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Otago Daily Times, Issue 16824, 13 October 1916, Page 4

li' King Constantino of Grcece had listened many months ago to the coun.se]'} of f.lio greatest among piosent-day Greek patriots and statesmen he would not h<i\o been to-day gazing powerlesuly from a totteiing throne at a, spectacle of revolution among his subjects, lie might harvo dto.sen tho road, indicated by M. Vetiizolos, along whteh the destinies of Greece prorniM'd to attain (ho richest fulfilment. The King choso another path, however, and nobody now expects fiom him an oleventh-hour repentance. Anything King Constantino does that falls in with tho wishes and the policy of tho Entente Powers will bo done with a very had grace and simply under duress. There is hope, however, that this obstinate monarch, realising that he cannot hold out much longer, will yield to tho force of circumstances. If ho does so before the last minute's grace has elapsed he will liavo cause to congratulate himself hereafter. If he carries his obstinacy a little too far he may have to contemplate a very humiliating sequel. Mr Asquifch expressed the view in tho House of Commons on Wednesday that even now, if wisely guided and governed, Greece might take a worthy part on the Allies' side and inherit the great and glorious traditions that had been committed to her. This statement seems to present at once wise counsels for the benefit of the Greek King and his advisers and encouragement to the belief that a favourable outcome of the attitude of Greece to the war may still be anticipated. Tho latter idea is strengthened by tho fact tibat the Allies are taking a strong line with Greece, an illustration of this being afforded in tiieir successful demand that her fleet should be handed over and that she should cease to exercise authority in other important aspects. Hitherto the Allies have refrained as far as possible from interference, this policy having apparently been dictated by the hope that some agreement or settlement might be effected between the parties —the one represented by the Ring and the Germanophiles, and the other by M. Vonizelos and the national movement —into which the oountry has become divided Evidently the patience of the Nationalists ami of the Entente Poweit. has become exhausted, and the need for the exercise of something more than a gentle pressure to set the Hellenic King on the right path to national greatness has been appreciated.

It requires an elastic mind to grasp fully tho amazing growth of tho British munition industry as disclosed in a speecli in the House of Commons on August 15 bj Mr Edwin Montagu, the Minister of

Munitions. The figures are as impressive as they are encouraging. Since September, 1914, Mr Montagu observed, the British output of heavy shells had been increased 2650 times, and that of eigliteen-pounders 170 times. The weekly output for the ieeond as compared with t'he first year of the war had increased for eighteen-pounders six and a-ha If times; for field howitzers eight times; for medium artillery seven and a-half times; and for heavy guns twentytwo times. Otherwise expressed, the output which it took twelve months to produce before tho Ministry of Munitions came into being is now turned out in a period ranging from four days to three weeks in the case of the respective armaments above mentioned. The immense strides in the manufacture of heavy guns find paiallel, moreover, in the production of machine guns, the output of which is now fourteen times as great as before the Ministry took it up. High oxplosive production, Mr Montagu stated, liad increased sixty sixfold as compared with 1914, and the output of bombs thirty-threefold. Among other, interesting particulars supplied by Mr Montagu are the facts that the personnel of the Ministry of Munitions now numbers 5000 persons; that the finance department of the Ministry controls an expenditure of £1,000,000 a day; that the number of munition workers employed is 2,260,000, of whom 400,000 are women; and that there are ninety-five nationaj munition factories. In indicating the immense consumption of shot and shell in a modern battle Mr Montagu informed the House that the British army fired away in July more than double the amount which eight months ago was thought to be an adequate store and that the preliminary bombardment the week before the attack consumed more than the total amount manufactured during the first eleven months of the war! The total of the heavy ammunition produced during those eleven months would not have kept the bombardment going for a single day ! And yet, despite the splendid record of what has been accomplished, the Minister of Munitions said that much yet remains to be-done to give the Allies a superiority in munitions over the enemy on aid fronts—a statement endorsed by Mr Lloyd George with the remark that an increase of output on a gigantic scale was still looked for, as some of the factories had not approached anywhere near their possible output.