Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1915-11-03
SMALLER COUNCIL
TO CONDUCT WAR


CONTINUED from First puge.)
shall Frenchs last dispatch he had UNI
der his command not far short of
100000 men. To these must , C added
! the troops at the Dardnnellcs. in Egypt
and in other theaterS of war. we'll
as our garrisons and troops in reserve.
| How has this gigantic force been
got together by power which has
never aspired to be n military power?
! First. by the manhood Of the United
Kingdom In the last fifteen months
we have recruited"
Mr. Asquith hesitatcd. then re-
marked II don't like to give the exact
! fEure--of men.
There never has been anything COM
parable in history to the service of
! the navy" he said. There they are
the men of the grand fleet. living un-
noticed. unadvcrtiscd. performing with
efficiency and vigilance which cannot
be described. but which has cleared
! the whole high seas from one end to
/ the other of German wnrshipa and
mercantile marine. Wher" is the great
German fleet upon which so much
money was spent? Locked up in the
/ Baltic. Ii dare not show its face in
waters where it can be attacked. The
whole maritime resources Of Germany
4 naive D"eU reduced TO sporadic ana con-
stantly diminishing efforts OF subma-
rincS"
AS to Mcsopotamia. Mr. Asuuith re-
serve tn" neutrality OF the Arabs. safe
! guard British interests in the Persian
Gulf and uphold the authority OF the
Union Jack in the east
Our victorious force is now within
measurable distance OF Bagdad." he
continued. mo operations have been
conducted with greater brlliancy or
with better prospects Of final success"
TURNS TO OPERATIONS
IN THE DARDANI3LI.ES
Turning TO the operations i'm the Oar
daneiles, Mr.. Asuuith said:
From the moment Turkey declared
war it was Impossible to concentrate
attention solely on tn" western front
The Turks threatened our prussian
allies and Egypt. The advent of Tur-
key produced great effect on the Bal
kan states. and the government had to
face question which was not merely
strategic.
I'm Il great war like this YOU cannot
determine the policy entirely by naval
and military considerations. some
times il is not only eXpedicnt, but
!
naval or military considerations would
have warned you against In January
we had not sufficient military forces
available in the east to do more than
cope with the Turkish attack on Egypt,
which was defeated. The question or
naval attack in the Dardanelles was
then considered, and after full consul
tation with naval experts including
the admiral on the Observation-Disclosures
ing some doubts in the mind of Baron
Fisher tthcn First Sea I.ordJ tho gov
crnment felt justified in sanctioninr
THAT attack
The proposed attack was carefully
considered Ii was approved by the
French and cnihusiastically recriv.d
by the grand duke. 1t was decided at
IirSt to make the attempt with the
navy, and the navy alone. | take my
fun share Of responsibility, and depre-
cate attempts 10 allot the responsibility
to one minister or another"
MIR. AsIuith pointcd> out that if the
efforts to force the Dardancllcs had
been successful, they would have been
Of immcasurahir value
They did not succeed" he continued.
Notwithstanding the magnificent cx-
hihition and never surpassed Sallantrv
OF our troops"
UNSUCCESSFUL IGEFORTS
VI
| The Premier travelled over old ground
/ in rehcarSnG the unsuccessful efforts
/ to promote Balkan community. point
! ing out that every step had to be
taken in consultation with three and.
lntterly. four governments.
! Unlike the German government" he
said. I'VE cannot barter away the
! property OF our allies behind their
backs. When the allies are rcproachcd
for not acting with sufficient speed
AS regards Serbia. il must ,c rcincIn-
! hcred that up to the last moment there
WAS the strongest reason TO believe
that Greece would act up 10 her treaty
obligations with Serbia on September
y. after the Bulgarian mobilization
had begun. Premier Vcnizclos asked
France and Great Britain for 10000
men on the express understanding that
the Greeks would mobilize also. Greece
did mobilize, on the 2ith Of September
but not until the 9TH OF October did
Premier Ncn"clos iind himself able
To agree To the harding Of British and
French troops under formal protest
ION the 18th If October, NJ. VcniZclos
announced in the chamber that Greece
must he bound Ivy her treaty with Serbia
The next day the King repudintcd the
declaration OF NJ. Vcnizelos, who re-
signed, but the new Greek government
declared it's desire to remain on friendly
terms with the allies. at the same
time declining to depart from the at
titude OF neutrality. The result was
that Serbia. without Greek support.
was left to bear n central attack and
. side attack from Bulgaria.
POSITION or SERBIA
GIVES GRAVE CONCERN
I'VE IA the United Kingdom. France
and Russia could not allow Serbia to
become the prey 10 this sinister. n,ys-
FERROUS combination. The general staff
Of France and Great Britain have been
in the closest consultation. which Gull
minated In the welcome visit of the
illustrious French communicated chief
The result. am glad to say. is com
pl"tc agreement between us AS to the