The Nevada County picayune., 1917-01-04
RECORD OF GREAT
 WAR DURING 1876
Collapse of Roumania the Most Striking Event in the Awful
 Conflict.
BOTH SIDES LOSE HEAVILY
Hunger confronts the Entire World, Food Crops Being Partial Failure American Troops Enter Mexico. National Guard Being Sent
 to Border.

In estimating the year 1916 of the world war the collapse of Roumania takes first place. The conquest of the Balkan nation netted the Germans Il vast expanse of territory. fertile lands, great oil wells and other resources, while ii cost the ROumanians about 350.0O0 casualties.
 But Roumania is Il small country compared with the needs of the leu tons. The new supplies will alleviate. but not relieve, the shortages of the central powers, which are apparent. The entente allies, too, can put on the credit side the undoubtedly large losses to the enemy which even Q successful campaign entailed. They are. in the latter respect, better off than If sRou- mania had not entered the war. The forces used against Roumania, too. were kept from entering the larger war theaters
 In these major war theaters the year Is undoubtedly the entente's round. Tn the West the great German effort al Verdun ended In failure and the loss of almost all the ground gained. The Somme offensive has proved the Ger man lines can be slowly beaten back.
 But the greatest military event of the year took place on the Russian front-the collapse of the Austro-Hun- garian armies, their retirement from a great region of Volhynia. Galicia and Bukowina, md the necessity of replnc- ing them in large measure with Turks and Germans
 The Roumanian losses in killed. wounded and prisoners were much smaller than those of the Teutons be fore finally bringing the Russian sum mer offensive to Il standstill.
 The operations In Roumanla. in men involved and the losses sustained were also small compared with the campaign on the west front.
 In the land operations, on the whole the entente has n shade the better of it,
 Situation on the Sea.
 On the sea the situation for Ger many Is slightly better. Although the great battle of Jutland, the largest naval action in history. left the British still on blockade, the German suhma- rine has proved increasingly effective and to degree most alarming to Great Britain.
 Liverpool financial and shipping authority recently stated that the vast age of British shipping has increased until the rate is now about three times that of year ago. while the produc- ton of merchant ships in Great Brit ain has been reduced two-thirds in a year
 September, 1916, saw an increase in British losses of 120 per cent over the same month of the previous year. and October an increase of $50 per cent over the corresponding month Figures of later months are not available The rate of loss during October was equiv alent to 16 per cent year of the whole British mercantile marine. very serious figure.
 As 10 the losses in WarShlps. the figures are In dispute. both as regards the total and the sinking of particular craft The exact situation will not be known until after the war The Ger man semi-otlieial agency stated this month that the naval losses of The entente had been 192 vessels since the beginning of the war not including special auXiliaries. and that the total entente tonnage was 74i600, of which 583 200 was British Entente authori- ties. however, put the figures mueh lower
 One German colony the East Afr can. continues to hold out hravely. but the entente forces seem to he about to give the death blow The resistance of the colonials WAS prolonged by q daring feat of swift German ship. which carried arms and ammunition from the Fatherand through the block ade to the little army and then escaped across the Indian ocean to Dutch possession in the antipodes.
 The end of the year sees both sides with nearly their full strength in fighting men developed and now turn ing their attention te the organization of the civilians men and women, into an effective system of war service be- hind the fronts Everyone must work.
 Slaughter and Hunger
 War becomes more horrible as time goes on. The wastage of lives in- creases month by month The year 1916 took bloodier toll than any preceding twelye-month of human his tory The neblest and the WtSest. the