War Pars.

Mount Ida Chronicle, Volume XLV, Issue XLV, 1 February 1918, Page 3

War Pars.

Berlin newspapers startlingly • announce that Count Riodarus has sent a memorandum to the Kaiser, warning him that the condition of the nation renders the farther development of an offensive inadvisable. Other influential authorities are trying to induce the Kaiser operations. Mr Baker, American Seer*tary of War, in a communique, point 3 out that Germany is planning the most powerful submarine campaign yet undertaken against American transports. Many U boats have b»en recalled to home ports, and are now refitting, preparatory to a new campaign. The meat shortage in -London iB most acute. Record queues assembled at Smitbfield Market at 5 a.m., aod [ the stalls were cleared before'noon. Late-comers secore i only liver, sheep's kidney, and tinned meats. There *p«re also msny queues in the London suburbs aud in the provinces. /Mr Baker has announced that shippi'ig prospects are more promising, and he therefore hoped to transport a million and a-hslf tijops to France in 1918. The Americans had built 600 miles of rail roads in France, and also vast terminals and port facilities. The troops have even planted corn. ihe Military Medal has been awarded to 158 Mew Zelandera. An issue of 60,000,000 fiversbilling notes in Britain is imminent. Lord Rhondda, ' speaking at the House, announced that meat would also be rationed as from February 25. Comi pulsory rationing was inevitable and [urgent. The whole country would . shortly be governed by rationing I schemes, whicn would be developed into a national system. He proposed to fix a fair" share of meat, margarine, and tea for each district, aud would see i that tiiey were supplied according to their necessities.. It was proposed to start with a level ration of meat for adults and half of that ration for chil- j dren under six-years of age. There would be no ground for suspicion that well-to-do people were getting more than the workers. It is - understood that in London, and also in the counties, the ration scheme will make a weekly allowance of lib of meat to adults and Boz to children under six years of age. The New Zealand Times says:— There is going to be a court-martial in consequence of Motuihi. There ought instead to be a resignation. The resignation of the Minister of Defence ought to have been in the hands of the Prime Minister the day after the Germai raiders got away from custody. , According to the principle laid down j ] by himself repeatedly, often, as on the i last occasion in Parliament, excitedly, the Minister was primarily responsible for that system. On every occasion he stood criticism and "my officers, "j He trusted hit' officers, be knew what they were doing, he would hot have them criticised, he would be responsible for them. The meaning of that attitude was plain. It had been criticised to every degree between arrogance and extraordinary failure of the detection Quixotism, but all are agreed that the Minister [meant it to be understood that he. was responsible for his officer?.

The Chicago Daily News'a Paris correspondent has interviewed two Americans from Russia, who were permitted to travel through Germany because the authorities were grateful for thair care of German prisoners in Russia, They were surprised at the Allies' surprising ignoranca of Germany's They declare that conditions in Germany are pitiable. „ The people are * starving and are haggard, wan, and listless. They believe the next offensive will be the finish! for Germany. -The Pan-Germans' present demand for a dictatorship is a sign of collapse. ' , '.;.'■ The Minister ,of Defence in Australia, Senator Pearce, stated a few days ago that as a result of insertion in the Australian fress of advertisements of lonely soldiers inviting correspondents from residents in Australia, several bags of letters, papers and parcels were received by members of the Australian Imperfal Force, two advertisements alone resulting in the arrival of some 10,000 letters for two men. In future advertisements in the press by "lonely soldiers" will be prohibited, and correspondence under the same class stopped. Referring to America's part in the war in a lecture at Wellington, Pro k feasor Trueblood said: "We have had no referendum nonsense. My wife and, I were in Australia during that campaign, and it was pitiful to see the hostile spirit waged between the two parties and the sectarian animosity that was aroused in,some of the States of the Commonwealth. Instead of that we followed your example and

offered a conscriptiv* law which was at once "accepted; It is a that ought to be decided by the Legislature without reference to the people, who do not see far enough to know exactly the best to be done in' the circumstances."

One of the New,- Zealand soldiers | who returned about the New Year was sent back not' on account of wounds or sickness, nor for any fault at all, except that he is under nge! He enlisted in Southland, dodging the forbidding of father and Bteering through all other hindrances, served two years with the army, behaved well, and cgme through without a scratch or any bodily trouble, or without a question as to his eligibility, until it was discovered that he was technically an infant. As a matter of fact, he is now only 18 years old. Ho resents bis rejection, and wants to know 'what the military, authorities arei going to do with ,'him while he puts in the time that must elapse before he can enlist again. His case does not, however, come near the rs-cord. . The authorities know of an English youth who edged in 'unlawfully, fought the Germans for two years, and when bowled out was only 16 years of age. This case is well authenticated, and known to some New Zealand soldiers.