CANADIANS' CLOSE GRIP.

Northern Advocate, 23 July 1917, Page 3

CANADIANS' CLOSE GRIP.

"EYE FOE AN EYE." AERIAL RETALIATION. RUSSIAN SET-BACK. DISLOYALIST ORIGIN. NEUTRAL VIOLATION. CHARGE AGAINST BRITAIN. Eastward of Lemberg the Russian offensive crumpled up—at least temporarily—for lack of cohesion, some regiments lending an ear to agitators and making a voluntary withdrawal which led to disorganisation of the whole strategy of General Brusiloff. It is authoritatively stated as a licensed fact that the British Government has modified its attitude on the subject of air reprisals in kind for the Tarious murder excursions of German aeroplanes, and that pre. parations are being made to use tho same mode of warfare. There is an extremely tense grapple within the boundaries of Lens, between the Canadians and the German defenders. The former have now established themselves within less than a mile of the city's centre, hut theEe Is still a formidable task ahead, as the Huns are determined to hold out to the last inch. The gains so far secured by General BrusilofPs forces in Galicia are now candidly admitted in Berlin, but it is claimed that the equival. ent of those gains has been obtained by a breach of the Eussian lines to the east of Lembeng, thus recovering territory and preventing the capture of important oil wells on which Germany is largely dependent for the continuance of her under-sea campaign. The ravages caused by German submarines, while not nearly 80 complete as the enemy desired, are disquieting enough in the amount of tonnage snnk, which amounts to 7,500,000 since the war began, half of that total having been occasioned this year. As the British Navy is kept at full tension in meeting the menace and in other ways, the United States is urged to speed up the construction of "chasers" and to send more warships to British waters, otherwise a further 3,500,000 tons will hare gone under by the end of t he year.