Army That Will Change the Map of Europe.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 4, Issue 96, 15 October 1915, Page 1 (Supplement)

Army That Will Change the Map of Europe.

But End will not be in Sight till British get Their Backs Up. CONSEQUENCES OF THE''APPARENT" SET-BACK OF RUSSIA. The Scandal of the Squander Camps in which the Waste would Feed all the Hun Wild Beasts. By Robert Blatchford in "Weekly Despatch." .. BRITAIN'S NEW ARMY. Women for Squander Camps.

We have a new Army. It is an Army of the People. The People are great, and the Army must be great. It is unlike any Army Britain ever put into the field. It is the advance guard of a more spacious and starry time. It will change the map of Europe, and then it will change the heart of England and the destiny of the Empire. The Russians, outnumbered and out-gunned, are retreating. Every Dismal James sees in that a Russian defeat and a Germanic victory. He asks us to believe that the Germanic Powers, who have needed their utmost force to push the Russians back, will only need a moiety of that force to hold them back. He does not explain what the Russans will be doing when the Eastern front is denuded of half the enemy's armies Put a live woman down in one of those squander camps where sides of bacon are thrown to the pigs, and in a month's time there will not be enough waste fat to grease a pair of boots. Were the head of the Ordnance Department a woman, how many times would it be necessary to explain to her that food was being wasted wholesale for want of ovens an<l cooking utensils?

Wc have ft new army. It is an Army of the People. The People are great and the Army must be great. It is unlike any army Britain ever put into the field. It is the advance guard of a more spacious and starry time. It will change the map of Europe, and then it will change the heart ot England and the destiny of the Empire. Some or my readers may remember my speaking of a young soidier who asked fr a copy of " Abu'l Ala" to read in the trenches. As this poet is not generally known I may say that he is of the tribe of "Omar Khayyam." That is to say, he is a Syrian poet philosopher of the tenth c«ntury. The book our young friend wanted is "The Diwan," an English translation by Henry Baerlein. As the nature of the poetry may cast 6ome light upon the mind of its soldier-read, er, I will quote a few lines. Imagine, then, a soldier under fire, squatting in a trench a hundred yards from a watchful enemy and reading this: '• There is a palace, and the ruined wall Divides the sand, a very home ot tears, And where love whispered of a thousand years The silken-footed caterpillars crawl. "YOU CANNOT TRUST A HUN. Between the cracking of th esnipers' rifles and the detonations of the ' nxbangs," and the " black Manas, our private of the new army lets his mind rock in the cradle of such melodious rhvme as the following. . "If 1 have harboured love within my 'Twas for my comrades of the dusty day, . Who with mo watched the loitering stare at play, Who bore the burden of the same unre6t-" , , u A young hussar, home on furlough, stood by me, looking at the river—we wore waiting for the ferry. We had talked a little, and then, as he smoked his cigarette, ho said, "I must say 1 could not find it in my heart to kill a man who asked for quarter. But it's a fact that if « man will not kill a German prisoner the German prisoner does not object to killing him. My chum took a prisoner, a Prussian. When our chaps charged the trenches this fellow dropped on his knees and begged for mercy. As my chum was taking him in the prisoner slipped a knife out of his sleeve and tried to strafe him. My chum side-stepped, and a corporal of hi 6 company shot the Prussian dead in his tracks. It—lt makes things very awkward. What is a fellow to do ? You cannot trust a Hun, and you cannot kill him. You take the risk. Its one thing being a soldier, but it's another thing being a butcher." Men of a quality so fine display almost invariably an intelligent courage which no discipline can possibly produce.

affected by the purposeless pessimism of the daily papers."

"THE DEVILS' LIQUID FIRE."

