BRITISH ORGANISATION.

Press, Volume LI, Issue 15469, 23 December 1915, Page 7

BRITISH ORGANISATION.

freview by mr LLOYD GEORGE. MR ASQUITH ON THE OUTLOOK. GROWING CO-ORDINATION AMONG THE ALLIES. THE GALLIPOLI WITHDRAWAL. CHARACTERISTIC ENEMY CLAIMS CONTINUED ACTIVITY IN THE WEST. (507 th DAY OF THE WAR.)

BRITAIN'S PART.

; THE SUPPLY OF MUNITIONS. ORGANISING FOR VICTORY. 'MR LLOYD GEORGE'S STIRRING APPEAL. •ENORMOUS INCREASE IN OUTPUT. LONDON. December 21. _ ' Mr Lloyd George, Minister of Munitions, in tho house of Commons jnadd an important statement upon tho progress of tho munitions supply. It was six months, he said, since Mr Asquith had invited him to tako - - over tho provision of munitions, and instructed him to increase supplies in , order to lessen tho losses incurred in -attacking perilous positions. Previously, what wo had stinted in material -we had squandered in lives. Tno short- £ 4ge of shell was known to our troops > and to the enemy, but neither of thorn »'knew how really short .\vc were in somo j tery essential particulars. Military oxPerts had believed that the days of * * Jiigh explosives were numbered except 6iege guns, and hod considered that shrapnel was tho oiilv possible weapon for field warfare. Tho British proved to bo reluctant converts to tho conV'clusion that a very substantial propor- ? of high explosives was essential to tS-success in trench warfare. Tho experts now believed that it was necessary that lL* 'quite half of the shell supply should consist of high explosives, but they jVi came. to their conclusions too lato to prevent a shortage of shells nt the bcginning of the year. , p INCREASING THE OUTPUT, pw The Ministry of Munitions had crectifed buildings to supplement tho works private firms. The Ministry had ISfvOrganised forty local ammunition eom.in tho most, important engincentres, and also put up naS|;tionaJ shell factories, which were a success, r.ot only in jnthe supply, but also in mmiIg'jniring labour . difficulties, and enStabling tho Government to chock prices. i:^ v The result had been that last week factories turned out three times as . much high explosive shjcll as all tho iv."'.arsenals of the United Kingdom did in month of May. The quantity of shell fired during tho operations of ,;.f September was enormous. Tho battlo lasted for weeks, yet there was no shortage of this ammunition, and as '-Jv'the result of four months' careful ihttsbanding, the whole supply was re•C> in a month. We would soon bo a position to replace the same quan>2 : tit* in a single week. ■V;'": The position regarding medium guns ft ad howitzers was thoroughly _ satis- • factory. Up to midsummer of this year "iT- big guns had not been ordered on a .large scale. Considerable reductions had been effected in the prices of raw "materials, and there had been an 1. "ggregate saving of about £20,000,000 f x by the Munitions Department sec uring control of the metal market. / MACHINE-GUN DTttICIENCIES. •Mr Llovd Ciivirgo proceeded to tell an astonished House that it was not until Mr Asquith visited the trei.ches in June that the overwhelming importance of machine-guns was realised. One of the first things undertaken Avas ■ the multiplying of the output of ma-:-chine-guns. * A r.ew factory to produce smaller guns had been equipped, and - .two now factories erected to turn out a new type of machinc-gun. with tho ■ result that the delivery had been increased five-fold. The output of rifles ' hsn also been vastly increased. Trench mortars were a new development. but the output of grenades had beep increased for'tv times. Tho , r pst - ; of t.hp eighteen-pounder ammunition V- had b?en reduced forty per cent, and that ef other shells proportionately. \ SKILLED LABOUR WANTED. V" , "But wo want labour to man all our said Mr Lloyd George.

