Last Saturday's papers contained a striking letter by Lord Roberts
in regard to our unreadiness for war. Lord Roberts contends that the army raised on Lord Haldane's principle is not able to ensure the safety of these islands. As to the Regular Army, be holds that in many most important respects it is not fitted for war. Our rifle is very much inferior to the French and the German rifle. The French and German weapons have a point-blank range of 800 yards. That of the British rifle, even with a new bullet, will be only 600 yards. (Unques- tionably this is a most serious matter, for the power to shoot true at 800 yards without recourse to the sights confers an enormous advantage.) Next, Lord Roberts declares that in the Artillery our fuse and fuse-setters are not up to date, with the result that our gun is not an automatic firing gun. In aviation we are behind other nations. France already possesses a fleet of 200 aeroplanes. Germany proposes to spend next year one and a half millions sterling on aviation. In England we have only four aeroplanes fit to take the field.
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