The Washington herald., 1914-08-23
French ROLLED
BACK in ALSACE
CONTINUED FROM FACE ONE

a sudden realization Of the seriousness
the war begun England faces a real
menace.
Panic Over "AIr Raids
The British navy will be able TO pre-
vent a landing OF troops in England.
| But in possession OF the Belgian coast.
the Germans now have a splendid base
| for operations with the air craft against
England.
! Air raids" are feared in England to-
night An invasion by the dreaded
zeppelins has seized upon the imagina-
lions Of the people. The possibility Of
diTiEible balloons loaded with explosives
spreading destruction is openly dis
cussed.
England moreover Is awakening to the
responsibility she has assumed In espOus-
ing the cause Of the allies. The posi-
bnity That the French mobilization was
delayed; that the Kaiser has retrieved
the past three days Of brilliant success
the setback at Liege. and that II may
fall to the lot Of the English troops to
bear the brunt OF the fighting against the
German forces IS now being discussed
openly.
The correspondent OF the Telegraph,
wiring from Givet sounds this warning:
THE enemy is advancing like a tidai
wave. Many lives must be sacrificed to
stem the enfulfing flood. All signs point
to the fact that heavy German force
has crossed the Mouse and the contend
ing armies are in contact along a line
about fifty miles in extent.
The Belgian line was so extended that
II could not Withstand the German cav
airy assault It Is rumOred that the lines
Of the allies have had to be withdrawn
to fortified positions along the French
boundary"
The oficiaI press bureau continues to
warn the people to keep cool and not
estimate the Importance Of the victories
the Germans have gained. 1t urges the
public to bear in mind that for practical
purposes almost all information official
or unofficial concerning the progress Of
the land operations comes at present
from the side of the allies. The official
statement continues:
VERY little news filters in from Ger.
many and Austria by the channels of
neutral countries but sufficient does filter
through to indicate that the enemy
claims successes in various quarters both
in western and eastern theaters Of the
war.
1T should Furthermore be remembered
that these campaigns have been carried
out on an enormous scale and that a
majority OF the encounters which already
have taken place can only, in their due
perspective, be classed as incidents of
minor Importance.
mo achievement on either side deserves
to be called a victory. The French have
gained gratifying success in Alsace. and
the Germans, by a steady pressure, have
obliged a large portion of the Belgian
field army to retire on Antwerp.
In the Eastern theater there have been
number Of affairs in which our allies
are believed to have gained ground, out
the campaign In that quarter can scarcely
be said to have commenced. The exag-
geration into important triumphs Of minor
episodes In which the allied forces are
alleged to have gained the upper hand Is
misleading. r.. -.
This, however may be said: In the
theater of the war--that In which
this country is most Immediately inter
ested-one real noteworthy success has
been gained, although II should perhaps
be called German failure rather than
an allied success.
lat the end of three weeks the enemy
has not yet attempted to deliver an at
tack. which. had 1t taken place and