lamentable 
results in inconclusive fights. 
The First Lord's new principle of selecting rear-admirals 
regardless of seniority can, one supposes, be extended to the 
other flag ranks, so that should circumstances justify, there 
is no limit to the opportvmities that may be given to those 
whom war has shown to have a special aptitude for command. 
Arthur Pollen. 
Questionings of a German Philosopher 
OH ! sav what made Creation's Lord become. Sire, 
thine ally ? 
It must be as thou sayest, but I sometimes 
wonder why. 
How came He, too, to make the pact without 
conditions, when 
He makes conditions in the case of other mortal men ? 
And as to His selection of the Hohenzollern Line 
To dominate all EJurope and to rule by right divine 
I do not doubt at all the truth of thine imperial voice. 
But I sometimes fall a-puzzling at the reason of His choice. 
Is God a German ? I would ask. And can He haply claim 
Some kinship with thy family and liigh-exalted name ? 
And is the essential spirit of Teutonic "Kultur" quite 
The same as Christianity and one with Sitllichkeil ? 
And, if so, must we then expect that Nature's course will tend 
To "Deutschland uber Alles" as the Universal End ? 
Athenaeum Club. E. A. J. 
