AUSTRALIA.

Taranaki Daily News, 14 December 1917, Page 5

AUSTRALIA.

"ABSOLUTELY ROTTEN." MB. WATT'S ALLEGATIONS. Sydney, Dec. 13. Mr. Watt, speaking at the Millions Club, said the present position seems bad—absolutely rotten. The newspapers which were censored made' things "black enough, but the telegrams which came to the Government were blacker still, f lie military situation was pregnant with, disaster, even early disaster. SIR JAMES ALLEN'S REPLY. Wellington, Last Night. The Minister of Defence, questioned on the subject of Mr. Watt's remarks, cabled from Sydney, said: "The New Zealand Government, as far as I am aware, has received no such information, and I cannot believe that this is a correct interpretation of what Mr Watt said. The news that we have is that there are ample men at the front, that tliey are sufficiently supplied with munitions, and that on the West front the initiative is in the hands of our Allied commander* whenever they wish to take it. W 7 o possess also the .initiative in the air, and, as far as one can gather, we are likely to maintain it. The submarine trouble has not been such a menace that wc have not been able to cope with it, and there is every prospect of the output of shipping, in a short time, being equal to, and even in-excess of, the losses by submarine attack. There is no information that I ant awarie of that the Government has received that has not been disclosed to the public."