This Struggle for Sea-Power

has not ceased. It is still going on; silently as yet, but still in a deadly, intensified form. Each of the greater powers seems to be effective itself to the utmost to make its navy as strong as possible. In Nelson's time victory went with seamanship, where fire, to be effective, had to be at close range. The ships, therefore, that could manoeuvre the most skilfully, and that had the greatest weight of fire, had the greatest chance of success. Hence the palm of victory, at that time, went to the skilful and highly-trained British seamen. Nowadays, steam has reduced seamanship, as then understood, almost to a nullity. Most modern experts agree that naval success in the future will lie with the nation that holds the largest number of great page 4 ships, carrying the heaviest and most effective guns, and therefore the heaviest weight of fire. In this case manoeuvring (not necessarily seamanship) weight of fire, and markmanship at great distances, are essential to success. Thus it is that every now and again, at frequent intervals, we learn that some vaster, steel-armoured floating monster has been begun by one nation or another.

At present the British "Dreadnought," of 18,000 tons, just launched and put into commission, is certainly the most powerful battleship afloat; while two others of her class are being built for the Empire in British dockyards These vessels are to be armed with heavier guns than those of any other vessel at present afloat-huge monsters of 13.25 inches calibre, each weighing 86 tons. Germany is constructing, or is about to build, a squadron of "Dreadnoughts," as well as a number of turbine destroyers able to steam 30 [unclear: kno] Japan is projecting a still larger battleship—one of 21,000 tons, while France is about to launch a new fleet of submarines.