NOTES ON THE WAR

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2284, 19 October 1914, Page 4

NOTES ON THE WAR

A brush in the North Sea, off the Dutch coast, 'and ■ the German navy is the'weaker for the loss of four destroyers.' We are not yet given details of this encounter, but it seems that four British destroyers: Lance, Legion, Lennox, and Loyal, and the light cruiser Undaunted, encountered several (how many is not stated) of the enemy's destroyers, with the' result that four more German vessels now lie at the bottom of the North Sea. The British boats engaged in this exploit are all modern vessels of the very latest class. The destroyers, which were launched this year, are a little under 1000 tons displacement,, and besides torpedo tubes each carries-three 4-inch guns. They are fast boats (29 knots), but not equal in speed to many others of this class of boat, some of which have done trials very close to 40 miles an hour. The ■ Undaunted, which also was launched this year, has a displacement of 3750 tons, and a speed of 25 knots, while her armamont consists of two G-inch and eight 4-inch guns. She would quickly crumple up most of the boats of the destroyer class in the German navy, which are lightly armed in the matter, of guns. A point which should not be overlooked is that the peril of the submarine does not appear to have' any deterrent effect in Keeping the British scouting vessels away from the waters where the danger would seem to be greatest: that is, along the Dutch coast-line. German submarines and destroyers have useful cover along the coast-line from Wilhelmshaven to Emden, where the Frisian Islands afford them shelter. from which to mako excursions along the Dutch coast and into the North Sea. As a setoff to this success off the Dutch coast comes news of the sinking of a British cruiser, the Hawke, by a submarine higher up in the North Sea. The vessel, lost is almost obsolete as a fighting, ship, and too slow to be of much value for scouting purposes. She would, indeed, very soon have found her way to the scrap-heap. The loss of the men and boys on her—she was o, trainingship—is the most serious part of tho business. It is not without significance that the Ab'oukir, Cressy, and Hoguc, which were sunk by submarines, were also - , old vessels, and part of a squadron manned by men. from the Naval Reserve.

An interesting question. is raised by tho presence of' German destroyers off the Dutch coast. Much of course depends on the particular part of the coast off winch they wore sunk; but their presence thero may not be unconnected with the movement of British troops across tho Channel. It should not bo forgotten that one of the outstanding features of_ the war from the British point of view has been the success with which tho transport of troops to and from the Continont has beon carried out. A very large body of British troops has been carried across td France and to Belgium, and some of -them carried back again to England from Belgium without tho slightest hitch. This is a magnificent tribute to the British Navy, and must rankle deeply, with the German naval authorities. Neither their high-speed destroyers nor their submarines have succeeded in getting near the British transports. It may bo that in the present case the four German destroyers which have just been sunk off the Dutch coast were engaged in a desperate venture, having for its object the intercepting ot British transports. AVhatevcr their purpose, however, the Kaiser has received further evidence that the scouts of the British Navy are very much awake.

A .somewhat sensational statement is attributed to the military correspondent of the London Timcf to-day. He is reported to have written as follows: "The war is reaching the climax ot its violence. We must expect to be attacked at Home." This statement is, no doubt, literally correct, but detached from the gen«v*l purvey of tho position.wMoh iicjcoinuaniod it is liable to oroate a

wrong impression. _ The war may be reaching tho climax of its violence. Thero arc indeed indications that great battles arc now raging in both the eastern and western theatres of war. But thero is nothing whatever, to indicate that England is in any -dancer of attack except by airships. On the contrary, despite the seizure of Antwerp and Ostend by the Germans, the signs point to the Kaiser's forces having their hands very full indeed on the Continent just now, without adding the desperate enterprise of to run the gauntlet of the British Fleet.

Let us look at the position as it is disclosed to us by to-day's_messagos, taking first the situation iu Franco and Belgium. Where can the Germans point to any progressive movement in their favour 1 At one position only, and that for the moment a quite unimportant one. _ We-'re-fer to Ostend and the region thereabout. In all other directions in the western theatre of -war their forces aro either stationary or they have been compelled to yield ground to the Allies. The actual position is worth noting.

In the first place, let us look at Belgium. The army which captured Antwerp moved on rapidly towards Ostend. Something, however, must have delayed its advance after the first day or two, for it was only en Thursday last that its Right Wing entered Ostend. The advance of tho rest of the force, we aro told, did not proceed nearer to the French frontier than Routers and Menin. These towns are almost due south from Ostend, but owing to the curve of the frontier to the east, Menin is very close .to French territory. , Thus wo have it that from the English Channel for a distance of nearly 35 miles to the south-east tho Germans are now well on the Belgian side of the Franco-Belgian frontier. This is important because the German forces, it will be recalled, were seeking to over-run tho north-eastern portion of France, in their endeavour first of all to turn the Allies' Left, and later to secure possession of the coast-lino to Calais. A few days ago there was quite a large force on the French side of the frontier north oE the River Lys, and we were told that the army released from the siege of Antwerp was hurrying forward to reinforce them. To-day the Germans who were in France north of the Lys have been pushed back over the /frontier, and the force that was advancing to their assistance is held up at various points from 10 to 20 miles on the Belgium side of the frontier. _ A tremendous cavalry fight has just ended in this region, north of Lille. Both forces seem to have , fought with desperate courage, and to have cut one another up badly. The Allies' losses, tho report reads,, were "heavy," but the enemy's were "terrific." The enemy's cavalry, especially the Uhlans, were heard a good deal of in the early stages of the war, when opposed to the Belgians, but more recently the Allies' cavalry has proved much superior. Incidentally, a message this morning states that tho mounted troops havo already averaged three horses per man since the outbreak of the war— a terrible loss of horseflesh, which will make -itself felt still more severely as the war progresses.

