Progress of the War.

Press, Volume LII, Issue 15699, 19 September 1916, Page 6

Progress of the War.

Tho decided advance made by tho British forces on Friday has been sustained by local improvements in the line then secured. Heavy German counter-at-tacks have been made, but they were- all repulsed without the loss of any positions. The communique issued to-day by Sir Douglas Haig is remarkable in tihat it records a fight in the open between a German brigade and two battalions of British troops. He says: " An enemy brigade advancing between " Flers and Martinpuich . . . met " two of our battalions in the open. " Hand to band fighting ensued, in "which wo were completely successful., "and the enemy was dispersed with "heavy losses." With such an event recorded tho days of a return to opem field warfare may, after all, be possible. At all events, it shows that in this particular locality the enemy has been very definitely driven from his trenches, and as yet has not had time to establish an alternative trench line. The messages we publish to-day are also remarkable for tho very curious accounts of tho operations of the new British armoured cars. The success achieved by these has been remarkable, and they will constitute a very effective weapon against future trench operations. True to the policy of alternating attack which has been adopted, the French have renewed aggressive tactics south of the Somme, and have already secured in their entirety the two villages of Vermandovillers and Berny, taking in the process seven hundred prisoners. This system of attack, by which, the foe will get no rest, will go a long way to reducing their moral and weakening their power of resistance. The communiques from the Eastern front record renewed bitter fighting. Snow is falling in the Carpathians, which may steady tho advance of the Russian forces, but it must be remembered that a winter campaign was conducted in the Carpathians by the hardy Russians in the 1914-15 season, so that the moro weather will not determine a halt. The Germans report that activity has broken out on the northern portion of the line, and that an attack on a twenty kilometre front above Pinsk was beaten back. The pressure upon Halicz has been by no means relaxed, and the Russians* claim to have dislodged the enemy, and to have taken above three thousand Germans prisoner. The Roumanian advance in Transylvania is still progressing, although few ! details are coming through. The invaders have now reached the Kokel Valley, in which the chief town is Szekely-Udvarhely. A German communique claims to have pressed back the invaders in this sector, but the Roumanian communique speaks in general terms of three towns having been occupied. A retirement in the DobI rudja by tho Russian and Roumanian forces is admitted to a line running from Tuzla on the coast to Rasova on J the Danube. This line is roughly ten to twelve miles south of the railway connecting Constanza with Cernavoda, I and tho probability is that no pitched battle has yet been fought between tho two armies, and that tho "victories" which tho enemy has been so loudly claiming have been merely advanceguard affairs covering the disposition of the Allied forces." The position now taken up seems in every way a good one, for it is based upon a good railway line, whilo tho enemy has been drawn from his railhead and must rely upon less efficient communications. The offensive in the Balkans is progressing satisfactorily. Tho Bulgarians seem to have been badly broken in tho Fiorina region and to be concerned chiefly in securing their retreat.

The statement that the German guards have been drawn from the Bel-gian-Dutch frontier, and the German announcement that the electric current .will be cut off from the wires for a fortnight, natuially give rise to speculation as to the reason of such action. The most fcasiblo explanation is that the Germans foresee the probability of their having to fight rearguard actions in thoir retirement from Belgium, and do not wish to have their retreat hampered, as it would be if the roads were filled with fleeing civilians. Already, it will be seen, Belgium families are streaming into Holland, which country has already shown itself very generous in its hospitality to Belgian refugees. « An American who recently passed through Berne, after spending a considerable time in Belgium, told a correspondent of "Tho Times'' that the chief evidences of tho war which he saw were tho long trains of German wounded which pass every day. through the Garo du Luxembourg—from which the curious were excluded as far as possible by rows of sentinels—and the extravagant prices of food. Bread of a greyish colour costs 6Jd the kilogram, and meat of all kinds (veal, beef, mutton, or pork) about 4s 2d a lb. Chickens cost from Ss to 16s apiece, butter was from 3s 4d to 4s 2d a lb, potatoes 4d a lb, fat from 8s to 10s a lb. The high price of >ais last article was due to tho fact that most

of tho available stock was wanted for the manufacture of soap, small tablets of which, about 2 inches by 1 inch, are sold for j 3d. If tho Germans were ordinary human beings ono would naturally suppose that ono of the reasons for throwing open the frontier was to relievo themselves from the maintenance of tho moro helpless civilians, or the odium of seeing them die from starvation. But tho Germans hitherto have shown no qualms whatever on this score, and henco wo are inclined to think that they are chiefly, if not entirely, influenced by tho first con-' sideration wo have cited.

The action of the United Statos in securing from Nicaragua the rights for the construction of a canal across the Isthmus of Nicaragua—which has led to trouble in Central America —is prcbab'.y with the object of keeping out a possibly dangerous rival to the Panama Canal. The latter has already cost upwards of £80,000,000, and is evidently going to require a tremendous annual expenditure for upkeep, even if tho pessimists are wrong wjio predict that it will prove a failure altogether. Some leading English engineers have always favoured the Nicaragua Canal as a bettor proposition. It i s estimated that its length would be 170 miles, of which only i miles would require excavation after utilising Lako Nicaragua and tho San Juan river. The work has already been twice commenced. The first company started in ISB9, and wound up in 1893. A second company took up the scheme in 1899, but failed to comply with the terms, and its concession was revoked. In 1901 a treaty was signed' between Great Britain and tho United State modifying the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty of 185 D and neutralising *~o proposed canal. In 1903 the United States decided to proceed with the Panama scheme. O'vinmisly. if the Nicaragua Canal were successfully carried out, and tho capital cost proved to be much less than that of the Panama Canal —as might very well be the case after the experience gained from the latter—it would be able to work with much lighter shipping dues, and thus prove a most formidablo competitor to the Panama enterprise.

A curious position has arisen in regard to tho rates on enemy Embassies in London. Theoretically Ambassadors are not supposed to pay rates or taxes, but as an act of grace it is usual for the Government's representative in London concerned to pay the equivalent of tho local rates on their Embassy buildings to the British Government, who in their turn hand the amount to the local authority. At a recent meeting of the Westminster City Council a. pleasant feeling of surprise was created by the announcement tnat the Austrian Government proposed to pay through the American Embassy the rates due on the Austrian Embassy buildings in Belgrave square, which are rated at £1167 (annual value). The Council, it was added, had received no similar communication from the German Government whether it wa s prepared to pay the rates owing—a remark that was received with some laughter.