THE WAR

Evening Post, Volume XCVI, Issue 13, 15 July 1918, Page 6

THE WAR

The usual large budget of news has arrived during the week-end, but apart from the numerous and in many respects confusing details regarding events in Russia, there is little of striking interest* to throw light upon the war. The reports from the Western front continue to deal with the series of minor operations in which the Allies continue to b^highly successful. These are principally at forward points of the salients created by the German offensives this year. Among these points of special activity are Merris, five miles east of Hazebrouck, in Flanders; Villers-Bretonneux, on the railway south of the Somme, ten miles east of Amiens; and the Villers-Cotterets forest, a few miles south-west of Soissons. At each of these points position after position has been pinched off the German holdings, with the object of securing local advantage of ground and hindering the enemy's- future offensive- operations. But of the offensive, which is being thus to some' extent countered in advance, there is still no sign. The enemy's political moves and press announcements give no reliable indication of what may happen. It is said in' some quarters that the appointment of yon Hintze to the post vacated by yon Kuhlinann has replaced a "compromiser" by a tool of the "wholehoggers." But to draw definite conclusions as to the coming offensive from this Went is impossible. It would be as reasonable to conclude, from, the collection of "Berlin opinions" quoted to-day in regard to Eastern events, thai Germany is seeking an excuse to withdraw from the West and send her fighting forces East again.

Great interest naturally attaches to the report of Yon Hindenburg's death, but the story is, up to the time of writing, unconfirmed., .There is a tale of his death having been caused by ra "stroke" brought about by a quarrel with : the Kaiser as to the wisdom of pursuing the Western offensive," <but while this may possibly turn out to. be true, it is unlikely. The Kaiser is hardly the man to force his views upon the General Staff to such an extent as to cause anyone apoplexy but himself; and-if- he did, there is no reason. to suppose that his storm would fall upon Yon Hindenburg. Nor is-it usual for a "stroke" to be fatal in a man whohas not suffered from similar onslaughts of fate before. .The whole story therefore requires cautious acceptance. If the famous "idol" is dead, Germany will be intensely distressed; but there'will be no appreciable effect upon the enemy's war policy, in which Yon Hindenburg seems to have very little say. ' . ■ '

The cables about Russia are full of references to "Murman" and the Murman coast—a place which before the wax was as. little known to the^ general public as Tenedos. There is strictly speaking no such place as Murman.. The Murman coaet,.. however, is the correct name of the north-eastern* coast, 270. miles long,' of the-Kola-Peninsula...' This peninsula, is the easternl part of Lapland, and forms a sort of "knob" jutting out from the northern part of Sweden apd nearly enclosing, between itself and the mainland, the White Sea. It would probably not have acquired any importance in the war but for two circamstances, one of which arisee out of the other. The chief and original one is that the coast is "washed by a. sluggish but still warm flow from the great Gulf stream current which, crossing the Arctic circle, sweeps-round the north of Sweden and enters the Arctic Sea. It is directed emoothly along the slight'curve of'the Murman coast,, with the result that the sea here never freezes, and even- in the inlet upon which stands the port of Kola, or Ekaterina Harhour, the ice is seldom sufficient to interfere seriously with shipping. The White Sea, round which the Peninsula juts, and upon which is situated the important Port of Archangel, is invariably ice-locked for several months every winter.

For economic as well as strategic reasons, the Russians, seeking a port available all the year round, began several years ago to build a railway to join the main system with. Ekaterin a Harbour, parallel to the old single railway to Archangel; and this railway, of enormously enhanced value in war time, was completed during the war; This is the railway upon which the rivals for power in: the north of Russia now have' their energies centred, with the object of controlling the port and transit to and' from the heart -of Russia. Ekaterina is now a great port," containing a large population. Prior to the building of the railway the Murman district was populous enough in the summer fishing season, when thousands of fishermen made their temporary homes there ; but the permanent residents numbered only a few hundreds.' A'-.' complete change has been wrought in, a few years in this little-known.. outpost of civilisation, once the haunt of silence, and now a great stake in the greatest war of history. Incidentally— and apart from war most importantly—Ekaterina. is the only European port by which Russia can ha,ve direct access to the open ocean without passing Hhe. Dardanelles. The only other ocean ports possessed by the nation are those on the east coast of Siberia, and these are so far away as to be most uneconomical for Russia proper.