The Report on the turret•ship ' Inflexible,' if carefully read,
seems to substantiate Mr. E. J. Reed's criticism on the question- ably stability of that ship under trying circumstances. At least the Committee, in spite of their sanguine views of the ' Inflexible' itself, beg the Admiralty to take into their "very serious consideration " " the necessity, before proceeding with the construction of more vessels of the type of the Inflexible,' of thoroughly investigating whether, by more beam, their safety may not be largely increased, without impairing their speed and efficiency." The summary of the Report appears to put all the damaging part in the background, and all the hopeful part forwards ; but if the ship itself were damaged, you could not keep the damage out of sight in the same way, and the Committee clearly think that this type of ship, without considerable modifications, may turn out to be extremely dan- gerous to those who have to fight her. The official mind is too apt to justify itself by faith, rather than by works.
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