STARVE BRITAIN.

Taranaki Daily News, 26 April 1917, Page 6

STARVE BRITAIN.

GERMAN HOPES. FROM SUBMARINE WAR. SOME INSPIRED STATISTICS,

Admiral von Capelle's Press ■ Bureau followed up the announcement of "un restricted submarine warfare" with the publication of some semi-official arithmetic concerning the proposed starvation of England. The fullest version (says the Times) is given by the Berlin Lokalanzeiger. The total English tonnage is stated to be about 20,000,000 gross register tonsi and is accounted for as follows: Requisitioned for military purposes, 8,G00,000 tons; engaged in coastal trade, 500,000 tons; under repairs, 1/100,000 tons; plying "in the interest of the Allies," 2,000.000; remaining for tlio supply of England, 8,000,000 tons "at most." It is added that, as a matter of faety the statistics- for July and September, 1910, show only about 0>.730,000 tons of English shipping as plying to England, it is estimated that, with the addition of 900000 tons of non-English enemy tonnage and 3,000,000 ton? of neutral tonnage, England is dependent upon a round total of 10,750,000 gross register tons. The Lokalanzeiger goes on to predict that there will be a great reduction of imports from North America during the month of February), and then continues:

"The supplies of the Entente cannot be assured without the liberal shipment of Australian' wheat. Every hundred thousand gross register tons destroyed means a falling off of 240,000 tons of wheat— that is, the English supply for twelve days.'' THE IMPORTANCE OF COAE. The production of coal in England sank from 287,000,000 tons in 1913 to 136,000,000 tons in 1014, and 253,000,000 tons in 1015. On the other hand, the Home demand rose from 189,000,000 tons to over 200,000600 tons—in the main, no doubt, on account of the requirements of the 'Army and the Navy. "he demand is growing by 1,230.000 tons a month, while it has only bairn possible to increase production by 1,.000,000 lens a. month as compared with 1915, The export fell from 3,500,000 ton* in 1913 to 43;§00,'000 tons in 191q. ami will not amount to more than 40,000,000 tons for I'9lo. Consequently France and Italy suffer from a paralysing lack of coal, since they have been deprived of cial from Germany. Here al.lo the scarcity of tonnage piays an important part. In addition to this, consideration concerning the Allies there is for England the fact that coal—at a pri*; which has increased ly more than 70 per cent. —constitutes 10 per cent, of the value of English exports. These exports are importBut, not only financially, but especially as a means of making neutral? bow to English wishes. Consequently the coal question is, the cause 01 genertil anxiety in England. If, then,.one sums up tlie whole matter from the point of view of Submarine warfare one is able to say that our new submarine war will be faced by a state of things than which nothing more favourable for success could be conceived. Scarcity and high prices prevail everywhere. England will be faced by the necessity of employing more than twice as much tonnage as hitherto for the shipment of wheat —the most important. food—and there is reason to doubt whether the export surpluses at the disposal of England and her Allies are-suflieient to cover requirements until the end of the harvest year.

WARNINGS AGAINST OPTIMISM.

Captain Persius was provided with similar, figures for use in the Berliner Tagebla'tb. He quotes l some of thcmi, but ttdds various warnings. He invites his readers not to forget that there have been considerable addition t'o British mercantile tonnage during the war, and he writes:—

""'lt has been calculated that England has only from 8,000,000 to 9,000)000 tons of shipping for the importation of raw .materials and food. One should not, however let the wish he too great an extent the father of the thought. At present there is the utmost confusion in the organisation of all merchant shipping. All things take time, and this is particularly true of Great Britain's method 01 conducting war! But we have often had to observe that our disorganisation of all merchant shipping. All things take time, and this is particularly true of Great Britain's method of conducting war! But we 'have often had to observe that out of disorganisation at the beginning of a splendid organisation has blossomed in time. It is also necessary to utter a warning against underestimation of the means of defence against submarine attack*. The new First Lord of the Admiralty!. Sir Edward Carson, some days ago told a deputation from the Navy League that he is able to offer the prospect of complete remedies for all defects. This, was, of course, said before by Churchill and Balfour, but it would not be just to Carson if one were to mention him in the same breath with his predecessors. In a, word,, we should only be" diminishing the future successes of our brave submarines, which we hope will be very great, if we did not appreciate to the full extent the immense difficulty of the task which lies before them."

THREATS OF NEUTRALS.

The Lokalanzeiger dilates upon the advantages to Germany of even temporary stoppage of neutral shipping during a period of uncertainty, and concludes its article with some further calculations and a characteristic announcement that German, "strength" is the only means of cowing neutrals: — "England gets CO per cent, of her butter from Denmark and practically all her ■margarine from Holland. If the Danish butter fails altogether and the Dutch margarine is reduced to only one-half. England will be faced' at once by a fats famine.

"Looking in another direction, what is more important is. that the imports of war materials from America and of raw materials for the English munitions industry can now be hit. But in any case, the main point is the fact that there is no comparison between financial support of England hy the United States and the effects of submarine warfare. Loans, credits, payments, and everything else of the same kind are of no use whatever when a country has its imports cut off. Tha shortage which ensues cannot he cured ky gold or the value oi gold. "The neutral has naturally looked! at aerliajja one-sidedly—from) his

own point of view), and he was, forced to the conclusion that he had much more to fear from England than from Germany. This is the determining factor for the weak.

"Submissiveness and respect for others are the least useful means by which we can defeat the hatred and bitterness which the war lias produced, but what is lacking in friendly feeling can be made up by respect. The success of tin' strong has always been the tiling before which the world bows."