Lord Selborne has given a denial to the report, mentioned
in our last issue, that the Government had decided to abandon the new naval base at Rosyth, in the Firth of Forth. In a letter to Mr. Maconochie, M.P., Lord Selborne describes the report as "unfounded in fact," and refers back to his speeches in August, 1903, in which he carefully explained the policy of the Board of Admiralty in regard to Rosyth, and stated that he personally desired to limit, as far as possible, the extension of this particular base. "It might be turned into a complete dockyard like Portsmouth, or it might be only a base for men, stores, ships, and minor repairs." Lord Selborne now continues : "The past two years have been spent in making the necessary surveys, and in drawing the plans. Those plans have been deliberately drawn so that, however little or how- ever much the Board from time to time may decide to proceed with the development of the base, any portion of the scheme can be executed by itself, and it will fall into its place in a co-ordinated whole." He asserts "that the base will be continuously more and more used by the Fleet from this time forward is certain," but adds the important qualifica- tion that "the extent and rate of its development by means of the Naval Works Loan Fund are questions or policy which must be influenced by financial as well as by naval considera- tions." Rosyth, then, is not to be left derelict or treated as a Wei-hai-wei, but the admissions of Lord Selborne point to a leisurely and limited development.
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