THE Daily News. THURSDAY, JANUARY 11, 1917. ALLIES' COHESION AND ENEMY DISSENSION.

Taranaki Daily News, 11 January 1917, Page 4

THE Daily News. THURSDAY, JANUARY 11, 1917. ALLIES' COHESION AND ENEMY DISSENSION.

The effect of the tense strain of carrying on the war is now becoming manifest, but it is instructive as well as interesting to mark how differently the effect ia working on the Allies anrf the enemy, An analysis of this phase of the .far' n-ay, if impartially undertaken, give a very fair indication of the. ultimate issue, assuming, of course, that peace will only follow a final deceive victory. Fortunately, it is by no means necessary, in pursuing such an investigaton, to review the eventß of the struggle. It suffices to take present conditions whereon to base a conclusion fiom which a reasonable deduction can be drawn as to further probabilities. As the map of Europe would fail to be of use as a guide in estimating the potentialities of the belligerents, there is no need to refer to the relative territorial gains and losses of the two great contending parties, These are largely the outcome of circumstances which have been governed by various factors that no longer exist. T he crux of the whole position concerning the ultimate issue of the war is to be found in the preponderance of potentialities, and the first, as well as tlr. g.eatest of these, is unity and solidarity. That unity and cohesion of the Allies is so strong and that of the enemy so increasingly weak arc clearly apparent to the meanest intelligence, but it may be recalled that the Allies were most unjustifiably attacked and that they art! banded together in the eause of the freedom of nations against tyranny. On the other hand, the Central Towers deI'.ocrately provoked the war for mere h'St of conquest and aggrandisement, though now they are fighting for selfp:eservation, That of itself is indicative of the great change '.hat has com? over the titanic struggle. It may also be noted that when, as at present, a fight is for self preservation, each of the nations banded together for aggression, yet compelled to act on the 1 defensive, will naturally be guided by j primal instinct of personal safety. \%ai. then is the position .to-day as between* the Entente and the Central Powers? Briefly stated, it is represented by a firmer and closer alliance on the part of the Entente, but with increasing dissension on the part of the er.emy. The recent conference held at Rome has proved a timely and em; hatic object lesson in practical cohesion. Coming c,s it did closely on top of the German peace-feeler, it may be regarded as the !a?t word the Allies have to say as to tirminating the struggle in any way except by the sword. Were it othervise, the huge sacrifices made would he al! in vain. Once more the Allies have let their determination be known, as well as their unshakeable unity. On the other hand, a far different state of afinirs prevails among the Central Powers nad thejr suDDOrtcrs. The Allies'

(blockade is doing- its work so effectively that it is stated starvation is in sight in Austria and Germany, while fheir&windI ling, forces and reserves of the enemy iiro undermining their striking powav and rendering the govern :.ig authoritie-i madly desperate. Tliey are still formidable and resourceful, but are no longer buoyed up with the hojc of victory Tin new .Emperor of Austria appears to have ideas of his ouni, one of them being a rooted objection to German dominion, and the breach bitweci: Mm ana llii! Kaiser is sai'd to be now unbridgeable That rumor may 1).: an exaggeration, but it is plain the d.smissal of his pro-German advisors is a deliberate move, the object of which-can only be to ;;v,ard against German influence to wlill-!i he i.-i undoubtedly averse. ft is eaiy to understand that Austria desperately desires an end to the war speedily, and there may be more than .meets the eye in the statement as to probable sensational developments in Austria. Bulgaria considers her share in the war ;s over, and Turkey must surely know that whichever side wins she must lose. The time has arrived when there is no common object to be served by fighting merely to maintain German militarism, :o that a break up of the Central Alliance is quite within the r«alm of possibility. So long as there ,s a hope of a reaee conference thej may and no doubt will hang together, but the thread will be slender, in striking contrast to the unbreakable bond that hinds the Entente together in the resolve that this war must he the last and that the

wrongs committed must be repaired so far as is possible, and the world's menace removed.