THE WAR

Evening Post, Volume XCI, Issue 153, 29 June 1916, Page 6

THE WAR

As far as actual news is concerned, the activity on the British front has dwindled to comparative .insignificance. Sir Douglas Haig reports marked activity among patrols, indicating the continuance of the raiding policy. There is no further news of any great artillery activity. The big outburst which marked the weekend seems to have had some effect upon Ihe enemy; at all events there is a noticeable' lull at Verdun. Either the British activity, or the enemy's exertions in the last big attacks, or both, have taken the sting out of the German efforts. The bombardment has certainly had an effect in France; the public eye has been directed closely to the British front, and expectation of important developments in that quarter have been strongly developed on both sides of the Channel.

The Anzacs have had a share in the recent raiding activities, and two of their successful undertakings have been described by Mr. Philip Gibbs, Mr. Malcolm Ross, and other writers. The descriptions given to-day show the Anzacs in a sort of journalistic "spot-light" which does not do justice to the spirit either of the men themselves or of their'relatives and friends in New Zealand. Mr. Gibbs's account contains, however, some interesting points. The use of truncheons in trench work is noted, and will probably surprise many people. A curious point referred to in more than one account is that the preliminary shelling of the barbed-wire entanglements !for the purpose of cutting the wire lasted only eight minutes, and was carried out with trench mortars, which cut a.way the obstacles "like beanstalks," and evidently did it pretty effectively for the purposes of the small raiding parties. The regular guns were used to keep reinforcements from reaching the front line. This information suggests that the troops have trench mortars of a more accurato quality than the crude bomb-throwers which have been in very general use. and also that' they throw something better than a grenade with a fuse cut to length and lit with a cigui'dui, The Wi-itinh seem,to have made a special study of

raiding tactics during recent months. It is a new development in trench-warfare, and appears to have a very demoralising effect upon the enemy owing to the nervous strain which exists throughout the night. Mr. Gibbs describes the Germans as being driven mad by these nightmare raids.

At Verdun, the lull already referred to is in very marked contrast to the ferocious activity which preceded- it. The enemy has made practically no effort since he captured the Thiaumont position and reached Fleury; and he has suffered some minor reverses through the attacks of the French. There is no evidence at present of a French effort to rectify on an important scale the heavy set-back which has been suffered. It has been accepted in the same spirit of military philosophy as all the previous German successes. The lost ground is regarded as having been sold at a good price. There is a possibility that the developments elsewhere, and especially the suspicions aroused by the actions on the British front, may cause the enemy to give up the attack on Verdun; but it is extremely unlikely. France has been undergoing careful enlightenment as to the possibility that it may have to give up Verdun, and there is good reason to believe that the Crown Prince will make another effort to complete his task. Without it, he has 'toiled for days and taken nothing; with Verdun in his knapsack, he can go back to Berlin and ask for a Field Marshal's baton in exchange.

Russia's victorious advance continues in the region north of the Bukowina frontier, but further north has been checked. The latest reports show that an attack by Cossack cavalry is developing by way of Buczacz. In the meantime, the leaven of the Russian .successes continues to work in Rumania, where the agitation for pro-Entente intervention is said to have been aotively revived. As for Bukowina,- there is a mystery to be explained. There has been no news for a couple of days of what is happening in that newly conquered region. It was reported on Monday that the Russians were approaching the passes to Transylvania; and on Friday that fifty 'thousand of PSanzer's divided Austrian army were pinned against the Rumanian frontier, across which it was implied they might, at any time be forced. All that has been heard of this theatre since is that about 300 Austrians have crossed the frontier' and, have been disarmed. Pflanzer's army has dropped into oblivion.

The Italian campaign supplies further news to-day. It scintillates with placenames that defy discovery, and leaves the situation far from clear. The Italian claims to a great victory are flatly denied by Austria, and the despatches are strongly reminiscent of, though not necessarily parallel with, those which described, from the British and Turkish points of view, the evacuation of Gallipoli. Austria declares that the retirement was effected without Italian pressure, and after a week's preparation. It draws attention to the fact that no prisoners or war material were lost; and it is certainly to be noted that Italy has not reported any captures. A rout such as has been described by the Italians would be at least likely to leave some booty in the hands of the victors. Whatever the merits of the Italian victory are, the plain fact is that the Austrians, defeated by either the Italians or by circumstances which were found to forbid persistence in the campaign, have retired. Italy now reports that the enemy has fallen back -to dominating positions and prepared defences, and we will probably find that the will come to an early stop. The whole thing looks very much as if the Austrians have had to give up the attack on Italy because.of.the pressing of the Russian attack. Italy, even if she cannot readily be beaten, is not likely to be a particularly dangerous enemy. Russia is.

As for the motive for the Austrian offensive against Italy, a suggestion which merits some attention has been put forward. It will be recalled that at the end of March Italy commandeered the German shipping in Italian ports. Portugal's similar action had been promptly followed by a declaration of war by Germany; but Germany did no more than protest against the action of Italy. It is true that Germany could not easily carry war directly into Italy, even if she had issued a declaration, but she cannot do so against Portugal either. She did not even carry out any definite reprisals against Italian shipping. The suggestion is -that Germany inspired the Austrian offensive against Italy as a reprisal for the seizing of the ships. It would be a curious action ; it would make Germany tacitly aver technical friendship with Italy, but strike a blow, in enmity by the hand of another. The theory is not weakened by the cessation of the Austrian effort on the Trentino front.

A message from Chvistiania reports the inauguration of a movement to succour men who are left to their fate in the sea', after a naval battle, and states thalt it is proposed to post warships on the. coast for the purpose of rescuing these men. Something of that nature is very urgently needed. Naval warfare is, during its brief periods.of activity, shockingly deadly. As far as injuries by the enemy's fire are concerned, the proportion of fatalities is very high; but far 'the greater number of the lost are drowned by the sinking of their ships. At present there is very little chance for them. A few rafts may be carried, but generally a man-of-war is practically bare of floatable articles; and time after time great ships with crews numbering up to a thousand men have sunk, leaving hardly any to tedl the tale. The Geneva Conventions, which have done-so much to ameliorate the terrors of the battlefield T>y. giving protection to each belligerent's medical service, have been extended to naval warfare, and hospital ships, either belligerent or neutral, are fully exempt from capture. (The status of a neutral warship charged with hospital duties presents an interesting question.) But there does not seeim to have been any notable movement to establish in connection with any navy a squadron of hospital ships designed to follow the fighting fleets for the purpose of rescuing the crews of sunken or abandoned vessels. In many cases they could rescue enormous numbers of men- without entering the actual scene of the baittle at all j because the battle itself very often moves over the sea at liigh speed. Rescues are left largely to the smallei fighting units which are not for the time being engaged in /tho battle, but they can only spare the necessary time if there is no prospect of their being immediatoly needed. There does not seem to be any insuperable difficulty in the way of equipping special vessels. They would have to be swift andl handy ships, in charge of clever sailors, and carrying numerous boats ami rafts. Even if they merely dropped rafts overboard to be collected later, the death-roll of a naval fight would probably be greatly ■decreased. Such vessels would have to be under no misapprehension as to 'the extent of their right lo encroach upon the warships' field of action ; they would exceed their righto at their own risk -But in that respect, they would be in ju/it the same position as the modern field ambulance.