PROGRESS OF THE WAR

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2925, 10 November 1916, Page 4

PROGRESS OF THE WAR

The .torpedoing without warning of the P. and 0. liner Arabia marks a return by Germany to-the worst form of underwater piracy, ,4s it happened few lives were lost on this occasion. All the passengers we r e saved, and of the crew only two engineers are missing and, are believed to have been killed. But only the good' fortune which made it possible to rescue the passengers and crew distinguishes the attack on the Arabia from the murderous outrage of which the Lusitania became the victim. The facts regarding the Arabia are already clearly established. The ship was an ordinary passenger liner carrying a large number of women and children, aud she w&s attacked and sunk -without

warning. These things'mean that [Germany has returned to the policy of unrestricted piracy and inurcler Iwhich she modified for a time after her negotiations withv.the. United States in the early part of this year. On many occasions since she undertook to conduct her submarine campaign' in accordance with the principles of international law Germany has violated the letter and spirit of that undertaking; a glaring case in point was that of the Marina, reported only a few days ago. But for some months the enemy submarines have abstained from attacking'passenger liners, and the attack on the Arabia therefore marks a departure. It is the most convincing indication lately afforded that the party which favours unrestricted submarine "frightfulness" has gained full command of the situation in the Fatherland.,

Probably it js nob without significance that news of the sinking of the Arabia is accompanied by a report which avers tnat Count Reventlow, the leading exponent and advocate of submarine "frightfulness," has indulged in remarkably free criticism of the Kaiser; calling him weak-kneed, that he be forced .to take energetic action, in dealing with America, and suggesting that otherwise the Kaiser will be open to the imputation that he sometimes thinks moro of the Hohenzollern dynasty than of the fortunes of "Greater Germany.". Some may ;be inclined to doubt whether any 'German would speak of his Kaiser' in this unruly fashion, but. there is reason to believe that the views attributed to Count Eeventlow both as regards submarine policy and tho attitude and designs of the Kaiser, are gaining increasing vogue in Germany at the present -time. As to the Kaiser, suggestions are abroad that he is seeking to secure his own position in the bad times' that are coming. By some who profess to speak'" with knowledge, the appointment of von Hindenburg to the supreme command of the. Teutonic armies, has been described as .intended to divert attention from tho Kaiser to tho man who is now a popular idol. Advocates of . extreme measures, in the submarine campaign and otherwise, arc no doubt in a, position to turn suspicions of this kind to account. They are the moro likely to gain their ends since fear of a breach with America has never carried .much weight except pvith tho more cautious German leaders like Beth-MANN-Holuveg.

No further development is reported on the Italian main front, though it is indicated that the present halt ou theCarSo plateau is likely to he of brief duration._ Another advance by, the Italians is declared to be imminent, and the Austria's, if reports ate to be trusted, are in poor condition to make head against it. On anothor section ol their front, in the Dolomite Alps, tho Italians have had to evacuate a lately won position, which it is explained had been destroyed by the enemy artillery. Tho check involved does not seem to be particularly serious. In this region tho Italians have reached a fairly advanced stage in operations which aim at depriving the enemy of a useful Tine of communications in the Trontino. Their objective is Predasso, an important military centre in the Val Travignolo, about thirty miles north-oast of Trent. Prodasso stands at the junction of the Dolomite road with another which runs eastward along tho Travignolo valley. Gaining Predasso, from which thoy are now only a few miles distant, but with alpine strongholds still separating them from their goal, the Italians would prevent the enemy using the Dolomite road and his forces iif the Trentino would then have to depend almost entirely for tbe-ir supplies on tho railway and road traversing the Adigo valley.

Evidence is afforded to-day that the enemy is bringing additional forces to boar against Rumania on the Wallachian front, but as reports stand ho is beinjf firmly mot, and is making little if any headway. Meantime he is still giving ground beforo Russian attacks in Southern Bukowina and further south along tho Moldavian frontier.