PROGRESS OF THE WAR

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2913, 8 November 1916, Page 4

PROGRESS OF THE WAR

It is now reported that tho Italians on the Carso are held up by bad weather, so that prospects of a further development of the offensive in the near future have receded. The position reached, however, affords every reason for satisfaction. The Italians have not only, in their latest effort, inflicted exceedingly heavy loss upon the enemy and mastered a series of strong positions, but arc commandingly placed in regard to a wide extent of territory lying ahead. This is particularly true as regards the northern part of the plateau, where their advlanoo has Extended to Mount Faith. They have apparently _ not yet gained the crest of this height, but their capture of a village on its western slopes gives them_ a position dominating the Austrian communications for several miles towards the south and south-east and also to the north-east, towards Ranziano, on the southern side of the Vippacco valley. There is no doubt that tho Italians are splendidly placed to resume the offensive when preparations and the weather make another forward move possible.

It is the accepted view that Von Falkenhayn aims at cutting right across Rumania so as to junction with Von Mackensen in the Dobrudja. Succeeding to this extent, the enemy would practically eliminate Rumania as a factor in the war and at the same time would shorten his front by hundreds of miles. It is clear that nothing less than a success on this scale would compensate the Austro-Germans for ,the efforts they have already put forth against Rumania, and equally clear that they have as yet made little real progress in their enterprise. As Mr. Stanley Washburn points out to-da". Von Falkenhayn is working iipor rapidly narrowing margin of campaigning -weather,, and unless he is able to accelerate his present rate of progress before winter

brings him to a halt, the. gains he has thus far made will be of no avail. The winter break would give the Rumanian army tho time it needs for reorganisation, but tho general circumstances of the war afford a still better guarantee that if Von Falkenhayn fails to penetrate tho Wallachian mountains before winter he will have no opportunity of resuming the enterprise when better weather returns.

Although: heavy cannonading is reported along the Danube there is no definite indication as yet that von Mackensen contemplates an attempt to force the river. In the northern part of the Dobrudja the Russo-Rumanians have turned with some effect upon the enemy and compelled him to retreat. The situation in this region has not materially changed, but von Mackensen does not seem to be attempting to press his invasion to a point which would enable him to interrupt the navigation of the Danube from the sea. For the time being he is at a standstill. He must pass the Danube in order to effectively aid von Falkenhatn, and his principal achievement up to the present is in having compelled the Rumanians to destroy the Cernavoda bridge. The destruction of the bridge does not, of course, in any way injure their prospects in a defensive .campaign, though it admittedly postpones the prospect of a combined offensive against Bulgaria. Some time ago Mr.- Hilaire Belloc stated that i f the enemy compelled the destruction of the Cernavoda bridge all chance of the Allies meeting this season on Bulgarian soil would be at an end.' Late developments in the Balkans, tend to show that the opinion thus expressed was sound, but postponement of ' the invasion of Bulgaria will hardly in itself recompense the enemy for his costly efforts against Rumania.

Though there is no reason to doubt that Rumania has received substantial aid from Russia-, the situation in the Wallachian frontier region has not altogether lost its critical aspects. To-day's reports show that the enemy has made a little further progress along the railway from the Predeal Pass, and also that he has reinforced . his troops in the region of the Vulkan Pass, in Western Wallachia, with the result that the Rumanian forward movement in that quarter has come to a halt. The total effect of Reports in hand is to indicate a very heavy and almost stationary struggle, and it is evident, that Von Falkenhayn has not yet abandoned hope of gaining the ends he <set out to accomplish. Some recent reports have raised expectations _ of a powerful counter offensive in Wallachia, but this possibly involved a misconception of the plan to which tho Allies are working. Available evidence certainly suggests that they are content in the main to make the most' of the defensive possibilities of the mountain country in which they are fighting, and there does not seem to be any reason why such a policy should not'serve as well in Rumania at the present juncture as it served the French at Verdun in the early spring and summer.': The circumstances arc, of course, in many respccts widely dissimilar, but in Wallachia at present, as in the active days of his Verdun offensive, the enemy has a very powerful force at command for the time being which he cannot hope to maintain indefinitely. There is no room for any,middle course in, Wallachia any more than there was , at Verdun. The enemy must succeed speedily if ho is to succeed at all, and a mere continuation of the conditions which at present rule on the Wallachian front will as definitely ensure his ultimate defeat as a smashing oounter-offensive.

Further details of the latest opera,tions on the Sorarne front emphasise their importance, and show that the enemy has by no means escaped from the unfavourable position in which he was visibly placed up to the beginning of tho comparative lull which has recently obtained. Tho reported character of tho German counter-attacks affords convincing evidenoo of the enemy's extreme anxiety to avert any further invasion of his front. In' the event he recovered a portion, apparently not a largfe portion, of the ground captured by the British troops, and on the French section of the front he recovered portion of the village of Saillisel. But these recoveries were made at terrible cost. Enormous losses must have been suffered in the counter-attacks which tho Germans made all day long on Saturday and throughout tho succecding night. _ The Allied gains, which have been in large part retained, were achieved in a sudden dash. As the facts are reported the balancc of losses must have turned

as heavily, or almost as heavily, against the enemy in these operations as in any previous stage of the offensive. Though they h'avo lost a little ground at Saillisel tho Trench are still making progress in St. Pierre Vaast Wood.