What the British Navy Did Doriiig
The Great War
i66
THE YPRES TIMES
Those boys played the game. They are gonebut they live somewhere. It was
not in vain.
We can keep faith with them by upholding England's honour and glory before all
nations. If we maintain a strong Navy and make it known that our strength is never
to be used for attack, but for protection until the rest of the world settle their differences
and learn to live in peace, we shall prevent a great war. We shall also thereby encourage
trade and remedy world unemployment. With England on the up-grade other nations
will follow but, if England is weakened and falls, the world will go down with her.
Let us organize in every village and town to strengthen our Government to rid the
country of godless propagandists and revolutionary agents. Let us boycott cinemas
that show the least sign of acting as propagandists for subversive and godless influences.
Each of us is endowed with talents to be accounted for. We must use them expediency
is false. We can forgive personal injury but we must not turn the other cheek to
the enemies of God. If we think these things out and try to act like Christians and
like men of British breed, we shall be keeping faith with the dead.
W. E. R. Martin,
PaymasterRear-Admiral.
During the four years of the War, British ships transported no less than thirteen millions of men
overseas, and only lost 2,700 lives through enemy action! This remarkable achievement was made
possible, to a large extent, by British womennever forget that
Speaking about the British Navy, here are a few facts worth remembering Five million, five
hundred thousand tons of German shipping, and one million tons of Austrian shipping were driven off
the seas by Admiral Beatty's squadrons. Oversea trade and oversea colonies of the enemy were cut
off, and two million Huns of fighting age were thus prevented from joining the enemy. In 1916, two
thousand, one hundred mines were swept up and eighty-nine mine-sweepers were lost. In 1914 there
were only twelve mine-sweepers and patrol boats. Four years later these numbered 3,300. In order
that British ships patrolled the seas, they had to navigate eight million miles each month. The British
Navy transported more than thirteen million men overseas, two million horses and mules, five hundred
thousand vehicles, twenty-five million tons of explosives, fifty-one million tons of oil and fuel, one
hundred and thirty million tons of food and other war materials for the use of the Allies. In one month,
three hundred and fifty thousand men were transported to France from England. Great Britain
transported two-thirds of the American Army to France and England, and escorted one-half of their
total transports. That, comrades, is only part of what the British Navy accomplished.
Reprinted from The Listening Post.'