WAR NOTES.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 151, 2 December 1914, Page 7

WAR NOTES.

| EARL ROBERTS'S MESSAGE. . A few weeks before his death Earl Roberts addressed the following message to the children of the Empire:—"You have all heard of the war; you have (ill heard of the lighting forces sent from every part of the Empire to help the Mother Country. Why are we fighting? Because the British Empire docs not break its premises, nor will it allow small nations to be bullied. Now, the British Government promised, with all the Great Powers of Europe, including Germany, tli.it. no army should set foot on the territory of the little nation of Belgium without her leave; in other words, she 'guaranteed the neutrality of Belgium.' Germany, however, was bent on war, and on dominating other nations. Britain did hor best to keep the peace, but Germany —breaking her word —marched her armies into Belgium to try and conquer' France. Children of the Empire, this is why we are at war—to hoid our promise, to help our frienils, and to keep the. flag of liberty flying, not only over our owr. Efpire, but over tin. whole world. God save our King ,nvl Empire." THE TURKISH SOLDIER. As regards fighting powers the Turks stai'J very high, but owing to their want c-f power oi organisation and their Jelibevation in movement they do not form as ftnmidable an enemy as the quality of their army should indicate. The military virtues of the Turkish soldier individually are the supreme ones of high courngi-, fortitude, patient endurance of hanlpMpp, wounds and suffering, and absolute s.ibrietv. lie is also entire! loyal lo the faith which represents 1: country. In the lirst few centuries of the Turkish invasion of Europe .. the Turkish armies were far, superior in organisation ami fighting power to the Christian forces they encountered, and rapidly spread their Empire over the cost of Europe. They even held for some t.-me Otranto in Southern Italy and the southern parts of Austria; they besieged Vienna in the ,10th and 17th centuries, and possessed Hungary for 150 years. The Black Sea was long a Turkish lake, completely surrounded by their territory. For the last 200 years, however, their military organisation and their government has declined greatly in efficiency, and their territory in Europe has now shrunk to a small area well within 200 miles of Constantinople. THE RUSSIAN ORGANISATION. An officer who is attached to the Russian field army wira to the Bourse Gazette:—"This i 3 the second day that I have been driving at the rear of the army, where the thunder of guns and the rattling of the qurik-fircrs are not audible. Here orderlies dash hither and thither -like madmen, and companies of reserves rush to positions with a swi't nervous step. Here there are no vivid battle pictures, but how amazing for one who saw the rear of our army in the past- war, who 10 years ago saw Kharliin and Irkutsk! In this war the rear constitutes no less an indication of the strength and might of our army than the front. 'The secret of war consists of the secret of communication,' said Napoleon, and, indeed, one sees this secret of communications wholly divined liy the Russians. The rear operates incomparably. Nowhere are encountered. masses of sick or wounded, nowhere are heaped piles of military commissariat and supplies, nowhere is there confusion and disorder. The enormous machine where is laid the foundation and organisation of the life of an army works without friction or creaking. I was in several hospitals situated in the very midst of the rear and saw many vacant beds, and this after the Galician buttle, | where 2,000,000 men fought and whore | the losses numbered tens of thousands. | 'Why have you so many vacancies?' 11 ; asked with surprise. 'They are all re-1 moved,' replied the senior physician,; 'All wore full, but we automatically re-1 move the wounded to Russia on the first ? opportunity,' and all hospitals are again ready to receive the wounded from fresh battles. I visited a sugar factory working at full pressure, whence daily thousands of pounds of sugar were dispatched to the army in entire waggon-loads. The external aspect of the towns in the rear also leaves a pleasant impression. Nowhere 'have I encountered soldiers 1 idling; everywhere ono sees energetic and anxious faces, all busy, all untiringly working." . '