Walker Lake bulletin. (Hawthorne, Nev.) 1883-1926, 1916-01-22
TIE EUROPEAN WAR

that In all the ages to come 1t VIII
stand apart from these that have pre-
coded it and from those which are
to follow. During its entire length,
the greater nations of the European
continent have abandoned themselves
to a policy of bloodshed which mas
allen little short of delirium. TO
the neutral onlooker it has been a re-
yivaI on a huge scale or the lrration-
al and murderous activity which cnar-
acterized the earlier ages OF mankind
II has been the complete overthrow OF
all the pacific theories which mad ap-
parently gained so strong fcothold
at the time of the firing of the nrst
gun in the present conflict.
At the beginning of the year, 1t was
evident that it was to be struggle
to the death. 1t was plain that the
Teutonic plan to force speedy set
cement by dint of superior armed
preparedness had failed. Six months
,ad elapsed and the Teutonic allies
we're still faced by three great ma
tions, their strength unbroken and
heir determination infiexible. Aus
tria had been driven repeatedly by her
Russian invaders and twice the Serbs
mad routed Austrian armies sent
against them. On other fields, also,
reutonic efforts had been futile. Thus
ar Turkey had been of little assist
ance and the holy war had failed to
sx.tN hot.
Africa had been lost and German in
huence in Asia mad been smothered
by the Japanese.
AS an Offset, the Germans still held
practically all the conquered territory
which had fallen into their hands.
Their lines still held firmly In Po-
land, in Flanders and in France. 1t
was apparent that as yet the Teutonic
combination showed no sign Of weak
ening. and a war of attritiCn seemed
inevitable. Both in the east and
in the west the military operations
of the early part Of the year were
practically without decisive result.
rhe fighting in Poland had resolved
itself into a complete deadlock. In
January, the French-English combine
made three attempts to break tho
reutonic hold on French territory, but
accomplished little. The German I'M
successful drive at Warsaw and the
rout of the Austrians in Galicia left a
slight balance in the January fighting
in favor of the allies.
From a strictly military viewpoint,
February was q promising month for
the Teutonic allies. BY the middle of
the. month, German troops were ad-
vancing all along the frcnt from
the V;stula to the Niemen, and thus,
seven months after the breakin.c cut
of the war, German soil was practi-
cally cleared OF it's Russian invaders.
The deadlock on the western front
was still unbroken.
Scene Shifts to Dardanelcs.
With the advent of March, there
came sudden and dramatic change
in the war situation. The scene of
military activity was shifted to the
Dardanelles. BY the third week OF
the month, Rome, Athens, Sofia and
Bucharest were center5 of great po-
litical activity. he surrender of
Przemysl, March 90, was the most
stirring victory for the allies since the
battle of the Marine. The German
assertion that the military power of
Russia had dwindled into insignifi-
canoe was disproved at once and the
allied ca Use gained instant strength in
all the neutral capitals. One Of the
greatest strongholds in Europe had
been taken by the Russians.
The disaster to the allied fleet at
ing the third week of March, put an
end to the expectation of forcing the
straits by naval means alone. Ger
man prestige advanced perceptibly
and the difficulty of the task under
taken by the allied fleet was now I'M
derstood. In this month, also. the
British won the battle of Neuve
Chape,le after bloody fight.
In April the French made bold
offensive stroke against the German
position between the Meuse ard the
Moselle-the famous St. Mihiel wedge
which resulted in tremendous loss
of men on both sides, with small ad-
vantage for either. Nowhere had the
allies made appreciate gain in ter
ritory. The invader held lis own
stuhbornly and with success. About
the middle of the month, Zeppelins
made their appearance over English
towns, inspiring great interest and not
a little apprehension. but doing COM
paratively small damage. About this
time, also, the attempted submarine
blockade Of the British coast proved
to be ineffective. In the closing days
of the month another great Teutonic
offensive swept against the allied lines
in Belgium, thrusting the enemy back
upon Ypres, with great loss of life on
both sides.
In May the Germans sent their best
troops to the aid of the hard
pressed Austrians. BY the middle OF
| tho month thav had uorkad n STAR