CONFIDENT BRITAIN.

Taranaki Daily News, 9 February 1916, Page 4

CONFIDENT BRITAIN.

SYDNEY MAN'S IMPRESSIONS. THE AMERICAN ATTITUDE "There is no poverty in Britain now. That is one of the strange effects of the war. Everybody ia employed, and in regular receipt of moijey." This statement was made last week by Mr. E. J. Lamb, manager for Australia of Ithc big ..shipping firm of Houlder Bros. He left for London by the P. and 0, liner Medina in June last, and returned to Sydney, via America and New Zealand. The people of Britain were confident of ultimate victory, said Mr. Lamb, and none more so than those in London and along the east coast, who had been brought in'to close touch with the war. Nowhere was there any pessimism, although in the west, where the people did not quite realise what war was, people were more apt to criticise. Mr. Lamb met a number of men on leave of absence from the front, and there wis not a "croaker" among ithem. It was recognised that the war was, to a very large extent, an artillery one, and that the Germans had a tremendous initial advantage in this respect, and so were able to force their wov forward until checked, and then dig themselves in. Authorities from the front said that the enemy could be driven out of the noriili of France, but that it would mean a great cost of life. We could afford to wait, because the Germans feared the word "attrition" much more than we did. One reason for attempting to force the Dardanelles was the object of supplying our big Ally, Russia, with munitions through the Black Sea. Tiiat could not be done, buf the Russians, had geen large supplied through the White Sea to Archangel, and as soon as_ the necessary supplies had been obtained the German advance was stemmed and the enemy was now being gradually driven back. On 'the western front the artillery difficulty had been got over largely owing to the wonderful activity of the French, who had turned out some wonderful netv guns. WHERE GREECE STANDS. The feeling in London regarding the Greeks was that the majority of ithem were pro-German, and that Greece was only kept back from joining our enemies by the fear of our fleet banging their coasts to pieces and ruining their trade. "For a country of such small population, Greece has a wonderfully large mercantile marine," said Mr. Lamb, "and the Greeks know that if they warred with us their marine would be a thing of the past. They are dependent on outside supplies, and if completely blockaded would be reduced to extremities in a month."

Mr. Lamb witnessed two Zeppelin raids, one in London, and one in Surrey. Mr. Lamb saw one of the Zeppelins ill the glare of searchlights, shining like burnished silver, with the shells from the anti-aircraft guns bursting underneath and all around it. The sight he described as "magnificently thrilling," During some weeks spent in Canada and British Columbia, Mr. Lamb observed itliat. everywhere there was a vast unquenchable enthusiasm for the Empire's cause, and that recruiting was going ahead splendidly. Canada was exceedingly prosperous and the people more absolutely confident that we would not lie beaten in this war. Travelling in the United States, Mr. Lamb formed 'the opinion that the only absolutely pro-German' peoples were those of cities such as Chicago, Milwaukee and Boston, the populations of which are almost entirely German, or of German descent.

"In New York and other large centres of the east," Mr. Lamb continued, "it cannot be said that the pro-German 'dement is at all strong, but 1 want to impress this point, that it. is quite a mistake for Britishers 'to continue talking of, or thinking of, the Americans as our cousins. The percentage of the United States' population of purely British descent is now only 13, and very few of the present-day Americans have really any more sympathy for Great Britain 'than they have for auv other foreign country. There, is a very strong feeling even among a great many of the leading men that the present war is going to leave the European nations, ineluding Great Britain, so weakened that America has now a golden opportunity to dominate the world's trade. For that reason, the majority of them are antiBritish enough to hope that Britain will lie thoroughly disorganised by the war, T would not like to say what I really think of the Americans!"

"Prevailing opinion in authoritative circles at Home is that the war will have been brought to a successful conclusion by the end of dhe next European autumn,'' continued Sir. Lamb.