PEACE MOVEMENT.

Taihape Daily Times, Issue 220, 30 April 1917, Page 5

PEACE MOVEMENT.

HOPEFUL PEELING IN GERMANY Keceived 9.5. AMSTERDAM, April 29. Herr Zimmcrmann's confidential statement on the foreign situation bad relation to speedy peace, and was applauded. According to a semi-official statement from Berlin, the belief prevails in Germany that a happy termination of the war may shortly be expected.

GREECE.

SITUATION CONTINUES SERIOUS. ATHENS, April 28, The situation continues serious. M. Zaimais is unwilling to accept the Premiership and the Lambros Cabinet is half in and half out of office. General Dousmanis and other members of the clique which is governing Greece on behalf of Germany, with Constantino's complicity, are plot ting measures in the event of the Allied troops making an advance. Armed reservists are again patrolling the streets. The position resembles < early December.

BEITISHFOOD PROBLEM

BRITAIN LOOKS AHEAD.

BIG HARVEST IN 1918,

TAKING NO MORE CHANCES

LONDON, April 27

Mr Lloyd George, speaking in the Guildhall to-day, outlined the steps taken by the Government Departments to deal with the food problem. He said that farmers were now cultivating ten per cent, more land than before the war. The farmers had given a guarantee, so had his labourers, and after the feverish activity of the last few months we had a million acres of fresh land under cultivation, meaning an addition of two million tons of food. "I am not going to say that the war'will continue through 1918," he said. "But we must take no chances. We had taken far too many already. If the German knows that by holding out until the end of 191 S he can win by starving us, he will hold out, but he also knows that the longer he holds out the worse it will be for him, hence peace might come much earlier. We ar e taking steps now for the harvest of 1918, and not a minute too soon. Three million fresh acres of land are being put into cultivation, and even without a ton of food being brough from abroad no one can starve, but all must help. You save your rations and keep to them. The kitchen must help as well as the shop and the trenches.

"If those steps for cultivation had been taken a year, or eighteen months ago, w e should have had no danger about food now. We might not have had enough wheat, but there would have been other cereals."

' 'There ar e eighty-five million bushels of wheat in Canada, I cannot say for the asking, but for fetching it. They ought to have been here. I believe that about twenty or thirty million bushels have to go to the United States for the lack of other, markets. We must cut down food until we discover a method of destroying the ocean bacillus. That is one thing that ha a got to be done. But that is not all. We are building ships. The Shipping Controller has already^made arrangements whereby we will' make thrice, or possibly four times as many new ships in 1917 as last year.

Turning to shipping he said that the cutting down of imports last year, was not adequate. In addition to a saving of one million and a-half tons last year new arrangements were now working to stop an additional six million tons of imports. Arrangements were being made whereby ultimately imports would be cut down by over ten million tons yearly, without interfering with the essential industry. "Furthermore," he added, "we are going to save all timber. We ar.e making arrangements by which we can get most of our minerals worked in the mines of Great Britain. We shall be getting four million tons of ore in addition to what we are getting now out of this country by August next, and our blast furnaces will be adopted for that purpose. You know what ten million tons of imports mean. If this had been saved a year ago there would not have been a year's supply of wheat stored in'this country." "Our. victory is becoming increasingly assured. The submarine campaign is the worst problem we have to meet, and we mean to do it. Germany means to make the seas impassable for any craft. That is essential to. victory for them. It is essential to victory for us that | they should fail. Do not let us mini- | mise the gravity of the situation. UnI less we appreciate it we cannot meet |it This problem has worried us for at i least two and a half years. At first the Germans themselves did not realise the potency of the weapon, but later, they concentrated on building submarines, and since the Germans determined to sink' all craft indiscriminately they have sunk more ships, but they have brought America in. lam perfectly satisfied with the balance. America at length saw that it was useless waving the neutral flag in the face of a shark. The best brains of the Allies were applied to the submarine problem. It would be unwise to say more at present, but, believe, me, we are concentrating on this problem. I have never seen an insoluble human problem, and do not believe this is an exception." AWAKENING THE COUNTRY TO ITS DANGER. Received 9.5. LONDON, April 29. Greatest efforts are being made throughout the country to awake the public to the urgency for a reduction of food consumption.

The Glasgow Corporation are utilising special Sram-cars, from which orators declaim throughout city suburbs.

Liverpool is establishing co-opera tive kitchens.

' The Archbishop of Canterbury has authorised special prayers for blessing the crops, the protection of merchantmen, and moderation in eating and drinking.

iMeanwhilie, there are strong clamours for the fullest details of subnj'arhls sinkings. News]|ag(er£ (denounce that th e Admiralty returns are insufficient and misleading. Disappointment is expressed at the antisubmarine measures.

THE COAL STSIKE

jiilxJ .Liilj

' DEMANDS,

iiiliMY PER CENT BONUS,

tate ui::k STRIKERS.

WELLINGTON, April 28

Coalmine owners, who conferred here this week, have agreed to meet the men's representatives on May 9, to consider proposals. It is understood that the miners will demand a war bonus of a further 20 per cent., making a total bonus of 30 per cent., on the ground that this represents the amount by which the purchasing value of their wages has depreciated owing to the high cost of necessities of life.

The Minister of Mines expresses strong dissatisfaction over the continued strike of the State miners. Apparently, he said, they cannot take their case before the proper tribunal without the extreme step of going on strike. If this method is to be preliminary to dealing with all trivial claims, it is going to be disastrous, both to the miners and the country, and makes it very much more difficult to secure a settlement.

STATE MINES RESUMED. GREYMOUTH, this day. Both the State mines resumed work to-day, after thre e days' strike as a protest against the alteration of workmen's tickets.

At a meeting of minors on Saturday a telegram received from Sir James Allen is said to be in the nature of an ultimatum.' It is generally conceded the strike has resulted in a win for the railways.

THE STATE COAL MINES. REPORTED OFFER TO PURCHASE WELLINGTON, this day. Mr. R. Wilson, of Reefton, manag-ing-director of the "Keep it Dark" and other West Coast mining companies, is<-visiting Wellington, with Mr. J. B'. Laurenson, President of th e Canterbury Industrial Association. The object, it is understood, will be ;to submit an offer to Cabinet on behalf of

New Zealand capitalists to purchase the State Coal mine at Runahga. A conference has been arranged with the Government. It is understood that satisfactory financial arrangements will be made if the Government agrees. There is plenty of' labour available to carry on the industry.