Allies’ aim

Lord Haldane’s statement

Advance in Alsace

War booty for Russians

A characteristic of the official reports for a month past has been the recurring reference to the superiority of the allies’ artillery.

It is interesting to learn now from a statement by Viscount Haldane in the House of Lords yesterday that we are at present engaged in turning out the equivalent of the German 42 centimetre gun, the howitzer that throws the ‘Jack Johnson’s’.

The new gun will be very useful towards the end of Spring or maybe before.

Lord Haldane’s speech was of considerable importance, apart from the disclosures he made, for he declared that no victory of the allies will be sufficient if it does not preclude a recurrence of war.

This was a considered and deliberate statement on behalf of the government and means as one interpreter put it, that not only is the military power of Germany to be utterly broken, but that Germany is to be deprived of her geographical facilities of recovery as a naval power.

The bearing of Lord Haldanes utterance upon the question of recruiting is not obscure. He said that there is no reason to anticipate the breakdown of the voluntary system but if his subsequent words meant anything they meant that should the necessity for conscription arise the government have a form of it drafted and ready to be put into operation. It is to be hoped that the necessity will not arise but it is as well for the public to be under no misapprehension.

Several speakers asked the government to produce figures showing the progress of recruiting. But the government declined to give on the ground that they would be useful to thee enemy – a wise decision.

Important results in the region of Thann and Altkirk are reported in yesterday afternoons official message from Paris, as a result of the continued French offensive.

Round the hill known as 425 the fighting during the past few days appears to have been very severe and the report speaks of recapture of trenches to the east of the hill taken by the enemy a couple of days ago.

It is claimed from many sections of the line that ground has been gained, by artillery in some places and infantry in others.

In the neighbourhood of Arras some trenches had to be evacuated without fighting, the men being up to their soldiers in mud.

In the Argonne too a set back of 20 yards was reported where the enemy’s mines destroyed some French first line trenches. A German attack on the French was repulsed at the point of a bayonet and the allies succeeded in re occupying their old position.

Fearing a British landing on the Belgian coast the Germans are continuing with their feverish defence.

Dixmude for the possession of which the fighting has been long and severe, is now said to be in German hands, the Yser separating the allies from the Germans. Both sides are strongly entrenched, the Franco Belgian army is near Nieuport.