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Chapter 8:
Conclusion.
As it was a part of the object of this book to deal with the condition of the navy at the outbreak of the war and with the preparations made by the
Government to carry it on, it will not be out of place to dwell for a moment upon certain conclusions which may be drawn from a consideration of this branch of the subject.
As conclusions by a non-professional observer, they are submitted with hesitation and diffidence; and as they carry with them no weight of authority, they may be taken simply at their own worth.
A military force, whether intended to operate on land or at sea, exists primarily for purposes of war. Cruising on foreign stations during peace, in these days when piracy has disappeared, is not an occupation calculated to exercise fully its powers.
Ships-of-war are no doubt of use from time to time at various points, but their usefulness is not so great that a government whose foreign relations are generally amicable would keep up a large establishment for this object alone.
Their real purpose is to become the national defence in time of war. As with the ships, so with the officers; it is in war, not in peace, that the fruit of their labors is to be gathered.
So far, doubtless, everybody is agreed; in fact, what has been said is little more than a truism.
But the logical inference drawn from the premises is far from commanding
