ECHOES OF THE WAR.

Otago Witness, Issue 3398, 30 April 1919, Page 36

ECHOES OF THE WAR.

(By Cable.) MINE SWEEPING. Admiral Starss, . commander of the American Mine Force, will arrive immediately to undertake the removal of the minefield which he laid between the Orkneys and Bergen, consisting of 57,000 mines, which were manufactured in America and conveyed to the North Sea in 56 steamers. Only one of the mines was torpedoed. The clearing of the minefield will occupy four months. CAPTAIN TROUBRIDGE CLEARED. Commander Bellairs, in the House of Commons, demanded the publication of the findings of the court-martial on Captain Troubridge in reference to the escape of the Goeben. He read an extract of the findings, and said that Troubridge's conduct was governed by an Admiralty order imperatively pointing out the necessity of not being brought to battle by-'a superior enemy. The Goeben was faster than Troubridge's armoured cruisers, and her guns easily outranged- his; therefore the Admiralty was responsible. The court-martial found that, in view of the Admiralty instructions, Troubridge was entitled to be fully and honourably acquitted. HUN PREPARATIONS FOR THE WAR. The Morning Post's Constantinople correspondent states that an examination of the Grand Vizier, Prince Said, and Hailaim Pasha revealed the fact that Germany, Austria, and Turkey entered into an offensive and defensive alliance on July 10, 1914, and this was consummated in a treaty of August 1. Further treaties dealing with the division of spoil were signed after Britain's entry. EX-EMPEROR CHARLES. The Mittag Zeitung (Vienna) publishes a letter written by the ex-Emperor Charles to the German ex-Crown Prince in August, 1917, .urging Germany to make the territorial concessions of Alsace and Lorraine to facilitate peace, as Austria preferred to sacrifice Trentino, and Turkey and Bulgaria were preparing to give in. THE QUEEN OF SPIES. The Sunday Express states that Lizzie Werthereim, who is now undergoing 10 years'' penal servitude in Aylesbury Gaol, was the queen of the German secret service, and associated with a German calling himself Reginald Rowlands, whose execution was announced officially, but without name, on October 25, 1915. She is the daughter-in-law of a naturalised German subject who was formerly in the British diplomatic service. She obtained- at Scapa Flow accurate information of the m«ements of certain naval units. PRAISE FOR AUSTRALASIAN TROOPS. The Manchester Guardian, in a leading article, says: " Australasia, proportionately to population, is the most accomplished and formidable Power in the" world. All ranks of Australian and New Zealand troops have extraordinary military qualities. General Monash is one of the most skilful of the Allies' generals. His staff and divisional commanders displayed exceptional capacity in the encirclement and capture of Villers Bretonneux. This was a masterpiece of design and execution. We should acknowledge that Australasian' troops are superior to the British on the average. This is due to the Australasian social, economic, and politi cal life, which is more favourable for the production of high military self-reliance and resource than our obsolete village feudalism and crude factory system. Australia possesses an army of skilled veterans, with as many glorious names on their colours as the British regiments which fought throughout the Napoleonic wars." MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS. New Zealand's offer of a German gun to Walton-on-Thames is the first oversea dominion gift to any English town. Of the eight German submarines being towed to Cherbourg from England, seven were lost in a storm. A collision occurred between American and French troop trains in the Sarthe Department. Fifty-four French and 26 American soldiers were killed, and 70 injured. A native at Colombo was fined 500 rupees for selling a bottle of arrack to an Australian soldier. The magistrate considered that drink-selling pests_ were responsible for disorders occurring wben Australian troops were here. "-The first squadron of the returning Australian warships has reached Darwin. It consists of the Cruiser Melbourne and six destroyers. Lieutenant-colonel Professor David has returned after service at the front since early in 1916. He tells an inspiring story of the worth of his Australian Mining Corps.

The New York Times Peking correspondent states that the Chinese Cabinet agreed, at the request of the British, French, and American Governments, to dissociate German capital from the fourPower railway loan. An agreement was concluded in 'l9ll whereby each financial group contracted for the construction of the Hankow-Szchuan line. The German interests will be divided among the British, French, and Americans.