ON ALL FRONTS.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLIII, Issue 1251, 21 May 1918, Page 3

ON ALL FRONTS.

GOVERNOR-GENERAL'S MESSAGE. OFFICIAL SUMMARY OF THE WEEK'S DOINGS. (Feb Pkebs Association.) WELLINGTON, Mav 20. The following telegraphic summary ol tin) win- news lias been received by tlie Go-vernor-General from the Secretary of State i for the Colonies: - AUSTRIA'S DANGER. N KCESSITATES CLOSER GERMAN ALLIANCE. The growing unrest among the subject I nations of the Austrian Empire is becoming too strong for the Government at Vienna, anil the Emperor, impelled by the instinct of self-preservation has taken a further step on the road to subjection to Germany. Though the terms of this new alliance an. not yet public, a Vienna telegram lefers to its being an extension and a deepening. Kvi'ii if the Austrian ftmperor at one time desired to escape from German control, he is powerless to do so. since the interests of the Hapsburgs are bound up with the predominance of the German and the Magyar hunt-owning classes. The emancipation of the subject races can only be achieved with help hi)in without, and all the Allies will work in co-operation to satisfy their just claims In Germany itself the reactionary forces are still rampant. The Prussian Lower House had rejected the equal fran us \\i ,\ by-ciectton 10 S:ixon\ 'he Independent Socialists lost a seal, and twelve members of the Minority gioup havebeon sentenced at Leipzig to penal servitude. Further aggressions of Germany in Russia led to friction between German Mission at Moscow and the Russian Government, ami the aggressions of Tukrey in the long coveted Persian province of Azerbainan are causing alarm and resentment to the Persian Government. Germany is now employing against Switzerland the tactics recently "used against Holland. The British mission which recently arrived at Rio Janiero was much gratified by the cordial reception and, warm welcome received. WEST FRONT SUCCESSES. KXKMV INITIATIVES FALL. THE AERIAL WAR. ___ The operations on the western from lor die week ending 17th May (this is the sec oncl week) passed with only minor operations. There arc two points specially to notice in these. The first is that the. local objective in each case is to seize observation points, and the second point is that in each ease of the enemy initiative, the operation ended in a complete and costly failure, even where on the Voormozeele and La. t'lyttt front, lie employed and sacrificed considerable bodies of-fresh troops. On the othei hand, each operation initiated by the Allies, namely. I.ocre, Morlancourt, and Grivesms, lias been a complete success. This is a sweeping statement, and the German propagandists will spare no words to prove the exact opposite, but the map proves that at no single point did the enemy gain lus objective or succeed in holding any local gain tor more than a few brans. The enemy pio |: stations of the Allied failures characterise every local gam by the French in _ the l.ocr'e '-actor as an attempt. 10 retake Kernmel I lili. an objective which as the enemy knows 10 his cost, would call for an operation on a vcrv considerable scale, and could not possibly be aimed at by a local effort. The length to which .the enemy publicists have ir one in this perversion of the truth is" a powerful evidence of the necessity for concealing from the German people anything which may detract from their confidence hi the aniiv, which they are told is invincible but which they are beginning to suspect were better described as/'cannon fodder." Though the minor operations have only been local or tactical value, they have a strategical significance by indicating lire noints where the enemy is prepared to lnuir a considerable sacrifice, thereby to gam observation posts. From his persistence, we amy draw conclusions, regarding the positions to which the enemy attaches a special value, for future .purposes. Yvlnle minor manoeuvres for position have been taking ■)l,tee along t«o front line, it, must no: be forgotten that intense activity is continuous in the rear services on both sides, hi the air service, the Allies' claim to supremacy rests on more than mere protestation. A comparative statement lor the month pi April, 1913, of the number o! bombs dropped bv British airmen in I; ranee behind the enemy lines and dropped by the enemy i„ tie; 'area occupied by British troops, shows:—By dav, British, 1767; enemy, 687; bv ni''-ht British, 6033; enemy, 1346: totals, British. 23,900; enemy, 1033. iCvidence is provided by the demoralised complaints ol the. German prisoners that even when the enemy has withdrawn for a rest, the British airmen allow them no pi ace. One described feelingly how his 21 comrades were killed bv a single British bombing attack at; Bapaume on the 30th April. Ihonmdamental cause, which is gradually disintegrating the Central European alliance is Ihe lack of food. Little can be extracted from Germany's allies, some of whom are already experiencing starvation, while to obtain ,rniiii elsewnero necessitates using force and Snaking further demands on her troops. She calul ot spare this, ami the shameless exploitation of her allies by Germany tor her own ends and to their detriment, sows the seeds of discord among them. For two reasons, Germany has been forced to seek a decision in the field as early as possible. ! day wotdd involve the risk ol a break-up 0,. the alliance which sh ■ cannot afford ami l.er victory' in the coming summer campaign must be absolute, or it will be worse than valueless, for Germany Will have exhausted !,,.)■ I'os'-rve-" whilst even should the trench and* British find themselves similarly reduced the American army will just, be approaching its zenith. By commencing oper-litio-us Germany thinks sue will be able to neb'-ve a decisive victory withm the time i,nit" ' The Allies are already confident that with'th? infusion of American troops, wir.se ihafts are already incorporated in French and British divisions, they can . - stand the full ores ol the enemy ass a It until the American army in the held lias grown to the same proportions as those of the French or British. I « all a question of time the enemy's delay increases tlio the American army >njranee thus bringing Germany nearer to the end of the lime limit, t