The Washington times., 1915-03-25
THE GREATER WAR.

The opening of spring brings new
realization of the immensity of the
world war. 1t never looked so big
and all-embracing as it does today.
From Constantinople comes the
story that the Turks have 100000
soldiers to help defend that city,
while the allies are landing big
army on the Gallipoli peninsula to
help storm the Dardanelles fortifi-
cations. That they will have Greek
and Italian troops very soon to aid
N that campaign is probable; that
Roumanians will be pouring into
Hungary and Bulgars once more
will be cooperating with Serbians,
is only little less likely.
The other day Turkish force was
defeated near the banks of the Suez
canal; and about the same time
came the report of a great uprising
of the Soudan dervishes against
English rule. Germany is credited
with sending an embassy to Abys-
sinia in the effort to get the warlike
people of that country to unite in
the assaults on the Soudan.
From East Africa it is reported
that British colonial expedition has
been overrunning a section of Ger
man territory.
The taking of Przemysl ended a
siege that was only an incident to
this war; yet it probably involved
more men, on both sides, than any
other siege in modern history. Now
the Russians are breaking out in
the Carpathians and pushing on to
Cracow and the Oder's easiest route
toward Berlin.
With all these vast operations
afoot, Austria and Germany are able
to place a half million men, if the
stories do not overstate numbers, in
the Austrian provinces about the
head of the Adriatic, to insure
against a sudden Italian irruption.
Thus Italy's dubious. neutrality is
serving the allies the useful purpose
of preoccupying huge force in a
section where it may never have to
fight, but where it is at least with
drawn from activity in other places
where it is sorely needed.
We are assured that Kitchener
has his first million men in Belgium
and the north of France; probably
it is approximately true; and prob.
ably, too, another million is training
for service. At the same time Paris
assures that great increases in the
French force afield have been made
possible during the winter, and that
the numbers on the allies side of the
double line Of trenches, stretching
some $50 miles from sea to Alps, are
far greater than ever before. AS tc
the German side of this line, we may
not be so certain; there is, however
a good deal of evidence that with the
landsturm coming into general serv
ice Germany will have a vastly
greater force for the May campaign
than it could count in October. Ane
with all this, Germany claims tt
hold near a million prisoners!
In the most distant quarters o.
the world the map has been in proc
ess of revision. German colonies
everywhere have been swallowed b!
her enemies-to have their fina
status fixed, of course, at the peace
conference after the war. Kaise
Wilhelm land, half as big as Ger
many itself, has become British
islands as big as good-sized Ameri
can States have changed hands
There is reason to assume that tn
Congo Free State, about as expan
sive as the United States east O
the Mississippi, will become Britisl
after the wars close. Germany
outposts in China have become Jap
, anese.
The greatest naval battle in his
tory, so far as power engaged
concerned, has been fought-awa
off in the extreme South Atlantic
!, almost on the other side of tn
= world. The most tremendous dis
play of naval power in history ha
been made in the Dardanelles. Tn
newest and most astounding demon
= stration of naval facility has bee
s given by the Germans in the use O
r their submarine fleet. And S
:. through the wonders of bigness tina
4 have marked the war-the bigges
: armies, the hugest guns, the mos
: startling innovations in all dire,
!. tions, have been mere incidents.
i Kitchener said the war would be
t gin in May. There is, in the sweep q
n mighty realms now before US, muc
to confirm his declaration. Perhar
! the war will soon be over, but tn