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Otago Daily Times, Issue 16942, 2 March 1917, Page 4

Hβ must have a long spooa that must eat -with tho deviL The truth of this is probably by this time impressing itself upon the minds of "the rulers ana people of the United States. President Wilson has on various occasions thought it desirable to give expression to his feelings of friendship for Germany and he has made no attempt to conceal the pain which it caused him to break off the diplomatic relations between his country and the German Empire. If he has supposed that the tender regard which ho has entertained towards Germany has been reciprocated by the militarist party that controls the destinies of the Fatherland, he must have received a rude awakening to the realities of the case as they have been shown in the disclosure of a German plot that was directed to an effort to'seduce Japan from her alliance with the Entente I owers and to associate her with Mexico in an attack upon the United States in event of war between America and Germany. It waa . doubtless hoped—though we shall expect to hear, vainly hoped—by Germany that the irritation felt in Japan over the American legislation for the prevention of immigration from the Far East would induce that' sensitive nation to incline a favourable ear to such advances as may have bean made to her, and the acquiescence of the Mexican bandits in the plot would probably be readily secured if the German agents who were entrusted with the negotiation of the intrigue were sufficiently provided with gold for judicious distribution. But the plot has seriously miscarried somehow and the disclosure of it seems 'to have co&e very opportunely. The effect of it can hardly be. other than to excite the indignation of the people.of the United States against Germany to a degree that will .bring appreciably nearer the entrance of this great republic into the war on behalf of humanity

Theue has jnst been brought to a close " writes the engineering correspondent of,the Daily Telegraph, "the most remarkable year in the annals of British engineerinma year that has presaged .the coming defeat it Z o ™?*' 7 , ns a result > largely of the efforts of the British engineering /ndS* i-« ■ that are furnished" in amplification of this pronouncement, are of considerable interest. The past year saw the whole force of the British engineering industry directed to the one end of brineing the war to a speedy and glorious conclusion. The thousands o f engineering works up and down the country have gradually come under Government control At the end of tho year there were nearly nve thousand such "controlled establishments," and the .greater part of their output consisted, of war-work of various forms. _ Though shells, guns, and other warlike implements bulked very largely in the .total output, the engineering ° eS port trade has been maintained in a remarkable manner. In every one of the Board of Trade "machinery- classifications a substantial increase was .shown for 1916 as compared with 1915, the greatest being thatof machine tools. Britain's ability to continue.her ' exportation of machinery during the war is important, since it not on y assists' in adjusting the adverse trade balance, but keeps her markets open abroad and enables enemy'markets in many cases to he captured;

■ ■ \ Women have been introduced in Great -britain into engineering shops where tliey have never bten seen before and have justified the reliance placed upon tnem proving so successful,' indeed that one.large employer of labour is credited with declaring that he would undertake to build a battleship entirely with woman labour. At the end of 1916 over 750 000 women were engaged in the Old Country on what had, hitherto been held to be men s work. Technical research, made great progress during the paisfc year, it is affirmed, thanks to the energy of the' Advisory Council to the Privy Council Committee- for Scientific and industrial Research, which is said to have won the* admiration of engineers by its sensible procedure. In shipbuilding there has been of course, immense activity, and State action in the direction of standardised construction should', make for,economy while .materially accelerating production. . "Were it permissible to write of shipbuilding developments in another sphere," .observes the writer in the Daily Telegraph, " a truly marvellous tale, reflecting everlasting credit upon' those who design and build our ships of war, could be told. But that story, Mo so many others, will have to wait until after the final victory that the*e< engineering triumphs alone will have made possable of attainment by the allied nations.