The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-09-25
WAR ECHOES

w. Nephew King, in Leslie's: The re
 markable increase of the percentage ot
 wounded over killed, in the battle of Liege
 merits more than a passing notice. Il
 is believed that the new small arm for in fantry is just what military experts have
 been striving to attain for years. Though not prompted by philanthropic motives
 it has been their aim to develop a weapon
 that would reduce the number of killed
 and increase the wounded. The reason
 for this is obvious. When a man is killed
 his body remains where it fell until the
 battle is over. If wounded, however. his
 comrades carry him to the rear. Death
 thus takes out of action only one man. while a wound removes two or more. | The gunshot wounds in the engagement
 mentioned above were made by rifles of
 smaller calibre and great velocity. The projectiles were steel-nosed, and the wounds cleancut; so that unless a vital organ was pierced the soldier was ready for duty again within a short time. At
 fcient to pierce five men standing one | in front of the other.
 | In only few instances, however, were
 the wounds made in horizontal direction Since the perfection of machine and rapid | fire guns, soldiers are seldom massed for battle, but advance in open order. Neither l do they stand or kneel and fire, as in for | mer times The battle line for infantry now consists of number of deep trenches l in which the men stand or kneel, and | they are exposed only when firing. If an army is suddenly engaged, however, and there is not time to throw up en- | trenchments, the infantry are deployed as | skirmishers, at distance of five yards apart, and the men lie flat on their stom- aches as they fire. This accounts for the great number of wounds in a vertical direction which were reported from Liege. It was not unusual to find men whose bodies had been pierced from head to foot the bullet having entered the top of the skull, and penetrated the entire body. | coming out of the heel or lower part of the leg.
 New York Tribune; The sinking of three British cruisers in the North sea is a real achievement for the German navy and more than offsets whatever the Eng fish fleet accomplished off Heligoland and elsewhere. Its importance as a piece of naval strategy, however, remains to be ascertained. If the submarines were op- erating near their base and merely caught
 three cruisers that were attempting a raid in repetition of the earlier "cutting IntttF t1 .l,t.& nificance. On the other hand if the crus- CTS were sunk well out in the North sea, after a long cruise of the submarines
 the incident is packed with meaning. What can be done to cruiser can be done to | a battleship, and the peril to the whole
 British fleet will be large.
 The inactivity of the German subma-
 rines heretofore has been a source of con- siderable wonder. This arm of the Ger
 man navy is highly developed and manned with the ablest officers and sailors The theories of German offense by sea always looked to these new craft-together with the Zeppelins-so to reduce the enemy S line as to enable the main German fleet to operate upon at last an equal basis The Zeppelins have accomplished nothing thus far. and until yesterdays victory the submarines had been equally unsuccess- full. If this new attack marks a begin ming of German offense, events in the North sea may take on a tragic and vita: importance.
 Commercial Appeal: There never was
 a war that was not brutal
 The crimes of Louvain and Rheims
 merely accentuate the reckless waste of war.
 The Germans murdered Belgian civ ilians. The Belgian civilians shot Ger
 mans, and, acting under well-known
 rule of war. the Germans began cam.
 paign of fire and destruction.
 The Germans believe their culture and
 their philosophy are better than any other
 systems practiced by other nations. The
 German military philosophy glorifies, ex-
 alts and extols war as a civilizer and
 as biological necessity. Such a philos- ophy begets disregard of the alleged rights of the enemy or his people. In this war there are racial hatreds and commercial jealousy These two ele. ments make for cruelty.
 The German of the cottage. the vine- yard and the Maifest is lovabe kindly
 person. The German of the army moves under the aegis of the mailed fist. With the soldier officer it is "Deutch-
 land uber alles." always and forever. If cruelty is expedient if it Is necessary for | triumph. then it must be put into prac- l tice
 | The Frenchman in times of peace is a home lover, vivacious and agreeable He would step around worm and free a caged bird because he is considerate and
 liberty loving. l But the Freuchman of the Terror and the Commune was fiend incarnate He
 delighted in cruelty and in giving pain. England sighed at negro slavery and forwarded peace congresses. Her rulers
 during the last 50 years have given most of their time to uttering platitudes at ex-
 positions and the laying of hospital cor
 nerstones. But England at war with Ire- l land killed old men and women and mur-
 dered babies. England aroused, shot &c., poys at the cannons mouth, and in our own country formed war alliances with
 scalp-hunting Indians. Protests from war
 ring nations against the cruelties of their l dc fnr ba Of th