Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1917-08-12

place under British and French tul-
ti0n.
u is recognized that American in
yentiye genius viii feel aggrieved II
deprived az the start Of the op0rtuniiy
of trying 90 improve on what has been
done on this side II is also ad limited
that American inventors could. and
doubtless VIII. greatly increase in the
future the scope 81 what was originally
an American invention. But the ur-
gent need u the moment is- haste 1t
Us better 90 have ten thousand aero
plane, hy next spring from America
no better than the best We have now.
said a mem ber u the air board. Than
25OO better ones. or than Thousand
aerOplaues far superior 30 any ever
turned OUT
one great lesson taught by the re-
cent air raids In that academic de-
bate about the ethics Of killing women
and children under the name OF re
pr.sals' must stop. The air situation
has grown too serious when bonn
harding German communications and
German bille,s in the rear OF the lines
French gunners know they often KIN
French civilians but they cannot stop
shooting
Hitherto IL has been said that TO
drop bombs on German towns viii not
stop the Germans from raid!ng British
and French cities and Will innict a
moral stigma on the allied arms The
experts now consider that the time has
come 20 put ia a word. and they say.
The question OF killing women and
chiidrea has nothing 20 DO with the
matter The Germans BEGAN this
form ~ fighting. Tney are forcing Us
to keep aeroplanes and auti-alrc-aft
guns at home To make an effective
defense We must re up here many
times as much fighting material as
they send on their raids We are now
compelled. for strictly military reasons.
20 force them 20 keep many air squad
rons IN Germany 80 that some of them
can reach any one Of the hundred
places that our squadrons may choose
10 raid. and 20 arm each Of their hun
dreds of vulnerable points with guns
Unless We do this their raiding pol
icy Will give them an enormous mill
tary advantage II We begin raiding
ourselves the advantage they gain by
telng up our men. planes and gums in
England will De counterhalanCet by
the men. planes and guns we can
make them tie up in Germany. And
when American planes begin 20 arrive
In shiploads we can bring greater p-cs-
sure 20 bear on their howe territory
than they can on ours and so influ-
ence the situation at the front TO our
great profit"
Cold. Martial Logic.
This line OF argument may not he
palatable. But have no hesitation in
predicting that IL VIII and must pre-
vail. FOR II is cold military logic
Three interesting points OF view on
the air situation have been obtained
Tor American readers from the peer
who stands for aviation interests in the
house of lords, Colonel Lord Montagu
OF Beaulieu. from the secretary of the
parliamentary air committee. Major
Burgoyne, and from lay authority c.
g. Grey on these fundamentals they
all agree
Lord Montagu Of Beaulieu. one OF
the first men in England TO take up
aviation seriously. was scoffed AZ for
demanding i'm IN interview two years
ago that the British government build
ten thousand aeroplanes and win the
war in the air in 1871. He now has his
revenge upon his critics. Lord Mon
tagu stiu believes that an aeroplane Of
fensiye is the way 20 victory. and CON
sentsi 10 give his views on the air sit
uation.
THE entry Of America into the
war" he said. important for a variety
OF reasons is doubly important as re-
CARDS the possibility Of air develop
ment Reckoning that You must have
five machines on the ground for every
one IN the air, 10 is not difficult 20
ruage the point where Americas aerial
assistance would begin to exercise a
dominating sway on the conflict II
next year the Americans can produce
sand in the air the war will very soon
be over There is some prospect Of
this help being forthcoming for the
latest reports speak OF an American
program Of 230OO machines"
Lord NontaEu emphasized the opin-
ion that he has often expressed since
the beginning of the war. that an
aerial offensive is the quickest, II not
the only way TO victory. while ap-
preciating 20 the fun the achieve ements
Of our gallant troops on the western
front he said. vet I may be excused
for pointing ont that In view OF the
terrible obstacles that have 10 he over
come our progress, in the geographi-
cal sense. is and must necessarily be
slow and that since We are bound TO
assume that tho Germans will fight
every inch on the ground back 10 the
Rhine. no early result of the war by
that means can be hoped FOR.
Fighting our way to the Rhine in
this fashion suggests that the war
must be prolonged into 1918 and pos
sibly into 1919. and the military ad-
visers OF the allies are consequently
under the necessity Of asking them
selves IL there is not a quicker road to
victory
III We cannot break through in n
short space OF time we can at least get
over There are no trenches and ma
chine-Eun positions in the air Nv
suggestion then, is that our progress
towards victory should be accelerated
hy continuous and vigorous air Of
fensive on "a large scale. II there were
regular system " aerial attacks on
the munitions producing towns Of
Wes'p 'pholia. and also on the bridges OF
the Rhine not only would there follow
tremendous destruction OF the German
factories and. as a cOrollary d.minu-
tion of German supplies but also
grave Interference with their transport
communications
"Such a result would have an i'm
mcusc and what is very vital. an al
most immediate effect upon the power