New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-09-26

COO. 900 men and failed TO cripple France,
break the French spirit, or even to take
the worthless area marked upon the map
nv the name Of the Verdun fortress. With
the Verdun failure Germany passed to the
defensive While she was still striving to
crown the Heights Of the Meuse, Russia
launched the terrific drive which crumpled
I'D Austrian armies again and repeated
the ruin achieved at Lemberg.
Effectively, Germany came now to the
position of a man striving to row ashore
in a leaky boat and against strong cur
rent After every stroke Of the oars he
must pause to bail out his boat This IS
the situation Of Germany, accentuated by
the fatigue incident to the tremendous
exertions of the immediate past.
Meantime the conditions Of the contest
have changed The entrance Of Italy and
Rumania has brought 100000 more
people TO the Allied side, while the re-
sponse of the British colonies TO the call
of the mother country has supplied larger
armies than any belligerent had on the
peace footing Of 1914. To counterbalance
this the support Of Turkey and Bulgaria
has been vastly inferior. British sea
power has. too, been far more effective
than any one could have foreseen and Ger
many has been transformed into an $50
lated nation, besieged on all fronts, despite
the fact that her lines Of defence rested
upon alien soil.
The Russian attack in June was the first
move in the third phase of the war, fol-
lowed by the Anglo French drive on the
Somme, the Italian victory at Gorilla, the
Allied activity in the Balkans and the en-
listment of Runrania. 1t demonstrated
that the Germans had passed to the defen-
sive, and the only question that remained
for decision was the length of time neces-
sary to complete her defeat. This ques-
ton remains to be answered, nor is there
any one who believes that the time will be
short or the cost small.
But in looking at the war to-day it must
be borne in mind that the decisive element
is the spirit Of the nations that arc fight
ing. The victories Of the recent months have
convinced France, Britain, Russia, Italy
that ultimate triumph is inevitable. After
Moscow, and even before Leipsic, the con-
viction had lodged in the minds Of the
enemies of Napoleon not merely that he
could be beaten but that he was being
beaten. and Incidental successes on the field
did nothing to destroy this conviction. in
1913 Austria entered the conflict against
Napoleon under circumstances strongly re
calling Rumanias recent action, because
Austria perceived the Napoleonic ediice
was crumbling and desired to share in the
spoils of victory.
Bear in mind that Germany, with one
relatively weak ally, set out TO conquer
Europe with the full comprehension that
she was outnumbered and hopelessly in
ferior in wealth. She expected to conquer
because her smaller resources in men and
money we're Immediately available and
enabled her to put greater forces into the
first conflicts than all Of her enemies COM
bined. But while she had superior num-
bers she was beaten at the Marine, and the
defeat Of the Marine was made absolute in
Flanders. While she still possessed far
greater resources, particularly in guns and
ammunition, than Russia, she failed TO dis
pose of Russia. Proof Of this failure is
now written all over Eastern Europe.
Finally, when she still believed there
was superiority left to her in men and
guns she attacked Verdun. But here her
failure was instant. She was stopped
within sight of her starting place and
more than half million casualties could
not advance her lines. She found that
France was overtaking her in prepare
ton, she no longer had the necessary num-
bers, she had exhausted that margin Of
superior preparation which she possessed
at the outset.
Now let any one who would understand
the conflict say to himself that Germany
failed when she had all the chances with
her, she failed when she had more men on
the battlefield, bigger guns, an infinite