The Naval debate of last week was resumed on Thursday
by Mr. Samuda, and ended in a considerable discomfiture for Mr. -Ward Hunt, who, as well as his own Secretary, Mr. Egerton, had to explain, not without humiliation, that all the talk about "paper fleet" and "dummy ships" had not been intended as inconsistent with the assertion that the English Fleet is quite able at a, moment's notice to hold its own against the combined navies of all Europe, to hold the Mediterranean as well, and after a year's or fifteen months' preparation, at the most, to seal lip every port in which an enemy may be lying. Mr. Childers's speech, which was quite exhaustive, and even too forbearing to somewhat unscrupulous foes, was, indeed, accepted by his op-. ponents as containing mere truism,—only there were certain things not yet done which ought to be done, and which would make the Fleet more powerful still, and put more ships than there are now at the disposal of the admirals on foreign and colonial stations. '1'hat is all very satisfactory, but if that be what talk about "paper fleet" and "dummy ships" implies, it might fairly be- said that such talk is rather a ruse de guerre to deceive possible opponents, than adapted to instruct the English people. If Mr. Ward Hunt intended to say that, strong as we are, it might be convenient to be stronger, and that he intended to make us stronger, he might have said so, and not indulged in the pious fraud' of alarming us needlessly, by way of helping out a vigorously constructive Naval policy.
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