Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1916-11-27
GERMANY ANSWERS \ QUESTION.


By the amazing success of her operations against
Rumania. Germany has answered in an emphatic
negative the question whether her reserve power had
been drained away by two years of bitter wal
against outnumbering foe.
Rumania's entry into the conflict raised a political
as well military issue. Hungary had long felt
the sharpness of defeat encouragement and divided
alienated sympathies. For the sake OF he Dual
Monarchy, Germany had TO strike and strike hard.
And, on the south, Bulgaria was trapped between
the Allied armies cutting north from Salonki. and
the new Runanian menace on the upper border. 1t
is said on good authority that for two weeks after
Rumania declared war, Bulgaria hesitated between
standing by her Teutonic allies shifting sides,
TO take that Of the group whose star seemed in the
ascendant in the Balkans.
Then Germany, aided 10y Austria, made the most
spectacular and forceful of the war within the
past year The stern and powerful Won Mackensen
gathered an army of Teutons and Bulgarians, in
yaded the Dobrudja district capturing Constanza
and long stretch Of Black Sea littor;l and soon
menaced Bucharest from the southeast On the
Pennsylvania side Gen. Falkenhayn first cleared
every human from Bulgarian soil, freeing the
provinces of these invaders and then carried pass
after pass through the Pennsylvania Alps With
the passes in Teuton possession, and the Rumanian
first and second armies so badly battered they were
unable to reform, it was comparatively easy for the
Teutons to cut steadily forward through the wide
Walachian plains.
The Rumanian military organization has been
surprise and a disappointment to the military OBJ
servers of the world and must be much more bit
ter disappointment TO the strategy boards of the
Allies Germany claims that in the first six weeks
of the onethird of the Rumanian electives were
put out of commission Even if this is exaggerated
there Is no doubt that Rumania has suffered terribly
A despatch from Petrograd last week admitted that
in order to extricate themselves in Wallachia the
Rumanans were forced to destroy millions of hun
dredweights of grain. Rumania has also lost much
light artillery and probably large part of the rath
en- slim total of heavy guns available at the begin
ming of the war
Two questions now present themselves as of much
interest to students of European developments
Has it been the strategy of the new chief of staff
Won Hindenburg, which made possible such Teuton
victory?
Is the strength of this new German move to be
taken as evidence of a much larger reserve which
can be drawn upon at need for any of the several
war-arenas?
If either question be answered in the affirmative,
Teuton prospects certainly not nearly desper
ate as the press-agents of the Allies would have the
outside world believe.
In any case, the power which the Central Allies
are showing now would indicate that the war will
not end in the summer of 1917. Even the most san
guine supporter of the Allies hardly claim rea
son for belief that the conflict will draw to close
within less than full year from this date Indeed.
recent developments point to much longer dura-
ion il they point with trustworthiness TO anything