There has been much theorizing regarding the course of the hostilities in Europe and many guesses hazarded to explain why the war, which has brought into position, millions of men, thousands of aeroplanes and big naval and military organizations, backed by huge national schemes of finances and supplies, has not a sumed the active offensive proportions gene: ally associated with wars. As far as Germany is concerned, the most cogent explanation is probably to be found in defiance of one of the elementary principles—"Never underestimate the enemy." his, of course, involves the judgment of the group immediately surrounding Herr Hitler for it can be well understood that his admirals and generals, whose advice he is known generally to ignore, cherish no such illusion. The Hitlerian plan of campaign against Britain was said to include mass attacks on the sea and in the air, cutting supply routes and destroying bases, leaving the military problem on the land as a mere matter of course. Mines were to imperil shipping routes and block port entrances, U-boats, warships and raiders were to cripple sea-borne commerce and thousands of planes would sweep through the air destroying naval and military bases, aerodromes and principal ports. These offensives launched simultaneously on a great scale were to be the main instruments of Hitler's design to win the war for Germany. Nothing of this kind has happened and is likely to happen for the Allied air forces have shown that they are quite a match for the German air force and if there has ever been a bad error of judgment and a failure to appreciate this cardinal principle of estimation it has been revealed in the Hitlerian conception of the role of the British Navy. Effectively and without the sughest surrender to contrary claims, the British Navy retains command of the sea and will continue to do so. In the performance of this duty there must be losses for all over the world British warships are engaged in the stupendous task of escorting and protecting some thousands of merchant ships daily, and Germany, especially in the North Sea and the Atlantic, closer to home, has not relaxed any vigour in attacks on shipping, Allied or neutral. Supplies to Britain are proceeding on practically normal lines and although there is rationing it is due largely to well-considered precaution and the necessity of conserving foreign credits to pay for war material. Furthermore, German ships have virtually been swept off the seas of the world and German sea-borne commerce is no longer possible, Balanced against British naval losses is this achievement, a triumph of sea power never before achieved in so short a period of time.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.