That is the New Army. The platoon arguing about evolution, one private reading Abu'l Ala, and the platoon sergeant "rubbing up" his Spanish. As for the rich joke of the concluding advice not to "grow depressed at home," it reminds me of something I read of the French Holdiers. One of Forain's cartoons represents a burly "poilu," obviously a family man, saying goodbye to a friend in the trenches before going home on leave "One must," he is 6aying "go and cheer up the people behind." Sergeant-Major Cross, Y.C., writes to his sister in a style as stark and naked as a blade: "Well, dear, I have just been through a rather heavy attack. The devils started this morning at 3.30, and shelled us for four 6olid hours. They have got a new method. They are using some shells filled with liquid fire that burns up everything that comes in contact with it. I was on patrol this morning when they started. I thought the world was coming to an end as I heard a terrible explosion on my right, and when I looked up I saw a great blaze about thirty feet long and a hundred feet high. I never witnessed such a sight before. They shelled us for four hours, and are still shelling. The lights are terrible to witness. I got a small wound on the chin from a piece of shell. It took a small piece of 6kin off, but, thank God, it did me no more harm. Dont' worry, dear, it is nothing; and I am still doing my duty." Here the letter turns to private affairs ; but the conclusion is suggestive: "Dear, I must close now, with my fondest love to you, your loving brother, Fred. P.S....They have just started again." THE TIME TO HIT BACK. The Russians, outnumbered and outgunned, are retreating. James sees in that condition of things a Russian defeat and a Germanic victory. He exaggerates both. He leads thase who listen to him to believe that the Germanic Powers, who have needed their utmost force to push the Russians back, will need only a moiety of that force to hold them back. When they have occupied forte the Germans and Aus. trians will use half their Eastern armies either to take Calais or to march through Rumania and Bulgaria to the relief of Turkey, He does not explain what the Russians will be doing when the eastern front is denuded of half the enemy's armies. Then} 1 again, he harps upon the deadlock at the Dardanelles and the stalemate in France as though that state of things had been proved to be permanent and unalterable. It newr seems possible to him that we and our Allies may have a plan and a power not yet revealed. I am often asked now, when the Russians seem to be so hard pressed, why the French and British remain inactive on the western front. My answer is that Ido not know, though I may have an idea. THE HALT IN THE WEST. Put it this way. For France and Britain to remain supine on the western front in this crisis suggests weakness and bad generalship. Are we to believe Britain and Fiance capable of weakness? I cannot. Are we to suspect General Joffre and the Grand Duke and General French and Lord Kitchener of bad generalship? I cannot do that. If, then, the Allies seem to be strangely passive on the western front, is it not possible that they are passive for sound reasons? I think that is quite possible. I admit that if we assume that our Allies have no strategic genius, that they and the British have no cards up their sleeves, the case for Dismal Jimmy is a strong one. But I cannot assume anything of the 6ort. 1 nave a theory as to the Allied strategy which I cannot make public. I ».ope my idea is correct. It is supported by circumstantial evidence which to me seems very strong. If what I expect to happen does happen, our dear old James will be up a tree. WHAT THE EMPIRE CAN DO. Ther is another reason why James is unconvincing; the British people cannot be shaken by prophecies of defeat, because they are so constituted by Nature as to be unable to believe they can be beaten. Events will teach the Birtish nation that they have got to take off their coats and put their immortal soul into a fight, but nothing that any European Power has ever

" KITCHENER CHAPS ARE GREAT."

And now I will quote from the latest letter of such another soldier . •• On the last occasion when I wa6 in the trenches some Kitchener chaps, fresh from England, came up for trench instruction; and they were great. Ihey came in the night, after a long march, shuffling down tho trench, tired and foot core. Many were calling upon the Almighty to vent His wrath upon the person responsible for bringing them so far. Others were laughing at 'the cussedness of things,' and went striding down, twisting and turning round the traverses, smoking harder each time the knee was grazed by the trench side. They soon made themselves comfortable and were very cheerful. Sunburnt and looking very tit and strong, they were seen enjoying their first trench breakfast the next morning. I patched up many blistered feet and attended to numerous grazes. They do not like the kilt so well as trousers. Their complaint is that they are cold o nights. But this does not worry them; they aro the finest men I have seen out here. "Now I have seen my platoon sergeant He would be pleased if you could send a novel, preferably an historical one, in Spanish. He is a linguist, and says he must 'rub up his Spanish. As for my own wants, I should like Darwin's 'Onign of Species, Haeckel's 'Riddle of the Universe, and McCabes' book on Evolution. Ihese will be useful in the many discussions which take place between fellows in my platoon. Just picture several Tommies 'waged in a heated discussion on evolution, with the Huns under two hundred yards away. This may not sound true, "but it is a fact. "I must close now as I have to puck up for the firing line. Do not grow depressed at home. The boys here axe all proud of tho ladies at home and like to know that their womenfolk are not

