BLOCKADE OF ENGLAND

Grey River Argus, 1 November 1916, Page 3

BLOCKADE OF ENGLAND

GERMANY'S LATEST HOPE. 1 NEW CAMPAIGN OF "FRiGHTFULNESS," 1 BERLIN, September 1. » Germany has decided to declare a : blockade ■on England, to take effect. •I on >>r about January Ist. This .-state-" i.imeht, to Englishmen and neutrals, i- j m?.y seem the limit of preposterpusr 1 ness*, yet it is true. It may be be- > canse of the desperation to which Ger ! •mnpv has been driven, by the British k bincVarle. It may be an excuse for i nernitting her to commit mpro de- ' nr^cMions at sea. It may be Baerplv i f<v- the effect such a declaration will 1 b"ve on neutral nations. Whatever I the reason, I know that a powerful fleet of submarines is being 1 /complete

ed especially for this purpose and that plans for the blockade are. now being , worked out. It is said that the move i ments pf the submarines will be guided to some extent by high-fiying Zeppelins, both the submarines and '2epelins being equipped with extra-sen-sitive wireless apparatus^. v One high in the counsels of the German navy, whose information I have always found unquestionable, recently said to me : — "By the end ■ of this year, pr perhaps a little sooner, Germany will have in lghting trim 300 submarines of the most efficient -*vr»*\' If En£- , land then Wishes to continue the war, a proper blockade will be put into ef- | • feet, and no vessel carrying food or war materials will be permitted to reach England's shores. Ours s will be a real blockade, not a coercive or illegitimate one. such as England has pretende3 to institute , against Ger 'many." I This same information has come to . me from several sources, so there can 1 be no doubt as to ' Germany's intentions. It further bears out the statements contained in my article in the London "Daily News" of August Qth regarding Germany's new submarine fleet and her plans for resuming the under-sea war. No compunction as to {the manner of. this, warfare 'is felt, bet cause it is alleged that Britain's abrogation of the Declaration of London leaves Germany free of restraint m the matter of her promises to the United States. ' MORE "FRIGHTFULNESS." "England boasts of Britannia's rule of. the waves, but the waves are but as the froth on the beer. . Britannia yet has much to learn of the substantial depths beneath the ..waves, and the high reaches of ozone above them.' one of my informants sarcastically remarks. It is understood that Walter Forstmann, one of Germany's most 1 skilled submarine commanders is to be placed in charge of a squadron of submarines, and will be a leading figure !in tlie proposed blockade. ..Forss- | Mann recently received the Order Pour Lie Merite for his extraordinary" achieve ments. He has sunk over .100 vessels, it is averred, including transports, patrol vessels, and merchantmen. The' safe return of the merchan* submarine Deutschland on Augiis* 23rd has caused great exultation, and encouraged Germany in all manner of further under-water efforts. : Many of the new naval submarines are said to be equipped with improved devices for detecting.' and destroying the nets which England is exported to lay in great numbers when she learns of Germany's blockade plans. Considerable mystery surrounds the submarine Bremen here. Hushed rumours are current that she met with a serious accident. I have heard that she had experienced severe damage to her engines; and that shp. wps sunk by a British destroyer, luthnrities who. however, refuse to ■^hed any further lig-he on ithe subject. '■>iit these renorts arc all denied by the This boat T am told by some.ou^t 'n hnve reached Baltimore some timebefore the Deutschland returned.- y nme say she was never destined for Baltimore. Some- ev^n deny there ever was such a boat. In fact, thn rpnorts nrp so crvntrpdictorv that it is impossible to tell what to believe. VICTORY OR DESTRUCTION! As is apparent from the. interview I have quoted, the propsed submarine blockade of England is contingent on England's refusal to make peace. The. German people are told, and they firm ly believe, that England alone is responsible . for the cpritinuance of the war ; that peace, terms could easily be arranged yj&h. the other Allies, , but that England' prevents them from so doing. ; They are told that England is bent on the utter .destruction oi ' Germany, and that there is no alternative but to fight to the last resources with every. m<fin.s that can be devised. Black pictures of Germany and the Germans are held forth in the event that Germany should lose the war. The . people are told of unbearable taxes, of trade disruption, ot the dividing" up and parcelling out -of German territory among the Allies— a thing which it is said has already " been; agreed upon* — of a condition of servitude under British domination, of the. German people thus enslaved, and held in contempt by the people of the world against whom they are now warring. It is either victory or "destruction, they are told. . And it is under that goad they are fighting. Food continues scarce, and prices are. high. Two hundred grammes of meat' per week is all that is allowed to the Berlin -resident now. # There are great demands for eels, in the hunger for fat, but. eels cost six marks per pound. Eggs cost 34 pfennig apiece, and the imitation marmalade 1.20 mark a pound. In restaurants a cup of coffee with saccharine instead of sugar costs 50 pfennig. Large restaurants, like the Taube, continue to serve a considerable variety of food, but fabulous prices are charged for any dish outsidd the regular order of the day.' A serious case, of lead po;_ming among dairy cattle came, under the notice of the local Inspector, of Stock (Mr. P. Beere) during this week. A Tariki dairy farmer lost four valuable cows from the effects of eating paint, the foundation -6f which was white lead. Lead, in any form, is fatal to stock, its effects seldom responding to treatment unless dealt with in the initial stage. E ver y care should be taken by owners of stock to eliminate from the precincts of cowsheds and yards any old tins or drums that have been the receptacles for paint. Every year cases of the foregoing" description come under notice, and at this time when cattle, and especially dairy cows, are ruling at such a high figure, the loss sustained by an owner such as just described is most severe. The inspector remarks that in cases of mysterious 'mortality among cows there is every probability that upon a thorough investigation, the same j cause would have been brought Jto ; light as obtained in the present instance.