NOTES ON THE WAR

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2252, 11 September 1914, Page 4

NOTES ON THE WAR

The Allies' advance in Franco continues, and the position generally is satisfactory... That about sums up the situation as disclosed by the news to hand at midnight. Tho German right wing (in Northern France), which was badly battered by the British troops, has been reinforced, but has been compelled to continue to retire before the pressure of our forces. Elsowhero in France there has been little change. It is interesting at this stage to recall the forecasts of military experts of all nations; who have written so freely concerning the possible and probable happenings in the event of .war between F ranc <s a °d Eussia on the one side and Germany and AusfcroHungary on the other. The practically unanimous opinion has ' been that Germany would concentrate nearly the whole weight of her forces in a mighty effort to .crush France, and then_ turn round and deal with slow-moving Russia. Unless she succeeded at an early stage of the war in crippling France, it waa generally conceded that her position between tho forces of France and Russia would be fraught with great peril. Wo know to-day that Germany's first great attempt to cripple France was not successful. E.\Kr, Peeoy, in a recent issue of tho National Review, discussed the problem at length, and more especially that part of.it relating to the question of Russia's valise to France. It ,; is not necessary to follow him through the details of the argument, and the facts upon which the conclusions of tho military experts arc based, but his summing up of the situation is worth quoting:— Making every. allowance for tho effect which both Austria and -Rumania could oxorfc, Germany might sco her territory invaded by no fewer than thirteen array corps on the 34th or 35th day after mobilisation. By tho 20th day the action of Russia should make itsslf felt on the French frontier. By tho 80th day the situation for Germany will be very serious indeed, unless she has by that time inflicted a crushing defeat on the French armies. . „ The thirtieth day since mobilisation (July 30) has been long passed, and Germany has failed to inflict a crushing blow on France. On the contrary, tho French are in - a. stronger position than they have been at any- timq during tho campaign, and Russia is pressing forward to her assistance far move expeditiously thau was ever anticipated.

A later messago received at one o'clock this morning gives some particulars of the big movement afoot in Franco which throws further light on the position. The Allies appear to have a twofold purpose in viow. The first is to forco tho Germans to retreat along a lino which will cramp their movements and throw them open to attack from two directions at once; and the second is to prevent the attempt that is bei'ng made by the northern. German' armies to junction with the armies which advanced in France from the east by way of Lorraine and Luxemburg. Thess latter forces havo been.striving to break their way through in a north-westerly direction at various points in the region of Nancy, while tho iiorthorn forces have been moving in a south-easterly direction to join- them. We have already bcon told that the advance in the region around Nancy has been checked by the Fronch troops, while in the north the Allies are forcing back the German right wing, and are holding the centre and inflicting' heavy losses. Reinforcements are hurrying-to 'the German right. Tho situation would seem to be big with possibilities. Should the Allies be in a position to increase tho pressure, and accelerate the rato of tie German retirement, then a great victory which may pletely upset Germany's plans "may J be in siglit. Perhaps this is too'| much to expect at this early stage, but the position of affairs continues to show that the' Allies now are more than holding their own.

In the eastern theatre of war Russia seems to be on the verge of driving home still more effectually her great victory over the Austrians. It will be recalled thatsonie'days ago a large force of Austrians, some half a million strong, invaded Russian Poland, and were advancing on Lublin. The Russians, by a daring piece of strategy, succeeded , in isolating this force, and have been manoeuvring for some days to cut off its retreat. According to the news now to hand, they are on the point of succeeding in this effort. An extensive battle is raging and in view of the favourable position reported to havo been taken up by the Russian forces, another great victory may be looked forward to with some confidence. It is stated' that' the Russian- Foreign Office and diplomatic circles in Petrograd' believo that Austria will shortly sue for peace. Should tho Austrian force now retiring from Lublin be decisively beaten as anticipated, it is by no means unlikely that the Austrian Government will deem it wise to abandon the struggle. Servia and Montenegro are not only inflicting defeats on her southern forces, but are stirring up rebellion in Bosnia; Russia has practically, crushed her main armies, and internal dissension throughout AustroHungary_ appears to be widespread. In the circumstances; and with Germany powerless to-aid her, what has she to gain by continuing the struggle? Should Austria drop out, then Russia would possess an easier line of entry into Germany, and could hurl the whole 'weight of her great armies against the Kaiser's divided forces. The Tsar is reported to havo declared that he_ will reach Berlin oven if it costs him the loss of his last moujik. On present appearances ho should reach the German capital without being called on to make any unduly extravagant sacrifices, although the path to Berlin is beset with difficulties. .

