PROGRESS OF THE WAR

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2805, 24 June 1916, Page 8

PROGRESS OF THE WAR

During the last day or_ two thero has again been a rising tide of battle at Verdun, and tho Germansconscious perhaps that the remaining time in which they can hopo to concentrate on this battlefront is limited—have apparently set themselves to surpass all their past efforts to overwhelm the_ French defence. It is said that in the fight-, ing to which current reports relate the bombardment of the northern front, assumed an unheard of violonce. These being the ruling conditions a splendid tribute to tho heroic 'endurance of the defending army is implied in the fact that a long series of German attacks, both east and west of the Meuse, have resulted in almost total failure. Except in one small sector, east of tho Mouse, the attacking troops were everywhere rolled back in defeat, and even in this sector the French have recovered part .of the limited area that.was,lost., >

On the British front no material change is disclosed from conditions which have ruled for' some time past. Both sides are shown to be' busily engaged in mining opera'- 1 tions on the face of the' La Basseri

salient, whore the Germans are established in powerful defences covering their main communications along tile Mouse.'_ The British seem to have had decidedly the best of the fighting which followed tho explosion of an enemy mine at Givenchy, north of the La Bassec Canal, and a British mine at tho Hohcnzollcrn redoubt, a couple of miles further south. The marked diminution which is observed in tho enemy's aerial activity is a further proof of_ the superiority of the Allied- airmen, for assuredly there would bb no such diminution at tho present critical stage if the German airmen were ' capable of making head against their antagonists.

News from Russia is good, but not sensational. Complete . failure . stte.nded enemy/ attacks on' the Dvinsft sector in the Baltic Provinces, and the Russians tfhrpnicle a local success on the front' east-, south-east of Vilna. Events on the southern are veiled for the time in a fashion which probably meansthat great developments arc maturing and need not bp. taken to imply that the 'Russians- are . meeting unforeseen .Unsparing efforts are, of course, being made_ to arrest their progress, imt tho situation promises well. ..At a general view its best feature is that although the Russians have already gone'far'in 'their victorious drive, 'key have • evidently .planned to. go further with the least possible delay. They_ are within reaching distance of_ important gains, .most in tneir close approach to hovel junction, fifty miles or so north of the Galician frontier, and .it is unlikely that they will allow much time to pass without making a great effort to round . ..off : their success in this quarter and' in others.

It will be .-noticed that in one passage of an official report tho Eussians account for a small total of prisoners taken -in-.a successful engagement in Galicia by- explaining that their troops gave no quarter to an enemy force which had used explosive,bullets. By such measures it is'possible to make the enemy pay dearly for his violation of the laws of war, and/now that.the Allies : ar'e I! Ma -position''to very - frequently visit such crimes with prompt and exemplary punishment it is likely that the enemy will be less inclined to resort to the methods which have covered, his .name. jvitb,. infamy. .The extreme measure taken .'by. the, Russians iri'denying is in itself repugnant, l)ut in'the" circumstances: it needs'- no other justification than that tho Austro-Germans are reaping as they have sown and that the,fear of punishment, if anything is capable of, achieving so much, will tend to discourage the repetition of their crimes.

A rome report states that part of the Austrian army in, Bukowina is enveloped by the Russians, near the River Screth.-This awaits confirmation, but it receives some support meantime from another .message to the effect that tho Cossacks have reached Eadautz, a Bukowinan. town lying considerably to the south of tho Screth. If the Eussians are at Eadautz, any Austrians remaining in tho neighbourhood of the Sereth .are enclosed, .between the Eussian : forcesVandvthe' Rumanian frontier.-

In Greece matters seem' to,be: ; developing steadily'on lines favourable to the Entente. .The effect-of the later, news is that'the pro-Ger-man faction has been oirorcoinei sand that matters are'ih-' train " for a general demobilisation and a fair Parliamentary election, - which will enable' the general' population . -.of Greece to assert itself as against the tyrannical minority whicn has dominated the situation for ( some time past. It will be the function of M. Zaijiis ..to make the necessary preparations for an election-which will enable tho people to say whether they desire to resume, under the leadership oi M. Venizelos, the policy from which Greece was deflected by the unconstitutional usurpation of the Kma and the intrigues of the German and' pro-' German party. - The people of Greece have submitted so' peaceably t-o being led in a direction foreign to their interests that it would perhaps be.unwise -to indulge in hopes of i their becoming useful allies. But at least there is now an excellent prospect ! of expelling German-conspirators' from Greece, and generally establishing such conditions in the country as will leave the Allies free to act with vigour and .decision 4n .the Balkans.

