On Saturday last the King held a naval review at
Cowes. Though no ships were specially mobilised for the review, and though the third division of the Home Fleet remained at Portsmouth, the Fleet was composed of a hundred and fifty
ships of war. These lay in three lines, forming two magnifi. cent water avenues, up and down which passed the Royal yacht, followed by the Admiralty yacht and the ' Adriatic '— a liner hired for the purpose—containing Members of the Lords and Commons, the delegates of the Imperial Defence Conference, and other public guests. After the review was over, the submarines went past, and finally there was an attack by the destroyers, which, coming on at full steam, launched their torpedoes at the protective nets spread round the ' Dreadnought.' Of the hundred and fifty vessels which made up this magnificent spectacle twenty-four were battleships and twenty-four armoured cruisers. There were also four scouts, forty-eight destroyers and forty-two submarines, and eight auxiliaries. On Tuesday the Fleet weighed anchor, and very soon the floating city had disappeared,—an experience perhaps almost more impressive than the actual review.
Previous page
