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Printed for the use of the Colonial Office. June 1894.
CONFIDENTIAL.
BERMUDA.
BERMUDA. 5.
No. 4819.
Defence Scheme revised to January 1894.
Remarks by Colonial Defence Committee.
THIS is a very clear and well-arranged Scheme, and, with small exception, the details have been thoroughly worked out. The few points which call for alteration, or further attention, on revision, are as follows:----
1. Page 7. Mention is made of aid by the local naval force.
While there is no question that if any naval force is on the spot its aid will be forthcoming, it is to be borne in mind that both ships and men may be employed by the Naval Commander-in-chief on the station at any place within the limits of his command, and are in no wise tied down to Bermuda. The station is primarily maintained to serve the interests of Her Majesty's naval forces, and not vice versa. It is, therefore, unsafe to count with certainty on any such aid as available for the defence.
2. Page 7, paragraph (a). The word "armour-piercing" might be omitted, as it gives an impression of dictating the nature of projectile to be employed, a matter which is purely executive, and would rest with the Battery Commanders. There is little probability of an attack by armour-clad ships on Bermuda, and even against such vessels the normal ammunition used would, as a matter of fact, be common shell.
3. Pages 7, 67. A possible form of attack at the Narrows would be for a torpedo gun-boat or torpedo launches of the carried class to attempt to "rush" the passage by night, as the mines in the main channel, being for the most part observation mines, would be inoperative against craft of such light draught, and thus no preliminary attack on the mine-fields would be necessary. As the inner sea can only be navigated by daylight, it is not likely that such an attempt would be made with the object of reaching Ireland Island, but if any of our war-ships were lying in Murray Anchorage, say, coaling or in a disabled state, such an attack would be a contingency to be guarded against. Although by a late joint ruling of the Admiralty and War Office men-of-war are supposed to protect themselves while lying at anchor, it would manifestly be of advantage that the fire of the existing secondary armament of the shore defences should be brought to bear on the hostile craft as they run through the area lighted by the defence lights. An attempt of this nature on the Narrows seems a more rational probability, especially in the case of a war with the United States, than the more serious form of attack dealt with in the Scheme.
With regard to the third paragraph on p. 67, it may be observed that it has not yet been established that electric beams thrown parallel to the shore would act as a screen in the manner described, and it is difficult to under- stand how the vessels showing the beams could maintain their position for the purpose in the face of the gun defence.
4. Out of 615 infantry allotted to No. II Section, 350 are distributed in detachments along the coast. As a general rule, a system of guarding all possible landing-places can only result in the defending force being weak everywhere, and the possibility of retaining most of these detachments at Prospect, and watching the various landing-places by patrols and sentries, should be considered on revision.
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