17 JUNE 1916, Page 2

Though, as our readers know, we did not think the

announcement of our naval victory in the North Sea a very happy performance, we are bound to say that we are getting a little tired of the continual veiled abuse of Mr. Balfour and his colleagues on the Board of Admiralty for what at the worst was a venial offence. The position taken up by some of the First Lord's newspaper critics almost comes to this : " We care not who wins the battle as long as we have good ' copy' in the despatches." While criticism of this description is in the air, we think the country will agree with us in preferring the maxim : " We care not who writes the despatches as long as we beat the enemy."