MILITARY AND MORAL DEFEAT

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 296, 3 September 1918, Page 6

MILITARY AND MORAL DEFEAT

HON. A. MYERS ON THE GERMAN RETREAT

The Hon. Arthur Myers, discussing the present heartening state of affairs on the Western front, referred to tno fact that the very steadiness or our advance, and the sustained, unistruiting pressure brought to bear in tore* ing the enemy back, mile by milp. are calculated to have a very, signmcanh effect on the already shaken morale oh the German people and their armies. "As the general public awakens to tue truth of the matter—that Germany not only has no iiopo of gaining a military victory, but that there is also not the slightest ground for her entertaining tiw idea'of exacting indemnities or subsidies from her opponents, and that ia consequence practically the whole on her war debt still remains to be paid by. the Germans themselves, there cannot fail to be aroused a strong feeling: against the methods of the autocratic leaders of Germany, who deliberately, sacrificed the manhood, honour, and treasure of.Germany in a desperate and risky bid for world domination. "Whereas Britain is meeting something like 26 per cent, of her war costs by taxation as she proceeds," said 11 r. Myers, "on the other hand Germany isnot raising by taxation sufficient to meet even the interest on her war debt. British revenue comes largely, of course, from the well-to-do classes, as is only right and natural, but in Germany these are the very classes who have escaped war taxation altogether. Such imafl sums as have been levied are derived from the necessities of jife, and are borne by the proletariat. Ilia inequity of this state of affairs is slowly filtering home to the minds of the German people, and will, • when realised, constitute an additional factor contributing to the spirit of unrest which is rife amongst the human pawng by the unscrupulous exploitation ot whom Germany had hoped to make her will tho one supreme power throughout the world. "There is another factor at work jb favour of the Allies' utlimate victory, and one which has already made itself felt to some extent during the present) advance by the Allies. The discip me of the German Army is a discipline of fear, and such, discipline, when pub to the bitter test' of retreat, produces, entirely different results from the spirit that is inculcated in the arn»i«» of tho Allies. The discipline of fear robs the German soldier of his initiative and makes him entirely subject to the will of his officer/ Hence, he must attack in close formation, if discipline is to, be maintained. Forced to retreat, ■ isolated or scattered to any degree, and tho so-called 'iron discipline of-Ger-many avails little. It crumples up and; disappears in the face of the irresistible onslaught of the men of the democratic nations of the earth." • .•