Action in the Baltic

German battleship is sunk

FROM Nieuport in the west, the fighting in various sectors along the opposing lines as far as the Vosges, has been of an extremely violent character, and the losses must have been very heavy.

As to whether the British forces were engaged in replying to the attacks of the enemy North of Arras we are in ignorance but according to the French communiqué the assailants here, as elsewhere, were beaten off with heavy losses.

In the Vosges, the Germans themselves admit they have lost the fortifications on the Hilgenfirst captured by them on Thursday, but they claim noteworthy successes in the Argonne and to have captured French positions North West of Regneville, and to have repulsed several attacks near Les Eparges.

As to the Argonne, the enemy states that his offensive continues and that on July 1 and 2 his booty included 2,556 prisoners, 25 machine guns and 72 trench mortars.

Our allies, on the other hand, concede none of these successes but speak of German attacks being repulsed and of a quiet day yesterday in the Argonne region, “the enemy, after defeat of his recent attempts, delivering no more infantry attempts”.

All the previous night, however, rifle and gun fire were continuous from the Binarville-Vienne-Le Chateau road to the Four de Paris.

The German Crown Prince is reported to have boasted that he will break through the French lines on August 4, the date of the first big battle in the war of 1870-71.

Unofficially, the Italians are reported to have achieved a decided success by the capture of Tolmino; officially, fierce contests along the mountain frontier are reported, and despite Austrian assertions, there is no reason to doubt that our gallant Allies are ‘making good’.

Austria is running short of important drugs and Germany is unable to supply her wants.

Under these circumstances, stringent restrictions upon their use are to be enforced.

Operations in the eastern theatre of war, especially between the Vistula and the Bug, consist mainly of formidable rearguard actions on the part of the Russians who are inflicting heavy losses upon the foe, even though the latter may continue here and there to make progress.

It is reassuring to hear from Petrograd that anything but a gloomy view is taken of the situation.

So far from that, there is a confident ring in regard to the difficulties of the terrain towards which Von Mackensen’s forces are moving and the Russian ability to make a successful defence of Warsaw.

In the Baltic a German battleship of the Deutschland type was blown up by torpedoes from a Russian submarine.

This was subsequent to the damage of the German cruiser Albatross, which Petrograd reports to have been compelled to run ashore.

The Germans themselves admit the loss of the mine-layer Albatross which, they say, foundered after being badly hit, off the Gothland Coast.

The attempts on the life of Mr Pierpont Morgan is but the latest of many outrages and attempts at murder committed by Germans in the United States in the endeavour to intimidate and to inflict injury upon sympathisers with Great Britain and her Allies.