The Daily News. TUESDAY, JULY 11, 1916. OVERCOMING THE OBSTACLES.

Taranaki Daily News, 11 July 1916, Page 4

The Daily News. TUESDAY, JULY 11, 1916. OVERCOMING THE OBSTACLES.

There is a certain similarity between the Allies' ipcmthns on the Wc?t front ind these with which we are all familiar in connection with the domain of the racecourse. The participants in each case have, to be rebmittel to a long ,ml arduous em.is: of pretaration in which skill, pluck, n-jource and strength are all developed before the day of the contest arrives, and then victory goes to tiiosc who eu:i most successfully overcome the obstacles. Just as some of the-.: obstacles on the "acecourse have to he rushed, and other.) approached ivith caution, coupled with determined confidence, so is it with the far more serious natter en which the Allies are now eng.igcd, and f»;r which they have been strenuously preparing for nearly two years in order to achieve victory. If the success of the start ,s any indication >f finish then the Allies may well bo ei :if,<icnf, for no such thunder of artillery lias even before been heard upon a biiUU.*e!d. The eyes of the world are concentrated on this unparalleled struggle n which the future of peace and civilisation is at stake, wliiK the obstacles to be overcome are such as will try I he skill and resources of the champions of freedom to the utmost. It Is only a human characteristic to be keenly expectant of mighty event.- taking place, but there has been nothing sensational as yet, and the public are fully warned not to expect dramatic developments. The British plans are progressing normally. Officers and men are performing prodigies of. valor, and it .s not w : se to expect rapid developments It is ncirthy of note that a recent cabb stnlc»: 'The studied Moderation of Sir P. Haig's reports is conspicuous. The nation is at high tension, but the underlying fe'lbig is confidence that the ob-.-ti'.cieo will surely, though slowly, ho i)Vcreo»!c.' ! That is the attitude which exactly heroines the people of the Em pirc. The importance of the French co-ope) ation is far greater than is generally ren'ise<\. According .a the far'i correspondent of the London Times, "it it now possible to state without exaggeration that the French, south of the Soiimio arc well on the way to a striking Hue crss. A. wedge has now been driven into the third !;ne at Flaucourt. The Fre.ii.li are r.iso masters of the plateau of Ptroniii: ind are within three miles of the township. Success on the Asseviihrs front will enable the French to reach the open country, compelling the Caimans to evacuate Peronne." The French dominate the only ,hree roads over which the Germans obtain supplies Another important factor in the Allies success :s the splendid work of their aena'. squadrons, as the result of which no enemv airman has been able to cross the Fr'neb lines since the first of July, and as a : reraft are the eyes of the artillery, the enemy in this respect hits been blinded. The question of why the Germans flung themselves with such furj at Verdun has been a matter of considerHbk> speculation, and few have been able to understand why they continued their futile and costly efforts ,n that region, I'h'e Saturday Review's military expert

ad 'aiices four reasons as a solution of the problem—political necessity for a victory; need for counteracting the moral ell'ect of the fa.ll of Erzeroum; eon.seiousne.ss that the German supply of men was running short; and the desire to provoke a counter-offensive on the part' of the Allies. Each of these reasons, doubtless, had some influence on what may be regarded as the mad act of the campaign, but if we desire to obtain a more trustworthy and probable motive, heed should be paid to what Mr. Hilaire Belloc ha? to say on the subject. Tl is remarkably clever writer, it will be remembered, forecasted the siege of Liege with amazing accuracy, and he has followed up that achievement by gnrssing the thoughts of the Germans with regard to Verdun with equal success. On February 10, he argued that German' strategy would be decided by the circumstance that the limit of German reserves was almost reached, while that of the Allies is still expanding. "Anyone standing in the shoes of the enemy higher command at this moment," he wrote, "must be contemplating, somewhere, a vigorous offensive on a large scale," and at that exact moment the German higher command was contemplating a "vigorous offensive on a large scale" on Verdun! He further predicted that the coming offensive would almost certainly be delivered on the western line, and would probably be delivered on two sectors of that line, so as to prevent reserves being sent up to the principal point of attack. Those were two shrewd guesses. The attack was made on the western line, but it was not made on two sectors of that line —perhaps because the Germans found that Verdun was a task that absorbed all their strength. The purpose of tke German attack, according to Mr. Hilaire Belloc was (1) to break the French front—that would be worth doing if it cost 300,000 men; (2) failing in that, they might yet succeed in heavy captures of men, guns, and munitions, and so impress the imagination of all the neutral States, and improve the moral of the German forces themselves. Verdun has ceased to be a fortress. It is the name of a position, a vast horseshoe of t*cnehes which makes a link in 500 miles of .trenches betwixt the North Sea and Basle. But if the Germans could have established themselves upon cither part of that horseshoe, and make a plausible claim to having "captured Verdun," they would have a base on which to make peace proposals, on the basis of a draw, to the Allied Powers.. This conclusion is one that is thoroughly justified by fact's, and is emphasised by the "peace feelers" chat were thrown out some week? back. Tke German headquarters staff ,vere well aware that the Allies great offensive was eventuating, . tnd now it nas materialised with such force that it las completely demonstrated that they are on the top of the wave, and that for the first time they are defeating he Germans by reason of superiority in men and munitions. This is no time for boasting, but no impartial student of the latest phase of the war can come to any othe; conclusion than that the Allies on all the fronts are now in a position to overcome all tin formidable obstacles and reach, the winning pa»t in tine time.