We have seen, then, that, the German forces have been expelled from the'north-eastern portion of France, and that the region to the north' of Lille is practically clear of them. The heavy fighting recorded _ near Nicuport, Yprcs, and Oourtrai is all on the Belgian side of the frontier. About Lille the fighting lino enters French territory, and continues in due west for about 20 miles, then branching off in a south-westerly direction until it reaches close to,' the River Oise. Within this region there has been some of the most desperate fighting of the war. Here, again, latest advices show the Germans being, pressed back towards the frontier. The 'Allies are stated to have gained ground, particularly at Laventie, which is about 12 miles west of Lille, but' it is hardly more than' 8 miles from the nearest point of the frontier. This success in this region is important beoa,use it represents the most northerly section of the German advance in France, and indicates that the forward movement of the Allies in the region north of Lille is steadily extending southward. Between the River Oise and Verdun there is little movement recorded to-day beyond a further bombardment of the town of Reims, but south of Verdun the French are making distinct progress.

Early in the war it will bo remembered the Frenoh crossed the frontier into Alsace and Lorraine, but when the pressure of the invasion in the north, by way of Belgium, made itself felt, they were compelled to fall back on- the line of French fortresses Belfort to Verdun. Then the German Crown Prince and his army came down the Valley of the Meuse and through Luxemburg, and the French were hard pressed until • the forward movement began early in September. Since then the fortuno of war seesawed, until about a week ago tho Frencn, who had forced the Germans back beyond tho Forest of Argonne, began to gain further ground beyond their line of forts. Now, in tho far south, close to the frontier of Switzerland, they havo again crossed into German territory, and oaptured Altkirch.

The position then, summed up. is that the Germane, whose lines had stretched through France almost from the English Channel to the limit of the Franco-German frontier in tho south, have been forced back until the extreme ends of their Right and Left ■ Wings have been driven out of France. The Centre, too, near Verdun, has also been forced back until it, also, is very close to the frontier. Tims, at the present moment, tho only part of the German army of invasion that has any deep hold on France is that which lies between Verdun, in the south, and Albert, in the north, and the more the two ends of the long line are driven back, as they are being driven, the greater the danger the Centre will be exposed to. .Here, then, wo have the plan of the Allies working out clearer each day—the Wings pressed back and the line of retreat of the Centre thus cramped and restricted. So long as this movement can be sustaiued, a German invasion of England by sea need not cause anyone any concern. Tho Germans will be too busily occupied extricating themselves from France. The attack which tho Times military correspondent refers to can only be at the present time an attack by airships. . This wo nifty hear of any clay, and England is prepared to meet, it, . .

In the east, too, the Germans have' their hands very full just now. Reports from this quarter are not to be accepted toov literally, but the evidence points to the Russians having more than held their own in the recent great battle. The fighting line seems to have stretched almost from one side of Russian Poland to the and then spread over into Galicia as well. The Germans, drawn far from their base, with bad roads to contend with and few railways to assist them, would be at a disadvantage, as the fight strung on, and suppHes of food and ammunition required to be kept up. ?or the first day they had the best of matters, but then the weight of the Russian masses began to tell,- aad the German line was broken. Now, when the enemy's line is broken, it is a very bad thing for the enemy, for the whole front is weakened by the opportunity for flank attacks. Moreover, a broken line usually means a demoralised force retiring in disorder. _ If, then, as stated, the German line was cut in two, the probability is that the Russians inflicted very serious losses, and their victory may have a very important bearing on operations of the immediate future. The resumption of the offensive in Galicia, for instance, which is reported to-day, may bo an outcome. But, as before mentioned, news from this quarter must be received with reserve. A minor success sometimes grows, in crossing the great plains, into a great victory, so despite the ten thousand prisoners taken and the guns captured, it is wiser to modify the story a little, and to rest content for the present with the indication that bur friends in the east are more than holding their own.

There are a great many matters of interest in the messages to-day which can be referred to only in the briefest possible manner. Generally speaking, the news, as indicated above, is most encouraging and satisfactory. To the good tidings from Europe must be added an item from the Far East, where the Allied British and Japanese forces are beginning to make sorious progress against the German stronghold at Tsing-tao. This task.is no ohild's play, the fortress being well situated, strongly constructed, and well armed: The Allies, however, have dajnaged two of the -forts by bombardment from the sea, and a surprise night-attack apparently has put them in a position to dominate the town from the landward side as well j so that it looks as though the end were not very far distant now. Turkey still continues to cause uneasiness, and is reported to have joined with Bulgaria in a determination to attack Eumania should Rumania attack Austria. An item which is liable to be overlooked is the message that cholera and fever- are at work in the-ranks of our enemies. We would also commend to tho attention of the Massey Govern-, ment and the Defence and Police Authorities the, news which we publish to-day _ concerning spies and traitors discovered in the Mother Country. Tho danger from this source .has not been brought home sufficiently to the authorities either here or in England.