HANGING BACK

Evening Star, Issue 16347, 13 February 1917, Page 6

HANGING BACK

WILSON WILL NOT ACT.

THE GERMAN GAME.

NAVAL SUPREMACY OF THE FUTURE. THE FRONTS. [lsy CiuxiCDS.] One of to-day’s cables contains the reassuring announcement that there is belter nows regarding the work of flic submarines. It is asserUxl tuaL ia, more big a:have been sunk, vhoi;.yU e. few s rawlers bad fulie.u vicious. This would have been more comforting had it not been accompanied by u cable of Uio same date cjiuaiaiug a list of three British and two Greek ships sunk, with the announcement llat flic total, presumably for the day, is 24,000 ions. From our point of view, ibia can. bardiv bo regarded as better news. One gratifying feature, however, is the attitude of tha South American Slates, l.'rtiuuay lias pretesied vigorously to Germany, declaring that Uermauy will bo held responsible for any' sinkings, while Bolivia bar. not only protested, but lias assured the United States that she adheres to President Wilson's programme. There need bo little eteuot that the South American States will move if the United .Stales will give them a lead, and the- resulting imiUCDse seizures of Gorman ships will relieve the situation immensely. Un tiie other hand, it is to be, feared that there j* little hope of decided action by the United States. -V month or two ago Prci-tideut- Wilson was caking his stand, with much a;pparent firmness, upon tlio position that the lives ot neutrals must not be. jeopardised by the unrestricted sinking even, of belligerent vessels. Bui. wc not, only bud the announcement Iroin Washington

a couple of days hack that America would not take dtlir.ite action unless an American ship was sunk under circumstances which could not be explained away, but every day blare's the nows of ships being sunk without warning, and it is declared tiiat the Japanese Prince had 20 white American muleteers ou board. Provocation enough for a dozen declarations of war has been given cn the basis of President Wilson's former stand. Vet he given no sign, c.r.d it is evident that the brave assertions that merchant shins must not be sunk without warning have gone completely by the board. Utile can lie expected from a man who is prepared to eat his ou a words to such an extent. AN ATTEMPT!’.!) COMPROMISE. At present the United Staieis is being kept in play from day to day and from week to week by German hints at a compromise. The game is a good one, because Germany, whether she is sincere or not, has evorything to gain and nothing lo lose by it. While American inter volition is being successfully slaved off, the hubiuaiiiu' campaign is in full swing. 'Moreover, it is not improbable that Germany is willing to arrange a compromise Upon (lie basis that she shall have a free hand lor nnrc-iricled sinkings while exempting American vessel* only, provided that this caa bo managed. The number of vessels in Use merchant ilccl of the United Sanies is tv few that- their exemption would probably not aifect file result much. But whether such an arrangement can be. successfully earned out depends very much upon ourselves, and it is within our power and to our intcito-t to prevent it. By disguising our armed auxiliary cruisers with the hag of the Fraud ;;;ales wc can render it impus-iblo for the German submarines to distinguish them from the genuine American vessels. Moreover, iho captains of ships belonging to the. smaller neutral States are likely to lake advantage, of ibe- same ruse, in tlie hope of saving their vessels. If the United buik-s should protest to us. we can reply that the practice is a porfcciiy legitimate one. based upon precedents; well established daring past wars, and not only used but grossly abused, by the Germans m this. We van say plainlc tint it is not our business to render it an easy matte:* loi* ihft smbmuriiiccs io sink our merchant crail, and we can bint tactfully that it is not our business to assist the United State.; in shirking her obligations in the matter cf maintaining international law. GERMANY'S FUTURE ON THE WATER. It used to be the boast of the “Admiral of the Atlantic'' that Germany’s future lay on the water. If the submarine campaign fads, the bottom is likely to bo knocked one of that boast, for one generation at least, and perhaps for a much longer period. The ‘Scientific American,' in its review of the year 1916, stales; "We are informed bv an eye-witness who recent!v visited some of the leading German yards that she is not building any capital ships, but that her building wavs are Idled with small craft—some destroyers and a large llcot of submarines,” The ‘ Scentifio American' is a sober and wellinformed journal, and the iiiforijiatiou may very well be reliable, because the positions ot tho leading German yards are well known, mid a battleship or a battle cruiser is not an object which can be readily hidden under a bushel. It ought to be possible for tin British Naval Intelligence .Service to verify lids statement, mid. ' if it is true, wo can afford to concentrate our shipbuilding rc . sources mainly upon merchantmen. Evidently Germany has staked everything on the submarine campaign, and if it fails her future upon tho water will be gloomy indeed. For her fleet must cither come out and light when, her armies are beaten or else be ignoininicnsly smashed up in harbor. The result is 'likely to be "the .none in either case, and when. - peace is declared, from whore will Gcrnruiv obtain tho money io replace it/ The British Navy will have grown to gigantic piciportians, while that of the United .Suites is being built np at a rate whicn promise; to soon make her the second naval Bower, even if this has not already been done. _ Our principal Allies will also possess corcsiderabie navies, whereas that of Germany Is likely to be wiped, out and to have lo be built up from tho foundations ogam. And the building of a navv grows steadily more cosilv. What types of vessels are being built for this British Navv is. a matter shrouded in mystery, but ther o are bints of giant battleships carrying ten 17m gamaand of destroyers as big as pre-war light '■ misers. Then; is no mystery about Iho programme of rhe United fdaU, Bier battleships of tno New Mexico and Pennsylvania daises carry 12 1 Ihi gnus hi four thrce-guii turrets, and she is about io begin the buildmg of a class of 10 batl-hship? carrying eight loin guns, and also four giant battle enti-'ers 300 ft long (as big as the biggest Atlantic liners), and carrying eight blin gnus. Those vessels will cost about" £5.000,000 apiece or more, and where Germany will able io get the money from ior a large programme of each vessels for a generation or two, especially if phe is beaten, is not. apoareut. A QUEER STORY.

