In still water, when the boat is running within a distance of ten or fifteen feet of the surface, it is possible to steer with great precision by the use of an optical tube or "periscope." This periscope is a straight, hollow tube, connected with the steering compartment in the submarine, and protruding above the water. In the upper end are a mirror and lenses so arranged that the surrounding objects are reflected downward through the tube, and show on a screen, or some other device, so that the helmsman sees things of exactly the same size that they would appear to the naked eye. The periscope is also fitted with a telescope attachment which magnifies objects like the binoculars used in surface navigation. On some recent submarines there are two periscopes, a movable one for use of the commanding officer, and one that looks straight ahead for the helmsman's use. In still water the periscope works admirably, but it is seriously interfered with even by small waves. It is so small and inconspicuous, however, that it might enable a submarine to creep within torpedo range even in daylight, and launch the torpedo with accuracy, as was proved in 1908 when a fleet of submarines actually accomplished this feat in an experimental test. PRESENT STATUS OF SUBMARINE BOATS To most people, one of the most surprising things in the Russo-Japanese war was the fact that submarine boats played no part in it whatever. There is only one possible conclusion to be drawn from this: the day of the submarine as a determining factor in naval battles on the high seas had not arrived. The reason for the surprise of the generality of people in finding the submarine was not as yet an entirely practical war engine, is due to the enthusiastic misrepresentations of the daily press and magazines, whose readers have been led to infer that the modern submarine boat is so far perfected that it can do things under water almost as well as boats on the surface. Nothing is farther from the truth. Under ideal (and consequently unusual) conditions, the submarines, and submersibles, have done, and can do, some remarkable things, such as staying submerged for hours, diving to a depth of two hundred feet, and running long distances. But these are only the first requisites of the under-water fighting boat--simply the "creeping stage" of development. The common impression that the submarine boat, such as the ones of the Holland and Lake types, can go cruising about, fish-like, for hours, watching for its prey in some mysterious manner without coming near the surface, is a dream not yet realized.