achieved will convince them that the British nation can be licked. I feel like that all the time and am not afraid of owning it. The British Empire, with its blood up and its eyes open, would lick two Gerraanies and lick them single-hand-ed. We have not begun our fighting yet. We have not thoroughly made up our minds that it is necessary to extend ourselves. Why do I say Wat r I will explain. The one source of danger and of weakness in the Empire, as I have always said and felt since the war broke out, has been the Government. Preacning at Hull, on Declaration Day, the Archbishop of York said : "What they had a right to hsic their Government on such a day as to-day was that they should have the courage to test the real strength of the people,, which was the capacity for sacrifice. All they wanted was that the Government should lead and nave the courage to make great and exacting demands upon the spirit of the people." When the people really wake up and mean business they will ont talk aotwn the Government,' they will compel them to act or to resign. So far the Party spirit is not driven out. Yet a few party bigots, very active and very noisy, he'ip to keep the nation divided. When the people really get their back; up and the resolve to beat the enem" becomes the single thought and desire of tiiem all the end will be in sjght. SOMEBODY WILL HANG.

As bearing on the popular tolerance of Government ineptitude I will, before I close this political parenthesis, remind our readers of the action of the Russian Duma. I quote Mr. Hamilton Fyfe's report: "The Duma has passed a resolution demanding that legal proceedings be taken without delay against an who are responsible for the shortage of shells and other needs of the Army, irrespective of rank or official position. Out of 360 members present 340 voteu in favour of these proceedings. It was clear from the temper of the assembly when it met on Sunday that a demand for the prosecution of the late Minister of War and others would be pressed, and this undoubtedly represents the indignant des're of the nation. It is surprising that there is not a single voice raised against the demand. What is felt bv almost everybody is that unless the guilty are punched the nation cannot be sure that their disastrous blunders will not be repeated." Somebody blundered here in England over the machine-guns and the shells. Nobody has been scrapped. Is it not obvious that while the blunderers remain the nation cannot be sure that their disastrous blunders will not be repeated? They manage some things better in Rues : a.

SQUANDER CAMPS. I have another letter upon the waste of food in military camps. Without giving the name, an eminent name, of the writer, I shall quote from this letter; firstly, because it contains sounu suggestions, and secondly, because it is another example of the almost general lack of confidence in the men to wnoui we all wish we could look with unswerving faith: i' What is wanted is the construction of proper kitchens and proper grounds. It would then be possible to exewibc the same supervision as in barracks. The bread rations could be reduced by half and the men be much better fee, because the unexpended flour ration could be drawn in meat, instead of bread. In camp here there has oeen enough food wasted to feed all the Germans interned in this country. r3ut under the system of messing, forced upon battalions under canvas, it is impossible to economise food. The Ordnance will not provide field ovens or utensils for making stock out of bones. These have to be sold, green, to the gipsy hawkers at 4s. per cwt. The:r plan is to spread them out on some piece of land they hire, as near the camp as they can get it, and let the flies clean the bones. This produces the pest of flies. Whereas if the Ordnance supplied the stock-pots, uie bones could be made to supply good stock, which could be utilised for soup for the men when they come fn from night operations, or to help the stew made in the field-cookers, and the meat ration could be reduced and the bones sold clean. This has been pointed out to the officer of the Board of Control, but nothing has been done. If these suggestions were adopted the ration could be reduced, the health of the army improved, and a saving of public money effected."

"THEY MAKE THE WOOL FLY."

If the women were drawn from the ranks of the domesticated, used to housekeeping on small incomes the result would be the complete abolition of waste. Two or three live women would stop the waste and 6hake up the Department with a promptitude startling to the sufferers. If they are appointed, may Ibe there to 6ee! My word! How they would make the wool fly!. . . . Put a live woman down in one of those squander camps, where sides of bacon are thrown to the pigs, and in a month's time there will not be enough waste fat to grease a pair of boots.