The ‘ Libre Parole' of Paris rßites that, a Romanian genera! named Soew.u lias boon condemned by a court marl la 1 at Jn.?sv to five roar.-’ npunl servitude, v.iib (lc<midaiion. for 'betraying the Rumanian army under hri ecmm;i.nd on Dec,-inter I. ft is Gated Ibsi, executing « plan by General Berth plot, head cf the French military mist-ion, the army delivered a vigorous offensive on the River Arjwh against, ibo enemy, who hda crossed the Danube south-west cf Bucharest. General Soofecu’s array turned Hie enemy's M|, c „t.. ting it off vorrudetely from Von Falkenlmvn’s army, and General Bertbelot wns-to sure of victory Unit, ho sent a wireless mvi-cag" !o Paris announcing that be intended to "drive Von Miw» into the Danube. But. General Sorecit seems to have lort his nerve, it not some! 1 line worse, ami be. remained inactive when ordered to advance, and then retreated. As a matter e; fact, we did receive the news of a substantial Rumanian success on the Arj°»h. south-west of Bucharest. on December 1. But whether there was any real chance of driving Von Maekensen into the Dn.wfbc cannot bo decided ,no n t h,, evidence at present available. General Socecu would no doubt iu - ge. (bat there was not. and that hh action saved his army from destruction. when a. general errs on the Bide of caution in a oris-s, and takes upon himself to upset, the plans of his leaders by retreating when ordered to advance, if fe a sound policy to remove him. Subordinate tronorah not infrequently lose tbeir nerve and ruin tbo plans of their superiors through an apprehension of dangers) which exist oiilv in their own imaginations, or which represent no more than the legitimate risks which are incidental to war. A subordinate is justified in calling the attention of bis leaders to what ho believes to be grave dangers, but, this being done. the right of choosing between attack and retreat is theirs. THE FRONTS. On. the west front wo have captured a system of trenches at the southern foot of fterro Hill, on a front of Ur.cc-quaiters of a mile, with 265 prisoners, which exceeds the total number of our casualties. From Rotterdam comes the story that the Kaiser issued tbo orderi “My armies have passed all the rivers. I now ask them to pass the Yscr.” If the Germans had any intention of attacking on the Tser they would not advertise the fact beforehand, and if the story originated in Germany it is merely apiece,.of German, hluffi,

In Mesopotamia wo have improved our position on tho west bank of the Shntt-ol-Jlai, captured 500 yds of trenches and the licorice factory at Kut-el-Amara, and also made progress on the right, apparently between tho Tiyris and tho Suwaicha marshes, the enemy have been pushed back from 800 to I,2ooyds on a front of 6,oooyds. , i r pni Petragrad there are reports of fierce lighting on tho Bitpi front, in which the enemy suffered terrible losses, but they are unofficial, and therefore unreliable. Th o Italians have lost some ground near Gorizia.