NOTES ON THE WAR

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2246, 4 September 1914, Page 4

NOTES ON THE WAR

From all directions to-day comes news of great fighting, and though pressed back still further in France the Allies havo no occasion to be pessimistic concerning the final result. Summed up, it may be said that the Allies are fighting for time, while the Germans are fighting against time. So far the Allies have been able to prevent the Germans keeping to their time-table arrangements, and it is reasonable to expect that they will continue to do so. The prophets look forward to a long war, but it is difficult to see how Germany could bear tho terrible financial strain of a long war with her commerce dead and her male working population depleted to fill the huge armies she has in the field. The news, on the whole at time of writing contains no surprises. The campaign is developing along the lines expected.

The ' bitter struggle along the Allies' .line in France is carried a stage further by to-day's news. Yesterday Mr. Donohoe told us of the terrible conflicts .of Sunday and Monday last, in which the British troops again bore the brunt of the German attack. At time of writing another message is to hand giving further details of Monday's fighting and indicating the- position up to Tuesday morning, when there is stated to have been a lull. From the fuller details now available it seems that the Gorman forces were hurled at the British section of the Allies' line in an endeavour to envelop and turn the whole line. Most.sanguinary 'and sustained fighting took plaee throughout Monday, and the Germans advancing in massed formation must have Deen mowed down in thousands; so much so that according to the message a few more days of such fighting and the Kaiser's Fourth Army would cease to exist. Whole divisions of German infantry are stated to have disappeared under the hail of British snrapnel, maohine gun, and rifle fire. The slaughter _ must have bcon appalling, and it is. not surprising. to learn that signs of demoralisation in the ranks of the German troops are increasing ; that the men no longer rush to the attack with vigour, and that there are marked signs of unsteadiness. Mr. Donohoe states further that on several occasions the men refused to face the British fire, and fled, despite their officers' efforts to check them. This will surprise, no one who troubles to think of what it must mean to advance in solid formation against an enemy well-placed and equipped with modern quick-fir-ing artillery, machine guns, and magazine rifles.

Wonder may bo expressed that in such circumstances the German commanders should send their men forward' in solid masses to be slaughtered wholesale. The reasons . are to bo found in the military training of the German army. Officers and men have been taught that when the army takes the field it will be irresistible. It is held that the men' preserve their ,morale better advancing to attack under fire when marching in close order; that an assault on an enemy's position to be effective must have the weight of solid bodies of troops behind it: that the iron discipline enforced will enable the officers to drive their, men to certain death, and that the weight of constantly-advancing numbers«must eventually 'overpower the stoutest enemy. So we see the Kaiser's battalions advancing as on parade, and being mowed down in thousands. To-day there is news of a further official list of German casualties, and the figures are appalling—2o,ooo casualties in one army corps alone— practically half the army oorps killed or wounded.

Reverting,, however, to the fighting in France, the -Allies appear to have fallen back a further stage, but it must have been a terribly costly gain to the enemy. The policy laid down by the Allies plainly precludes the risking of a decisive battle at the present stage of affairs, and it need occasion no surprise should we learn within the next, few days that the Germans aTe in touch with Paris. The war is going to be a war of exhaustion, and the Allies are adopting a plan of campaign designed to exhaust the enemy. It' would suit Germany to fight' a decisive battle at once—it does not suit the Allies, aind so wo find them harassing the invaders, but steadily retreating before their greater numbers. The further the Germans proceed into France the narrower will become their margin of numerical superiority, for they have to keep open their lines of communication with the bases from which they draw supplies. At the proper time the Allies must give battle in force, but the time is not yet.' v

The removal of the seat of Government from Paris to Tours is a precautionary measure which indicates that .the possibility of the Germans besieging Paris is clearly recognised. It does not mean that tho fall . of Paris is expected, but tho Government will be freer to carry on its plans for tho defence of France away from the immediate fighting zone. Should the Germans attack Tours, then the Government will remove to Bordeaux. In tho Franco-Prussian war of 1870, this course was followed. On that occasion tho siege of Paris was domminced on September 19, and tho Prussians were unable to bring about its downfall for months, although assisted by internal dissension awpagsti t.lio defenders, Evca-

tually it was starved into submission. The position is very different to-day. _ Tnen the French Empire was entirely unprepared for war and stood alone—to-day it is ready and has as its allies two of the greatest nations of Europe.

Confirmation of the crushing defeat of tho Austrians near Lomberg is to hand ; It is stated that in addition to inflicting enormous losses the Russians captured 30,000 men and 150 guns, and that {he occupation of tne_ capital of the Province of Galicia is hourly expected. This is indeed good news for the Allies. In the north, that is to say, in East . Germany, there would seem to have been a small Russian reverse at one point, apparently near Allenstein. What actually happened is by no means clear, but the version of the highly imaginative gentleman at Washington who disseminates news from the German point of view can be safely discounted. A check atone point of the Russian advance need not be taken too seriously. The country is difficult and near Allenstein are a number of lakes and swamps which would greatly assist a defensive force. So far as can bo judged the-Germans appear to have taken advantage of the arrival of reinforcements to make a .sudden attack on the advanced forces of the Russians whose reinforcements arrived too late to participate. Possibly the continuous successes of the Tsar's troops had made them overconfident and they paid the penalty. The experience should not be wasted on them; _ There are at last two Russian armies operating in East Germany and best progress seems to liavo been made by the northern force which is proceeding along the edge of the Baltic Sea. To-day we. are. informed that tho great fortress and town of IConigsberg have been invested by The Russians who have passed by with their main force on the road to Danzig. German newspapers are' reported to be telling their readers that Canada and Australia are really mobilising in order to throw off the British yoke while Britain is embroiled on tho Continent. If the other war news which is being provided for the information of. Germans at home and abroad is no more reliable than this they must be living in a fool's paradise. A very unpleasant awakening is in store for them. The German explanation of the military ardour of tho British overseas Dominions is probably no moro ludiorous than the announcements of the German Ambassador at Washington of stupendous'victories Resulting in the'wholesale annihilation of Germany's foes, and the capture of Generals by the dozen. 'And this very Ambassador accuses London and Paris of being "lie factories" ! _ The accounts of tlie war appearing in tho Berlin newspapers would make interesting reading at the present time. The Censor's work on our late cable messages this morning seems to have gone to moro absurd lengths than usual. Instead of the names of the places where fighting has taken place along tho Allies' line being mentioned blanks are left. Thus we havo that fighting took place at —t—, and the Allies fell back on -—, which is only_ calculated to occasion wild speculation without serving- any possible good purpose that wo can conceive. The information- could not be of any use to the enemy, for they know more about it than we are likely to know, and the only result of suoh suppression is to cause needless concern It is evident that the Allies' plan of campaign involves retreat whenever the pressure is sufficiently heavy to warrant it, and the public are quite prepared to recognise that there is wisdom in this and to attach no undue weight to retirements from position to position a-s circumstances may require.