The Taihape Daily Times. AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE TUESDAY, MAY 21, 1918. A SENSATIONAL SPEECH.

Taihape Daily Times, 21 May 1918, Page 4

The Taihape Daily Times. AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE

TUESDAY, MAY 21, 1918. A SENSATIONAL SPEECH.

(With which is Incorporated The faihap© Post and YralnmU'Jo News).

Civilised peoples of tho world have learned to regard General Smutz as one of their most capable statesmen. Strange though it may seem he is a prize packet picked out of the South African war, during the Boer rebellion some years ago. General Smutz has never been accused of practising the subterfuges known to politicians, in fact, in that respect he is like Ceaser's wife, above suspicion. When he speaks on any phase of the great war now raging he finds more attentive listeners than any other statesman, only excepting President Wilson. Reports of his utterances are read with avidity wherever the various cable services reach, and no man carries more weight with educated and discriminating people. General Smutz is one of the compensations for the Boer war, and it is because he is so universally trusted and honoured that his latest utterance will create considerable wonderment; straight as an arrow they came from whence we can find no suspicion of dissimulation, and yet almost every intelligent being in the world who has read them is deeply perplexed at their tremendous significance. General Smutz did not choose the Guildhall or some other great historic building, nor did he address himself to a gathering of statesmen and heriditary rulers; he just went to a meeting of Clyde shipyard workers and delivered, direct and forcefully, words that might be attributed to an out-and-out pro-German. He told the workers, "the Germans had achieved success that few had thought possible; we used to talk a lot of nonsense about defeating the Boche, but brother Boche had knocked such damnable nonsense out of us.'' He said the B'oche would come within an ace of victory, but would not secure it; and if the very worst, that could happen came, and the British were driven out of Trance Germany would not have w r on the war; the British navy had also to be beaten. A year ago the British Government sent General Smutz to France to report upon the situation, and he came back and urged almost the precisely similar course as that which General Foeh has recently instituted. He emphasised the necessity of a big army of manoeuvre and an army of service reserve for contingencies. And, in his speech to Clyde workers he indicates that both are now possible as he tells them that Americans are coming in hundreds of thousands monthly, and the Hun submarines were powerless to stop them. The situation is going to be most anxious for many days, but if Britain strained every nerve he had not one moment's doubt about the result. He did not think either group of combatants could win an out-and-out victory. It was his opinion the enemy was now ready to consider and to concede terms, but it would be a most dangerous thing to go to a peace conference before they knew the principle of terms to be considered. The conference to be called would settle peace after tho combatants had agreed on main issues. In only those quotations we have taken from General Smutz's speech to Clyde shipworkers, there is almost limitless significance. The great Boer General seems to tell us that the enemy has approached the Allies on the subject of peace, and he believes that Germany is, at last, sincere. He says the enemy has fought to a stage when he is prepared to concede terms. In this connection a cable received on Saturday stated that the Austrian Premier told a deputation of Austrian workers that n prospect of general peace was not hopeless; tho Kaiser v,- as doing his best to bring about negotiations. The day Woi"\ n-o Kaiser said he was no! seems to be no shadow of doubt even., that General Smutz voiced tho utmost that Germany is capable of—he might come within a n ace of winning, but

there was no doubt jat all about the ultimate result. Amerieaus arc teeming in hundreds of thousands a month and submarines were powerless to prevent them. Germany, goaded on by Austria, commenced peace talk directly after the failure of the last offensive on the west front. The High Military Command had assured Germany's Allies that Franco-British armies could be separated and destroyed; that Paris and the Channel ports could be captured, rendering America's part in the war so difficult as to be impracticable. The scheme failed, and it was fairly obvious that another blow of equal magnitude was impossible, Austria has no faith in German talk about suSc'ess o n ' : 'rhV.W'est £ tfront. ; EnlpferOrp' have conferred, ••German. 'kings are objecting to Prussia controlling their destinies, and i although wc regarded all this as- camouflage, General that the enemy"'is, and has been for some weeks, formulating peace proposals that are likely to be acceptable to the Allies. The Austrian Premier told Austrian workmen the Kaiser was doing his utmost to bring about peace. Germany 'may regard the present as a favourable moment, as a British Empire Conference is about to commence its deliberations on after war dispositions. We have been perplexed and curious about the attitude of Japan; we have wondered why Germans and their jackal were allowed to roam over Asiatic Russia, at will. We have also been surprised that the Allies should again commence to show considerable concern for the rehabilitation of Russia. It seems extremely probable that the Russian campaign is too big for Germany; if the west front thrust had been successful troops could have been spared, but the reverse spelt impotency in Russia. America and France are taking steps to re-organise the Russians, who have discovered that their revolution resulted in an effort to sell them and their country into German slavery. It is abundantly evident that Germany will have to include the abandonment of Russia in any peace proposals that may be evolved. Japan will have very strong views against Germans being made their neighbours, in fact, nobody wants the Kaiser and his Prussians, not even the B'avarians, Saxons and other German States, to say nothing about Austrians and Turks. The protest of tho King of Bavaria- may be., regarded; as a protest against,; his country, being longer in vassalage to the King of Prussia, to-signify to some extent that Bismark's fwork. of una>iing a huge Germany is to be undone, and each of the German States are again to assume their original freedom from Prussian dominaucc such provision being made in the peace proposals that are being formulated. General Smutz's address was intended to have world-wide significance; but without the context it is difficult indeed to harmonise some' of his statements.' "It is damnable nonsense to talk about de&ating tho Bhche," and yet hundreds of thousands of Americans are reaching France'each month, and he has not a moment's doubt about the ultimate result. Then are we to get all we have been fighting for without 'any further fighting? General Smutz's words were uttered with some

great purpose in view; it seems pre. sent possibilities, if not probabilities, are of supreme moment. General Smutz'has set the world in a mental ferment, but we shall not have long to wait for some elucidation.