The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-23
FRENCH FORESEE A LENGTHY STRUGGLE
 BEFORE THEM YET
They Knoww That Germany Is Not Yet Beginning to Suffer From Economic
 Strangulation

London, April Special. )-When is asked every minute of the day. Peo- pie here are. as the British term it, fed up" with the war and they want it over and done with, but not until it is we'll won and the foe completely 8vanquished. There is no definite an- swer to the great question. There are many opinions, one about as worthless as the other. So much depends on how soon German strength will be exhaust ed and no one can say when that will be. That it will be a considerable length of time those who know the facts con cede, and within those who are on the inside there is no great hope that the peace negotiations will be under way this time next year. People in Eng land, generally speaking, are full of the idea that Germany is cracking un- der the strain. They get it in their press at all times and they have reached the stage where they feel that victory is sure via the economic and starvation route.
 This feeling does not exist in France From high financial source in Paris have learned some interesting things COJCtIlllllS lfl6 6rNI6WS llaI are n61Q Ill the French capital as to the duration of the war The French are prepared for long drawn struggle. They do not feel that the war is gotg to come to an end this year, and maybe not next Coming from the source it does, the in formation, l may guarantee, even if it is impossible to use names is worth printing. It is prophecy from a high place--a difficult thing to obtain these ,.;r fo1 +l particular authoritative quarters in Paris is this
 l. Germany is not vet approaching the agony of shortage of food and mu- Eitions.
 ?. The Germans will not break through in the west.
 3. Having failed to do so they will turn attention to the Russian fronts. 4. The duration of the war depends very largely more than on any other one factor upon the ability of the Rus sians to hold and to defeat the Ger mans. This depends upon the Russian intuition supply which, while increas- ing, has not reached 8 prorsr maximum. t/ 5. Germany will make a drive, which will succeed, on Riga and then on Pet rograd. Petrograd may fall before the end of the year.
 6. German success in Russia how
  the war. Even the fall of Petrograd would mean little so far as the final result is concerned. The Russian gov ernment would move to Moscow, which could never be captured.
 '. While the Germans are hammer | ing at the Russians the war of attri- ton will be continued on the other fronts and Germany gradually weak ened
 s. Ultimately the Russians will att tain complete armament When they do the end will be in sight.
 There are other points. to the proph- 1 ecy and there are many possibilities which may upset tho calculat tion, but the fact remains that the views set i forth above are held in responsible ] quarters and are we'll worth consider ation.
 In England it is considered in cer- tain responsible quarters that Ameri- can participation in the war would tend 1 to shorten it. not so much, perhaps, from the military point of view, but from the economic It is believed that with America on the side of the allies, with all her great commercial and financial strength, German credit would ] go to smash and she would speedily become helpless. I am told that in France, where curiously enough, tho supposedly excitable and cratic French do not grasp at straws so much as do tEe saner and phlegmatic English, pos sible American participation arouses l little interest. Across the channel they do not seem to worry about whether America comes In or stays out and the belief is expressed that if America comes in the result will not be greatly affected.