Unsper this title Mr. Demetrius Boulger writes an article in the current number of the "Contemporary," an article which has suggestions well worthy careful considera tion and possibly adoption. It is good to look forward in these days as our fathers did century ago. We still stand in the proud position of the paramount sea-power. That fact, and that fact alone, has made the history of the past two years possible. But the signs that our sea supremacy is to be challenged are too plain to be misunderstood, and it behoves us at once to set about the preparation of our reply. It is not likely that there will be any shrinking on our part. We must be supreme or nothing. There is no middle course, [and those who throw down the gauntlet may just as well understand that at once. Doubtless Mr. Labouchore and his Little-England friends will decry all such sentiments as rank Jingoism, but there is no Jingoism at all about them. It is plain enough to us and to the majority of the members of the British Empire that our heritage will remain ours to have and to hold only so long as our strong right arm is it is to have a giant's strength, tis tyrannous to use it as a giant."
Our war in South Africa was forced on us. It was from the beginning white man's war. It was more of the nature of a civil embroilment than an effort against foreign aggression, and as the Boers were few in number, and allied in race, the many resources of the Empire in races other than British were not drawn upon. We might have had Sikhs, Soudanese and Maoris to aid Afghans and Baluchis, Ghurkas and
us. They were all too eager for the fray and willingly proffered their services. But on the present occasion all their eager offers were declined. The enemies of our empire must not always expect however, to fight Englishmen alone, while the remainder of our forces stand by with folded arms. Little by little the imperial feeling is spreading, and the empire in all its parts will insist, as the colonies have done in the present war, on having their fair share in its defence. We stand for peace, however, and have no wish to fight except in defence of our honour and our right.
Mr. Boulger's article deals especially with the latent naval strength we have in our Eastern and Eastern possessions. He quotes Lord Brassey and other writers as to the difficulty under our present system of manning the fleet and keeping an efficient reserve. In what we may call the Encyclopedia Britannica portion of his paper he shows how formidable the Mahratta race formerly was at sea, and then proceeds to point out the various recruiting grounds at our disposal. The race from which our great Indian steamship companies obtain their Lascars is numerous enough to supply thousands of naval recruits, as well as mercantile deck men, Ib is reckoned that over three
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.