WEEKLY SUMMARY

Taranaki Daily News, 15 October 1918, Page 5

WEEKLY SUMMARY

A WONDERFUL WEEK. DOWNFALL OF THE GERMANS. WHOLE EDIFICE OF MILITARY f. DOMINION SHATTERED. REASON FOR GERMAN CRY FOR PEACE. By Telegraph.—Press Association. Wellington Last Night, Tlie Acting-Prime Minister lias received from the' Ministry of Information the following summary of war operations for the week ended October 12:—

It is impossible to keep pace with the gootl news hourly arriving. The most important event during the past week was the British triumph on the Sth, which forced the enemy to make a retirement, probably extending over the whole front from St. Quentin to the Argomie. This means the rupturing' of the last line of the Hir.dcnbiirg system, -which was the main pivot of the enemy's entire defence between the Meuse and the rc-a. ' The enemy's situation is now dangerous. His troops are much exhausted, and his reserves are practically all used up, so that it is no longer possible to 'make good his loss in either men pr material, and a general retirement in such circumstances might bring about the most important developments.

REMARKABLE BRITISH WORK, During the last two months the work of the British has been most remarkable, both in generalship and fightitfg morale. The French Genev-l, Staff ex-' pressed its warmest admiration of this series of battles as being "models in conception and execution" 'and "classic examples of military art" (More than SO German divisions engaged iffere defeated by the British fimvies, often repeatedly. The enemy Was perpetually surprised by the successive knocks at different points of the line., which battered him one position after another and finally dealt a blow from which it will be difficult to recover.

GERMANS SQUTTLING FROM RUSSIA. In North Russia, Germany has withdrawn a large number oC troops from Finland, and all danger to the llurman railway and the coast is now removed. The peril the Czecho-Slovak , troops still remains most serious- They have not yet retired. It is hoped that the new all-Russian Government at Ufa will reconcile all political factions, but its success depends upon the Czechs retaining their hold on European Russia. The Germans hav<> greatly reduced the various garrisons in Poland, and the Poles are now showing such open opposition to the Central Powers that they are feeling no real peril from Germany, whoso forces are inadequate to defend the Eastern frontier.

HOLD LOOSENING IN UKRAINE. The enemy's situation is also worse in tho Ukraine, owing to the present guerilla warfare. The defection of Bulgaria, and the reverses in the "West, have greatly weakened the (Jerman hold or. Russia, and imperil her control of the Black Sea", for though raly established in the Crimea, with Sevastopol for a naval base, the hostility of the population makes communication insecure.

Recent developments have also caused the enemy to withdraw on the Tabriz•Kasum Road, and communications betweeen Bagdad, in the Caspian, are not now in danger, owing to the large withdrawal of Turkish troops from the Caucasus to- Constantinople. , '

THE PALESTINE 'ADVANCE. The Palestine advance :« greatly assisted by the use of Coastal ports, tot, remember,' we are now working 500 miles away from the main base in Egypt, and 150 miles from the railhead in Palestine, so that the maintenance of big forces is naturally most difficult. The Bolshevik movements are also greatly discouraged, and they now content themselves with the most terrible, atrocities of all sorts on the population.

GERMAN PEACE MOVE ANALYSED.

The Gerjnan peace move may be analysed as follows:—On the one hapd, the defection of Bulgaria opens a prospect of complete German military defeat, with the loss of all her gains and possibly Alsace-Lorraine- On the other hand, Germany is seriously threatened at home by prospective chaos in the event of military defeat Probably the ruling classes and the Kaiser believe that, while military defeat is intimately remediable, such social revolution would breed irreparable consequences, and is his worst peril. The complete surrender of their former position, with AlsaceLorraine, is purely an internal question, and shows vividly how black the situation seems in Germany, but darker still to her remaining alies.

AUSTRIA AND TURKEY. Austria has suffered more than Germany, -both economical!? and socially. The military disintegration of the'Gentral Powers in the Balkans has increased the power of Austrian deserter marauders, who have, long since been known to be frequenting the mountains. In fact, Austria races -Turkey for peace. Thotfgh Turkey still watches developments, it is probable she will not wait lon® to take steps to be done with the war. i

The German fabric of military do* minion collapses under the pressure of military rev3rses, and if these Mows are administered with sufficient force and pertinacity the situation will rapidly develop. GREAT WORK IN THE AER.

The British aerial fighting last week raged, on a. battle-front from .Arnientieres to St. Quentin, especially between Lille and Oambrai, over a 'big network of railways, whose vital function it is to connect Valenciennes, Douai, and Cambrai. We have maintained a practically continuous offensive on all these points, maiding lille station and the minor jon at Aulnoye-Busigny, where the line divides to Cologne and Brussels.

On the battle-front all forma of,cooperation with the .advancing British infantry were successfully employed, especially oar machine-screened attacking troops, dropping smoke bombs in front M them to emt»-A curtain, basing «]«,

(systematically supplying aramtttujgM from the air. This was all 4|W tcjaH|| splendid work of tho l.';ht ; ng a!r Mobß| who kept tho sky'friv i> "u limtite'JjH clones, so that the other- air coul(|' carry on unmolested.. machines, but destroyed ili chines and drove down J3. ' , ■ British airmen were equally 'jnijifjl fill in conjunction with th'a - .-wtw|B|j| Army at Nieuport and mvalm concerted air attack in tile cotajmrifin tiona supporting the German line jaajfi On the enemy's extreme left R A.F Independent Force also- 4u|§|9 most successful weelc, actively hnnflffiS the usual objectives with such that the railway triangle at Hfctf! had seyen doses of bombs Ihis TteelfJlM also did the stations at Metzieres, BsjfS Thionville, and Courcelles, naccs at Burbruck, masens, and hostile neiodroraes at-itm! hange and Freseatty. ; " 3