NOTES ON THE WAR

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2241, 29 August 1914, Page 6

NOTES ON THE WAR

"To Berlin in three weeks" is the latest tidings from Russia., and it is backed by the announcement that the Tsar now has four armies in the field, each two million strong. Picture it—B,ooo,ooo troops ready to sweep Austro-Germany from east to west in a great irresistible advance on the heart of the Empire. Probably we can with safety' discount these figures somewhat, but the progress so far made through difficult country inspires the belief that the Russian advance will proceed at a speed which will completely shattei all German calculations. Berlin is nearly 400. miles from the Russian advanced posts in East Prussia, but it is less than half that distance by way of Posen where another of the great Russian armies has set out. It has become increasingly evident that, the German forces left to defend the jeastern frontier were quite- inadequate to hold the Russians back, and their only purpose now is to hinder, as far as possible, the rate of advance. . Ultimately Germany must detach some of the Army Corps now pressing heavily on the French frontier to assist.the forces in the east. The question is whether she can first strike a vital blow at France. The Allies in'the west do not require to win a battle. All they need 1 to do is to keep the Germans in' check sufficiently long to give the Russians time to strike at the heart of Germany. Time is on the side of the Allies and that is why_ the, Kaiser is so recklessly sacrificing the lives of his men in a desperate endeavour to break down tfye Allies' line of defence in France.' Each check which he receives means so_ much lost time and the enemv at his rear so much nearer to Berlin. . ' ■

Thus, while we should all ■ be de- j lighted to learn of an offensive movement by the Allies in the. west-ern-theatre of war, it is well that no risks should be taken. Here and there from time to time the Allies' have won temporary successes, but their leaders nave prevented them pressing home these advantages to the fullest extent; and instead of chasing the fleeing Germans, have been content to seize the opportunity to take up a better position for the next encounter. Seeing the numerical strength of. the German forces, and the value of time to tho Allies, this is sound strategy. We have seen that on each occasion the. Allies, in changing their ground, have fallen back somewhat in one direction or another. For. instance, on Saturday and Sunday they were fighting at Oharleroi and Mons. On Monday they were reported to have taken up .a position .further west between Bouai and Maubeuge. Now we are told that they are between Cambrai and La Gateau, a few miles still further to the-west. Tho reason for this gradual retreat probably is to be found in the news that eleven German Army Corps—nearly half a million men—have crossed the Meuse near Namur. To meet this added pressure the Allies have fallen back to a stronger position.

To all appearances the position now held by the Allies along the Franco-Belgian frontier is tho strongest they have yet taken up. Cambrai and La Cateau, about 30 miles inside tho French frontier, are only about 15 miles apart, and it ia probable that it is the centre of the Allied Army that lies here. Their extreme left would be covered by the fortress of Lille, 30 miles to tho uorth-cast, and somewhere between Oambrai and Lille tho British troops in all probability are stationed. The right flank of the Allies would be covered by tho line of the fortresses La For, Laon, and Keinis, on which they could fall back in the event of a reverse. On the other- hand tho German force must pass between or around the fortresses of Lille and' Maubcuge, which' lie near the Franco-Belgian frontier and nearly due east of tho Allies' line. Should tho German attack be repulsed and the Allies be in a position to follow up their advantage the retreating Germans in all probability would be in an awkward situation with these forts on their flanks. At timo of writing there is no news of actual fighting to' hand, but itmay come now at any, moment.

Theee appears to have been a good deal of fighting in the region of Nancy, west of Lorraine,, about which we have received only a few scraps of news. A few days ago the French were compelled to retire along this line of country owing to a weak spot in their lines, and there was some talk of falling back to the line of fortifications some 30 or, 40 miles from the frontier. Since then several encounters 'have been reported, and on each occasion the Germans were repulsed—twice with heavy loss. Now the French arc stated to be resuming the offeneivo. It is probable that the French troops along tho frontier of Alsace-Lor-raine are quite equal in numbers to the German forces. At one stage it seemed that the French had too many stationed there,' and too few further north, where the main German advance appears to be taking place. It is unlikely that any serious movement in Alsace-Lorraine will take place until a decisive battle is fought further north, but this does not mean that there will not bo plenty of fighting. The Germans no doubt are attacking here, with a view to preventing French reinforcements being _sent to the north. There must be quite three-quarters of a million men engaged in the attempted invasion of France by,, way of Belgium, and probably more are ooming forward. Already the Germans must have lost in the western theatre of war at least the full strength of one army corps in casualties—possibly in the fighting over both fronts, that is, in the east and the west, , they havq lost nearly two full army corps. This is a heavy price to pay for such progress as they have made. '

It is gratifying to find the earlier messages concerning , the stubborn courage of the British troops against heavy odds are fully borne out by subsequent news from all. quarters. It would seem that our men had a particularly heavy task to perform.' Thoy_ were outnumbered, and only hastily entrenched in face of a strong advance of the enemy. They, however, took up their positions with admirable coolness, and horse, foot, and artillery acquitted themselves brilliantly. The statement that the British "Tommies" resented not being allowed to pursue the fleeing Germans probably relates to an incident towards the close of the longsustained struggle, for in the earlier stages our men were hard pressed by the weight of jtbe numbers against them. It is significant, however, of the spirit and stamina of the men that at the end of 36 hours' almost continuous fighting they should have been so eager to follow up their success. There can be no doubt that this_ stubborn and successful fighting against odds a heartening effect amongst the whole of the Allies. Indeed, we are told that such has been the case. The German soldier,is a good fighting man, but the tendency of military writers has been to greatly exaggerate his qualities. A few such demonstrations as that given by the British force against odds should have a good moral effect. ■'

The new French Cabiaet of National Defence is an exceptionally strong combination from a personal poirjt of view, r and-,iit.,also. has the merit of being representative of tho nation as a whole. , It is a National Ministry, a"nd may be relied upon to work..whole-heartedly, with tho President (M. Poincare) in the present critical juncture. M. Briand, M. Ribot, and M. Millerand are all statesmen- of great experience, and .they represent the more conservative element in th 6 country. The common danger has for the time obliterated the barriers which separate the. various political parties. With a ruthless and powerful enemy hammering at the gates the safety of the nation is , the one and supreme consideration.' The German-attack has given renewed life to the national instincts of the people. The widespread feeling of pessimism caused by the humiliation of France in the disastrous war of 1870 resulted in a marked waning of patriotic sentiment, and a flabby spirit of internationalism swept over the land; but of Tecent years there has been a pronounced revival of French nationalism. The people are .no . longer content to" borrow their ideas and ideals from the Germans, and the new outlook has brought with it new.hopes and ■ aspirations; The election of M. Poincare at President was regarded as a triumph for the National Party. He stood for' France as a, whole, and it was generally understood that he would do what he could to heal the bitter feuds which have for many years divided the country , into hostile camps. It was also known that he would take a firm stand in matters of national defence and foreign policy. The Nationalists were determined that Franco should not brook any further humiliation from Germany, and 11. Viviani's action in agreeing to the formation of a National Cabinet at the present juncture is sure to receive the enthusiastic approval of the whole country. ■