The bald story of the first month of the war as told by _the_ Secretary of State for the Colonies is a stimulating, if unadorned, recital of big events, It • affords good reason for satisfaction at tho progress of events, and should encourage the peoplo of tho Empire- and their' Allies to increase their efforts. It is not necessary to repeat here the facts which are set out in our news columns, and which show the advantageous position held by the Allies through Britain's control of the sea; the losses inflicted on Germany's fleets and trado: tho successes achieved by the

Russian forces, and other matters of great interest and importance. It is worth while, however, directing attention to the fact that owing to our naval supremacy 300,000 troops have been able to cross the sea in, clifferent parts of the world without the loss of a single man. So far as we. can judge, this should mean that about 200,000 British troops have been sent to Franco and Belgium, exclusive of the Indian and Canadian troops, whose whereabouts are uncertain. Tho Indian Army has arrived in England, but whether it has left again for France is uncertain. Perhaps the most significant item in the month's review is the announcement concerning the Navy. It is stated that during the next twelve months ■the British Fleet will bo strengthened by no fewer than ten first-class ships, fifteen cruiser's, and twenty destroyers ; while Germany during the same period cannot add more than onethird that number. This is indeed an unexpected piece of good news.

To the layman watching tho' progress of events in Europe, it may have appeared a little surprising that tho German siege guns should on a number of occasions have attained such a marked degree of success over fortress guns in established positions. It might reasonably- be supposed that the advantage i would be tho other way, since fortress guns are placed in carefully prepared defensive, positions, 'and can naturally be better provided with protective works than the guns of a mobile siege train. Still tho fact remains that in the European war fortress guns at Liege, JNamur, and elsewhere have oecti put out of action, the forts in some instances demolished, by German eiege guns. A great 3eal of light is thrown upon the matter by the detailed account of the brief But disastrous siege of Namur which was published yesterday. The decisive factor in the attack was obviously an enormous superiority in the German artillery. The guns in tho siege train were incomparably better than those in tho forts, and the inevitable result followed. It is difficult to see how such a contingency could be avoided even by the most perfect foresight in the matter of fort equipment. No country ■ can afford to constantly renew the artillery in its fortresses, particularly those in-its outer lines of defence, so as to keep it thoroughly up to date and ensuid its being able to cope with anything that may come along in the way of siege guns. Tho limitations 'of the case/ necessarily confer an advantage upon tho invading array, and in almost any conceivable invasion'it must be assumed that first-class siege guns will be pitted against fortress" guns of inferior range and general fighting power. The advantages of a. planned and established ■ stronghold must quickly disappear when its guns are outranged and outclassed. If tho fortunes of the- war should lead to ft siege of Antwerp or Paris (which does not at the moment seem very likely), the fortress guns may bo expected to give a better account of themselves, for these great strongholds will naturally be> equipped in part at least with artillery of the, best and latest pattern. If fortress i sites were selected simply with an eye to defensive possibilities, the position would be greatly altered, but since they are usually built to defend some strategical point, a river-cross-ing, a, seaport, or a- city, there is very little freedom in selecting sites. The experience of the present war, so far us it has gone, appears to in> dicato that while fortresses haye a very - real value, it is a- strictly limited value, and that final reliance roust bo placed upon armies in tne fle.li].. ■

The German news fabricator Is doing his work very badly, even from his own point of view. If he giive his messages some semblance of probability he might get more people to believe them, but most of his inventions are so grotesquely extravagant that no one of ordinary intelligence is at all likely to be misled for auy length of time. By sending out extravagant stories about Britain suing for peace, and France ceding Algeria to Germany, the persons responsible for the .pro-German'-telegrams Live-defeated their own ends by throwing, doubt even upon information which might otherwise have been regarded as credible. It is possible that the people of Berlin are being told that a great Austrian army is well on its way to Petrograd, and that the German Navy is now bombarding London; but it must be rather difficult to hide the fact that the dreaded Russians are actually on German soil. The inhabitants of the territory occupied by the invaders know this, and are spreading: the news by their presence in Berlin and elsewhere. No amount of fabrication can cover up this ugly fact. That the Gorman authorities should find it necessary to concoct imaginary victories is in itself a sign of the absence of real ones. Even in Turkey we are told German news sources are now distrusted, and the Turks are turning to the British Consuls for news of the progress of events. The systematic efforts , which are being made to' counteract the effects of German war fabrications will probably make Germany regret her attempt to deceive neutral Powers. The exposures will certainly further discredit her and tell against her endeavours to win outside sympathy and support.