"Machines for the making of machineguns are idlo for tho lack of men. They I will bo (started if we can get the skilled men to mati them. If we can get the skilled man whero wo want liim the problem of tho war will be solved." For tho now factories, he added, thov wanted 80,000 skilled men and 300,000 unskilled. men. H© heard talk of an "over-ordering:," and 'over-production." Nothing could be more mischievous. They could talk of ' over-ordering" whon they had as much m hand its tho Germans had. A good margin was a wise insurance; less than enough was a foolish extravagance. What we spared in money wo spilled in blood. In no war ever fought was tho preponderance of machinery eo completely established. Tho German successes were almost entirely due to their , mechanical preponderance, which was j achioved at tho beginning of the war. HUSTLE AND ECONOMY. I "Wo havo appointed a number of i hustlers to visit the fuctories, find out what is wrong, sot it right, and press forward the contracts. The. net result °f this policy haß been an increase in tho deliveries of old orders by sixty per cent. Two emergenov factories for fitting were erected in six weeks—a •fine pieco of hustling. Mr D. A. Thomas, who went to America, roportcd that tho Pierpont Morgan Company—tho British agents there—had saved Britain millions by preventing the inflation of nrices." MUST BLAST A WAY. Mr Lloyd Goorgo produced a remarkable photograph of the Loos battlefield, showing that tho barbed-wire entanglements were not destroyed, and that only one machine-gun emplacement was not intact. "Every soldier," ho commented, I'says there is only one way of doing it—and that is by having enough ammunition to crush every enemy trench, every comjjlcto ompla'cemont, shatter every machine-gun, and rend every vnrd of entanglements. If the enemy wants to resist ho must do it in the open. A MOCKING SPECTRE. In conclusion, Mr Lloyd George appealed to employers and to workmen jioc to have, inscribed on tho portals of their workshops "Too Late," tho fatal words of this war—"too lato'' in moving hero, "too late" in arriving there, "too lato" in coining to this decision, "too lato" in starting that, enterprise, and "too late" in preparing. "The footsteps of th© Allies have been dogged by tho mocking spoctro of "too late," and', unless? they quicken their movements damnation will fall upon the snored cause for which so much gallant blood has flown. Victory der-ends tho | employers and tho workers. It is a question for them to decidc whether wo aro going to drag the war to an end in r year, \-ictoriouslv, or to linger along the blood-stained path for years." SIX MONTHS AGO. GRAVE SHORTAGE REVEALED. LONDON, December 21. Mr Lloyd George, in the House of Commons, disclosed tho fact that tho German daily output of shells in May was 250,000, while the British production was 2500 high explosive shells and 1300 shrapnel. MACHINE-GUN DEFICIENCIES. WHOSE WAS THE FAULT? LONDON, December 21. The Parliamentary correspondent of tho "Daily Telegraph,' reicrring to tho neglect in the supply of machineguns, asks why it was not realised at the War Office till June, and why it was left to ft civilian Prime Minister to press the truth upon the military authorities? THE NEED FOR MEN. replacing the wastage. IMPORTANT STATEMENT BY MR ASQUITH. , (By C*b!«.—Pr«« Association. —CopyiiffhU LONDON, December 21. In the House of Commons. Mr Asquith, in moving the vote for 1,000,000 additional men, said

that there ttcto 1/2-50,000 British combatants in tho various theatres of ',v;ir. including their fellow-sub-jects from overseas. Tlio wastage of modern war was enormous. a °d the casualties had hem very heavy. Happilv a considerable yerceiitage °* the wound»*d recovered rapidly. "*' should aim at enrolling potentially every man of military age who was not disqualified by physical and domestic conditions, consistent with adequate pro* ision for the production of munitions that vast held of employment op, w " lc h the maintenance of the social hie and our export trade depended. Ho added that he had only "®d t'mo for a hurried glance at I/ud Derby s report, which Cabinet was considering. Meanwhile, there would he no delav in recruiting. He repeated his pledgo to the married men. Apart- from their response to patriotic duty. «.hero had been many applications troin men in tho far distant places of the overseas Dominions who wished to como homo to bo attested. That was a eomrnentaiy on the lethargy of eonie ot those at homo who had not responded. It was reported to liim that joung unmarried men in some districts had not come forwftiil. Ho ouriit'Stlv pfiipnjisiscd tlmt it was necessary l°r to follou* the oxamplo set by the great- mass of the j people. ! LORD DERBY'S ASSURANCE. [ and "Sydney Sun Services.) LONDON. December 21. The Press and tli-" 1 public axo gratified at Lord Derby's uncompromising assurance that the Government does not think of departing from the letter and spirit of the scheme. The voluntary response is a magnificent testimony to tho dogged British determination to win the war, but a section of the Press forecasts a sharp summons, for which a quick response will lx» necessary after the first of Lord Derby's croups has actually been called up, if thero is not to bo compulsion, because certainly every fit man will ultimately be needed.

| anfl lfttcr joined tlio Stall at tlio War j I Office. Jn South Africa lie served in J the Intelligence Department, and, re-| turning to England, was AssistantDirector of Military Operations, A.Q.M.G. at Aldershot, and Commandant of the Staff College, and Director <>f Military Training. He was Quar-tcrmufiter-Gencnil of the Expeditionary Force in the early days of the war, and was subsequently promoted to be Chief of the-Staff. • Sir Archibald J. Murray is_ •"> years of age. He entered tho 27th Regiment in 1870. became Captain in the Royal lnniskilling Fusiliers in IBS", Major in iS'JS, Lieutenant-Colonel in 19U0. Colonel in 11)02, and Major-Gene-ral in Hi 10. He served in the Zulu campaign in ISSS, and in South Africa in lSii'J, 1900, and 15W2. He was dangcrouslv wounded in South Africa, and mentioned in despatches several times. He received the Queen's Medal with five clasps, and the King's Medal with two clasps, and was award- j ed the Distinguished Service Order. Ho had recently been acting as DeputyChief of the Imperial General Staff, with the temporary rank of LteuteuantGeneral. SIR lAN HAMILTON. NOT RETURNING EAST. LONDON, December 21. Tn the House of Commons, Mr Asquith, when questioned, said that Sir lan Hamilton -was not about to return to the command in the Near East. AN IMPRACTICABLE SUGGESTION. OVERSEA REPRESENTATION IN BRITISH CABINET. LONDON, December 21. In the Houso of Commons, the Hon. R. D. Denman asked, in view of the sharo of tho overseas Dominions in the war, and the importance to the Dominions of the policy which would govern peace terms, whether representatives of Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and .South Africa could be included in the Cabinet. Air Asquith replied that the suggestion was impracticable.

