Semi-weekly herald., 1914-08-10
THE GRIM SHADOW OF WAR.

New York American.
Since Bismarck edited the famous
Ems dispatch, which let loose the
Franco-Prnssian war, Europe has
faced no war cloud so black and ON
inous as this which looms today.
A war between Austria Hungary
and Servia alone would not disturb
the distribution of world power Its
result would be known from the be-
ginning. The weight of overwhelm-
ing numbers would prevail over her.
oic courage expressed in battalions
thin and few.
But the war cloud today looms
heavy against the giant shadows of
the two great groups of European
powers-between Austria, Germany
and Italy of the triple alliance, and
Russia, France and England of the
triple entente.
The tramp of more than 100000
soldiers behind the gums of these
great world powers makes humanity
tremble before the colossal possibili-
ties of blood and slaughter which
such conflict might involve. Since
Napoleon and Frederick there has
been nothing like it.
Austria, in the aggressive, seems
to be striking over Servia's head at
the Russian dominance of the Balkan
states, which influence Austria be-
lieves inspired the Turkish war,
alienated Roumania from Austrian
sympathy and established the great
er Servia on her southern border,
standing in the way of Austria to the
Aegean sea.
Russia. if she enters, will intervene
to prevent the practical destruction
Of Servia, socially, politically and re-
ligiously related to her, and to hold
together in unity the Balkan states,
which Russia holds closer akin in in
tersst to her triple entente than to
the triple alliance, which is ever look
ing greedily upon these possessions.
II Russia comes to the relief of Ser
via, Germany and Italy must rally
by the compact to Austria. and if one
of them joins against Russia, England
and France are compact bound to
stand with the Muscovite.
In this vast grapple Russia and
Germany would be the central and IT,
tanic figures. Englands navy alone
with France would undertake to de-
stroy the German and Austrian ma
vies. France. perhaps, with the ever
living sting of Alsace-Lorraine in her
soul, could scarcely restrain the de-
sire to fling across the German bor-
der great army with the marvellous
new French guns to regain her lost
provinces.
Italy, fresh from her Turkish vic
tory, would stand by her German and
Austrian allies.
But Germany on the one side and
Russia on the other would loom IT,
tanic, as the giants of the struggle.
German newspapers have been declar-
ing that the triple alliance was at its
zenith, with the threat of disintegra-
lion in its ranks, Austria Hungary
weakened against the Slav by its own
vast SIsv population. and Italy chill
ed toward Austria by jealousies
growing out of the territorial divi-
sions of the Balkan war, while Rus
ala, reorganized since the Japanese
wsr, was growing stronger all the
time, with England and France hold
ing their own and more. Wherefore,
~ the German newspapers, now is
the time for the triple alliance to
Aght the triple entente, lest Germany
later BE- left to struggle with the
nussian and his allies alone.
Whsn Austria seized upon Bosnia,
Rpasia, France and England protest
"a, but they were not prepared to
LIT ,and 70 were forced to yield.
Dut. Rassia never forgot.
In ths recent territorial squabble
= 16orocoo. the triple entente show
4 ~ tssth, and Germany lost some
,ssatigs and territory to France.
1T ~ very magnitude Of the
taks = livss aad nsensy will make