, . The Holy. War has 'taken shape'in' a - way that must be very : disconcerting to Turkey and her 'German overlords. They laboured unsuccessfully to raise the Moslem world against", Great Britain and her Allies, and now a Moslem rebellion has broken out in the Turkish, dominions which threatens to. attain formidable dimensions.. In fact,- if it does not belie its early promise, it should materially hasten : the downfall of Turkey. That tho Arab rebellion is no mere flash in. tho pan may bo judged from the success it- 'has already achieved. Mecca, the' 'Moslem holy city,-is in the hands of the Arabs, along with its port of Jeddah on the Red Sea. Medina, only less important in Moslem eyes than Mecca, is closely besieged. Judging by the fate that has so rapidly overtaken a- number of their garrisons, the Turks are in. no condition. to deal with so formidable an outbreak, and this certainly'gives no occasion for surprise. Even when.their ramshackle empire was at peace' with the,out.side world.:tho Turks never came within measurable distance of subduing Arabia, and some of the tribes have throughout proclaimed and maintained their independence.' In Turkish dealings with the proud and: turbulent Arab population, bribes and peace-offerings have had to cko out .the very incomplete results achieved by Ottoman ' armies. With Turkey fighting for her life, and in sore straits, the Arabs should have little difficulty in throwing off her feeble' authority. • No more auspicious moment could ; have been chosen for the assertion of Arabian independence, and based as-it is upon the denunciation of Turkey as a falso trustee of _ Islam, thero is every likelihood that tho movement of revolt will command widespread favour and support. Turkey may struggle on for a . time in face of tho loss of prestige involved in a successful, Arab rebellion, .and' loss-, ■of theMoslem'holy places,. but-the general and inevitable off ect of tfyeso developments can .only be regarded from her standpoint as disastrous. That she is the custodian oi these places has been' one. of' her chief claims to authority, and tho result of 'the'-.bold 'andv'potfevfut 'challenge now .offered is 'likely' to-be. felt far I beyond-the .limits of 1 the Arab population—more .so, of coursK-' as Turkey'. is in no condition-to--take up /and effectively- i'epel' t-he> challenge. ••

A popular rising in Arabia against Turkey has many, claims to attention on its own account, but it is, above all, important at the moment in its bearing upon the greater war in which Turkey is already engaged. From this standpoint its effects are likely to be far-reaching. In the first' place tho magnitude of the rebellion and tho dimensions it is. likely to attain make it a very' serious matter for Turkey, and,'in addition' to that, the Arabs are likely .to find it in their interest to cooperate with the Allies against Turkey, and are in a position to do so with effect. Turkey is immediately' faced by an internal problem of the utmost gravity, and at the same time her prospects' in the campaigns she already has in hand are very gravely jeopardised. For the time being, the Western and Centra l-Arab tribes, have raised the standard of revolt; 'but the movement, as h'is been remarked, .is likely to spread, and there are in all something like four .million Arabs in Turkey's Asiatic dominions, just about one-fifth of the total .Turkish population. In this' war ''so .far' tho Arabs of whom most has'been heard are those who inhabit the' territories along the' Western frontiers of Egypt and the hybrids who occupy part of Mesopotamia. These last, like the people of Syria, seem not to have been im:-. proved by admixture of race, arid' are of a low type. In Mesopotamiathe Arabs have been heard 'of as hanging indifferently on the skirts of either army, ready to profit by any opportunity that might arise.The finest surviving specimens of the. Arab'race are to be found in south Arabia and in the interior of central and northern Arabia, and it is with some, perhaps all, of these that Turkey now has to deal. The. task of reducing the Arabs to submission is certainly beyond her. strength now, since that was to*.bp said, when she was free of all external distractions, and no invading armies had crosscd her frontiers. The chief question open is how- far the flame of Arabian revolt is likely to influence and affect the present campaigns. * 4 * «

•It may not' -be' practicable to; en- : list the' Arab as a regular ally of the Entente —the nature of the Arab organisation, or lack of it, would hardly permit'of'-such-a course—but this need not hinder the Entente the Arabs' working t-o an extent in.conjunction for their common, advantage. ,An understanding is the more likely since the Allied plans very possibly contemplate the constitution of an autonomous Arabia, under some sort of protectorate. ■ It is mentioned in the news that the London newspapers are giving prominence to the declaration of the Government of India, in 1914, regarding the safety of the Moslem holy places, and the utterance of the .Aga' Khan' on behalf of-Indian Moslems—a very outspoken denunciation of Turkey.' A hint is perhaps thus conveyed that tho Moslem subjects of Great Britain are not wholly out of touch with events in Arabia. At all events; an opportunity has arisen which will doubtless be turned to good account. It will be noticed that besides setting themselves to capture the holy, places' of their faith, the'. Arabs'have extended their action to the Coast of-the Red Sea at Jeddah, and'this brings them into open communication with the Allies. 'If their ; rebellion .prospers, as it seems likely, ite do, tbeiArabs will no doubt make raiding expeditions into tho Turkishnrovinces bordering Arabia, and the' Turks as a result may find new difficulty in defending their.'communications, both on the approach to! the Suez Canal and in Mesopotamia.