Of course, the Germans have no need to block all the available room in the Elbe with big ships, for they have many other deep-water anchorages close at hand. The entrance of the Weser River, from Roter Sand Lightship to Hohe Weg Lighthouse, and Schillig Road, in the Jade River, are both excellent big ship anchorages. Turning to available shelter for smaller craft on the German North Sea coast, this can be found in numerous inlets and channels from the borders of Denmark in the north to the entrance of the Ems in the south. But now we have reached an important point. We know that the long chains of off-shore lightships along the German coast have been withdrawn from their stations, and that the navigation lights on shore have been discontinued. Should German warships, which we may assume are spread about in the various anchorages already referred to, make a dart to sea, especially at night-time, there is every probability of some of them stranding on the numberless flats and shoals which extend for many miles seaward from the low-lying shore of Germany. And, with the absence of lights and with mine-sown channels to navigate, getting back on a dark, dirty night to their havens would inevitably cause destruction to many a ship, whether large or small. The wilder the weather, the more toll would this dangerous coast claim. The British cruisers, when chasing their quarry, would hold the whip-hand. The sounding machine and hand-lead would tell them when to ’bout ship. [Illustration: Map of Kiel Canal. COPYRIGHT: SPECIALLY PREPARED FOR ^The Daily Telegraph^ by ‘GEOGRAPHIA’ L^{TD} 33 STRAND LONDON W.C. ALEXANDER GROSS. F.R.G.S.] It is interesting to mention that for two-thirds of the fifty-six miles in length of the Kiel Canal the banks on either side are practically flat, and, owing to the nature of the soil, which is largely peat, they are constantly subsiding into the channel. This, besides necessitating constant dredging, in order to maintain the great depth of water required for battleships, forces vessels to proceed at their slowest speed possible. A battleship would take, therefore, the best part of twelve hours to get through from the Elbe to Kiel. In view of the fact that the distance from Kiel to the Scaw, via the Sound passage, is 325 miles--from Kiel to the Scaw via the intricate channels of the Great Belt is about 245 miles--a battleship would occupy thirty-six hours fully, under the best conditions of tide and weather, to reach the waters of the North Sea. In these days a naval battle can be decided in a fractional part of that time. CHAPTER X.--THE GREAT FLEETS ENGAGED; TABULAR STATEMENT. THE BRITISH NAVY. BRITISH BATTLESHIPS (Dreadnought Type).