of preparation during the year 1917 to deal with the unrestricted submarine warfare against merchant shipping adopted by German

e against the same type of enemy craft when on the surface had been considered, and some of our submarines had actually been provided with such a gun of small calibre. Two patterns of towed explosive sweeps had also been tried and adopted, but it cannot be said that we had succeeded in finding any satisfactory anti-submarine device, although many brains were at work on the subject, and t

the comparatively small number under construction when war broke out, the British measures failed until towards the

ve were added and five were lost during 1914, leavi

were added and only 19 were lost, the total

ines were added and 25 lost, leaving the

ubmarines were added and 66 lost, leaving

he increasing effectiveness of our anti-submarine m

... 10 Third

... 12 Fourth

fleet in the period January to October. The losses during this year up to the date of the Armistice totalled 70, excluding those d

... 18 Third

r ... 26 Four

Armistic

submarine measures inaugurated in 1917 and previous years was being felt in the last quarter o

ns had completed by October, 1918, a total of 326 submarines of all classes,

rdered before and during the war. It follows from that statement that over 400

ng at the end of 1918 was, however, only about 200, which perh

he quarterly losses of merchant ships during 1917 and 1918, as they indicat

figure

9

Foreign

911,840 707,

,361,870 875,

952,938 541,

782,887 489,

9

Foreign

697,668 445,

630,862 33

512,030 40

83,952 93,

arter are for Mont

ter of 1917; in the third quarter of 1918 the reduction in the tonnage sunk became

of tonnage overtook the world's losses was another satisfactory fea

d Dom

llied and

Neutra

ntr

9

246,239 34

249,331 43

248,283 42

419,621 57

9

320,280 55

442,966 800,

411,395 972,

t. only 136,100

18 the output of shipping in the United Kingdom a

the Germans at least thirty-five fell victims to the depth charge, large orders for which had been placed by the Admiralty in 1917, and it is probably safe to credit mines, of which there was a large and r

r decoy ships sank about twelve; four German submarines are known to have been sunk by being rammed by men-of-war other than destroyers, four by merchant ships, and about ten b

ion of the fate of submarines, particularly in such cases as mine attack, and the fig