Evening Post. WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 1916. THOSE PEACE-FEELERS

Evening Post, Volume XCII, Issue 76, 27 September 1916, Page 6

Evening Post. WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 1916. THOSE PEACE-FEELERS

The armies of Germany and Austria continue to pursue their victorious career on all fronts. The monotony is occasionally interrupted by strategic movements to the rear., or the falling-1 back to better positions—perhaps at the double—" in pursuance of a prearranged plan." But, whatever the map may have to .say about it, the official reports from Berlin and Vienna make it perfectly clear that victory continues to , smile upon 7 the efforts of the Central Powers. What, could be more entirely satisfactory from the German standpoint than -the report which reaches us from Berlin to-day? "The enemy advances at Rancouit and Bouchavesnes failed. Wo repulsed strong French alttacks north-west of Souville. ... We maintained position at Marajoff against strong Russian attacks. The Rumanians' advance on Szurduk and the Vulcaji passes failed in- their object. .. . Servian attacks at Kainackalen broke down. Weaker English advances along a. wide front on the Struma were repulsed." It is thus that a Government which plainly sees .Men-It staring it in the face endeavours to conceal the dread truth from a people whose suspicions are being steadily sharpened into conviction by , suffering. Everything from the first check at Verdun to the rout of the German Fleet at the battle of Jutland, a.nd from that disaster to the series of disasters on the Somme, has to be represented as a -victory, because nothing less than a perpdtual diet of victories is considered sufficient to sustain the. spirit of the people against-the growing burden of misfortune. t Yet loudly as the German Government may whistle for the purpose, of maintaining* the popular courage, it cannot conceal from the world outside of Germany the ''evidence of its sore straits and impending doom. A few weeks ago yon Falkenhayn was relieved- of his command of the German armies in order that more congenial work might be found for liim to .do. at an equal salary. To-day we are told that yon Jagow is about to retire from the Foreign Office on account of illhealth. It was ill-health that brought yon Tirpitz down not long ago, and the opening of the Reichstag may reveal that the Imperial Chancellor himself is also suffering from the official epidemic. Just before the news of the Foreign' Minister's illness we were informed that he had bad an interview with the American Ambassador, who was about to return to the United States, and that the Ambassador was expected in Washington to bring with him suggestions from Germany that the time is ripe for

President Wilson., to intervene with a view to instituting negotiations for peace. The President has more than once suggested, as one reason for the eminently safe course which he lias pursued iv his negotiations with Germany, that he desired to keep the way open for his mediation between the combatants when the opportunity arrived. We trust that he will not be misled by the effect which a successful intervention would have upon his election prospects into supposing that the opportunity has arrived already.

If as a candidate he may be disposed to hurry, it is clear that as statesman and peacemaker the President should move as. cautiously as he did when the murdei^pf American citizens by German submarines cried aloud for vengeance. Those fjiends of the President are sui-ely wise who advise him not to intervene on his own responsibility, but to get from Germany -a formal expression of her views on mediation for submission to the Allies. The Allies' terms of peace have been repeatedly proclaimed to the world by Mr. Asquith. M. Briand, and others, but until the kind of argument now proceeding on the Somme has been carried much further there is no chance of getting Germany to accept them. For the President to ask the Allies to take anything else would merely be to court a snub, but if Germany is prepared to let him know how far her ideas have varied since the Imperial Chancellor's last defiant speech on the subject the' information would be interesting and valuable. It is, however, quite likely tha;t the German feelers for peace are merely inspired by a desire to induce a slackening of effort on the- part of the Allies. In any event, the Allies' proper answer is to provide more men and more

munitions,