New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-09-12
Our Life Against Ger,
many's," Says Head of
British Admiralty.
OCEAN SWEPT FREE
OF GERMAN FLAG
Defeat Of Allies Would Not Az
feet Minister'S Confidence in
Ultimate Victory.
rBy cable n The Tribune. .

London, Sept. l1.-An enthusiastic
meeting was held in the London Opera
House tonight in support of the Prime
Minister'S call for recruits. The chief
speakers were Winston Spencer
Churchill, First Lord of the Admiralty:
+. L. Smith. director of the official
press bureau. and Will Crooks, Labor
leader in the House Of Commons.
at is too soon TO speculate upon the
result of the great battle which is now
being waged in France" said Mr..
Churchill, but everything we have
heard during four long days of anxiety
seems to point to d marked and sub
stantial turning of the tide. We have
seen the force Of the French and Brit
ish armies strong enough not only to
contain and check the devastating ava
rche which has swept over the French
frontier, but now for four long days the
enemy has been splendidly rolled back.
"In a battle taking place on front
of more than 100 or 1870 miles one
must he very careful not to build too
high hopes on the results achieved.
But when every allowance has been
made for the uncertainty with when
great operations are always enShroudcu
over so great an area, the situation 10
night is better, far better. than tn
cold calculations OF the forces ayalIa-
BILE before the war could lead us 10
expect in this early stage of the cam
paign.
With I'nabated Confidence.
"But had this battle been as dis
astrous as. thank God. 1t appears TO
be triumphant. should have come be-
fore YOU tonight with undated con-
tidencp, with a certainty that we have
only TO continue our efforts to bring
this war to the conclusion which we
wish and intend.
1.-THE war has now been in progress
five or six weeks. In that time we
have swept German commerce from thS
seas. All our ships, with lncOnsider-
able exceptions. are arriving safely ana
punctually at their destinations, carry
ing the commerce upon which the
wealth and industry and power to MAKE
war Of this country depend
ave have transported, not without
danger, but still hitherto safely and
successfully. great numbers 'of soldiers
across the seas from all quarters OF
the world to be directed upon the de-
cisiye theatre of the land struggle. We
have swept the so-called German ocean
without discovering a German flag.
BattIeships still Building.
"Tne number of battleships that VIII
be completed within the next twelve
months is more than double the num-
Der that will be completed for Ger
many. and the number of cruisers Will
he three or four times as great There
fore, we may count upon the naval
supremacy of the country being CT
fcc:ivcly maintained.
What we now have TO do is TO
make, under cover and shield of the
navy, a great army, an army strong
enough to enable the country to take
its proper share in the decision Of this
terrible struggle. To make the assist
ance of the empire effective we should
put on the continent and keep there an
army of at least one million men. That
figure is well within the compass of ar
engagements now on foot and well with
in the scope of measures which Lord
Kitchener has taken. By the new year
we will have an additional half-million
men ready for the field, and by the
summer Of 1915 we will have twenty
five army corps in lighting shape.
1T is our life against Germany's.
Upon that there must be no COM
promise or truce. We must go forth
untlinchingly TO the end