THE DEBATE. IRISH MEMBERS OPPOSE CONSCRIPTION. (Received December 22nd, 11.35 p.m.) LONDON", December 21. Mr J. Redmond, in the House of Commons, said it would be pitiable if the moral effect of Lord Derby's recruiting campaign was destroyed b3 - compulsion m any section. He did r.ot believe there were any shirkers. If compulsion were proposed he would oppose it by every possible means. Mr Asquith had said nothing about continuing or abandoning voluntary recruiting, but a decision would havo to bo made soon. Mr Stanton (Labour), in his maiden speech, said it was hypocritical nonsense to say that the country was afraid of conscription. Ho urged that the slackers should be gathered in, including those youths who had got married in order to dodge their responsibilities by hiding behind tho skirts of their women-folk. Sir Edward Carson said his only criticism of tho vote was that it came too late, and was not largo enough. It was a great public ncondal that wo had not heard a single word about tho Gallipoli operations, and now tho withdrawal was heralded as a kind of vic-toi-y. "Why wero tho troops left during August, September, and Octobcr in a kind of hell, while someone was making up his mind? Tho want' of decision was a blot on the management of tho war. Mr Dillon said that Mr Asquith's specch was deplorably lacking in justification of tho raising of tho fourth million of men, which was tho' road to financial ruin... He warned tho Government that Ireland would not tolerate conscription. Tho debate generally .voiced tho danger of depicting necessary indus- j tries of men in order to secure rccruits. It was pointed out that if further men were taken from tho woollen and cotton industries these industries would be at a standstill.

THE FINANCE BILL. (Received December 22nd, 11.30 p.m.) LONDON, December 21. In the Houso of Lords, the Finance Bill, empowering the Government to utilise" American and Canadian securities held in Britain, -was read a second time. SENSATIONAL LIBEL ACTION, MRS ASQUITH v. "THE GLOBE." STATEMENTS WITHOUT FOUNDATION.

LONDON, December 21. Tho Court was crowded during the hearing of tho Asquith v. "Globe" libel case. Mrs Asquith was present, with Air Anthony Asquith. her daughter, and La£y Diana Manners. Mr L)uke, K.C., counsel for plaintiff. said that the weekly London "Mail"' in last May accused Airs Asquith of playing tennis with the German officers at Donnington. Ho thought they apologised and paid damages. The slanders continued until the "Globo'' on November 2t)th, published a letter accusing the wife of a Cabinet Alinister of sending a largo and choice selection of comestibles, purchased in Piccadilly, to tho Hun prisoners. Auot. or letter said that if Mr Asquith handed his salary to his wife as pin-monev tho public hnd no right to complain if she used tho money as , asserted. Tho defendants expressed tl)6ir unqualified regret and submitted to an injunction, pending a libel action. Air Justiee Peterson remarked that the "Globe's" statements were absolutely without foundation.

THE VOTE PASSED. (Received December 23rd, 1.35 a.m.) LONDON, December 22. Tho House of Commons, after an allnight sitting, passed tho vote. JOINT STRATEGIC CONTROL. COUNTERACTING THE ENEMY'S ADVANTAGE. IMPORTANT DECISION BY THE ALLIES. (By Cable.—Press Ascoci&tion.—-Copyright.) (Received December 22nd, 8.25 p.m.) LONDON, December 21. In his specch in the House of Commons, Mr Asquith, referring to the consultations which had been held in Paris with a view to securing a joint strategic control of their Staffs, said that all the Allies had arrived at important conclusions with complete unanimity. It was necessary for the Allies to counteract the advantage that the enemy had in hie single direction of the war. by greater unity and concerted strategical control. He believed this difficulty would bn surmounted. He agreed with Mr Lloyd George that the superficial farts of tho campaign seemed to be against us, but the fundamental facts, whi'-li really mattered in tho long run. were steadily growing on our side. Errors and miscalculations had not been confined to either side, but we and our Allies bad never wavered for a moment. Our fighting resources for months had been becoming more ample and better organised and mobilised for the purposes of the campaign.

j IMPORTANT I APPOINTMENTS.

i i | NEW CHIEF OF THE | IMPERIAL GENERAL STAFF. I (,Received December 22nd, 9.30 p.m.) j LONDON. December 21. In hi-, speech on tho Army Vote in tho House of Commons, Mr Asquith announced that Lieutenant-Gcncral Sir William lJobertson had been recalled from France to bccomc Chief of the Imperial General Staff, and that Lieuten-ant-General .Sir Archibald Murray was proceeding to take up an important command. Mr Asquith paid a tributo to Sir John French's spleudid sen-ices in the I field, and said that when the time j came the House of Commons would not | be ilow to mark its approval of them. i Sn William Robertson is fifty-five ! years of age. He began his army j career in the. ranks of the Third Draj goon Guards, receiving a commission after ten vears' service. Ho saw war service in the Indian frontier campaign,