18 JULY 1908, Page 2

No doubt we might be able to prevent a rival

purchasin the Brazilian ships while they were still in our dockyards. but it would be impossible to forbid the sale after they had reached Brazilian waters. Might it not be possible, however, to induce Brazil and other Powers building in British yards to enter into a Treaty with us which would give us a right of pre-emption at, say, ten per cent, over cost-price, should the owners desire to part with British-built ships within a period of, say, five years after completion ? Treaties, however, are always uncertain, and perhaps a wiser plan would be, in calculating the force which would give us absolute security, to reckon purchasable capital ships as part of the force which we must always be prepared to face and defeat.