The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1917-12-04
MIRACLES OF WAR
Words, Printed Pages, Fail To
Reveal It's Magnitude.
Or Its BarbariSm-EyeS Can
See 1t Best in France.
GERMANS ARE OUT GERMANED
In Years British Have Sur
passed Huns War Machine.
TOmmies Entertain No Doubt
About Wars Outcome.
GERMANS ARE OUT-GERMANET
BY ED. L. KEEN.

! officer of the American eXpeditionary
force, line as well as staff, could have
the opportunity of Cooks-touring the
battle fronts-but more important still
the war-making machine behind the
fronts.
Only a few days visit, properly con-
Quoted, would afford much illumina-
ton, not to say inspiration. To appre-
ciate adequately the magnitude OF the
Allies task, and the part America is
called upon to play in it, closeup
view is requisite.
All the graphic typewriter pictures
even those from the master fingers
of Phil Sims and Henry Wood-fai1
to visualize the titanic charac-
ter of this war for civilization
in its latter days. One must follow the
trail of devastation to know it One
must see the hellish work of the Hun
to sense all its horrors. One must in
spect at close range the magnificent
machinery of the British army to real
ize it's tremendous power, and watch
Tommy working, and fighting, and
playing, to understand his splendid
spirit
MarveIs at Enormity of 1t.
1t is the immensely of it all that
most impresses; next, the miracle
whereby Britain in three short years
has been able to go further in knowl-
edge of the art and business OF war
| than Germany by closest application
did in nearly half century Since
1914, as the boche has progressed
steadily in the science of man-killing
the Briton has caught up with him
and now has passed him. Today
there is scarcely feature of organi-
zation or equipment, nor device of Of
Tense or defense, wherein Germany is
not outclasSed.
The visitor-provided he is suffi-
GENTLY careless and is willing to re-
sumo all responsibility-may see
sample copy of one of the striking
exceptions Exhibit A is a section of
the eX-Hindenburg Hne-a labyrinth
of trenches, studded with ferro-con-
crete dugouts. along a sloping, chalky,
verdure- denuded, shellhole encrusted
hillside somewhere east of Arras, now
the temporary home of a bouyant
bunch of English soldiers. The
spright1y young lieutenant, when he
was unexpectedly called upon to act as
guide. had not yet learned the short
cut thru this military maze to Sap x,
front-line. He had been in these parts
only four days, as he apologetically ex-
planned after passing Post 10 four diff
ferent times en- route to the point
where one could view periscopically
the corresponding German sap, thirty
yards away.
Pill Boxes Futile.
No, the British haven't learned to
dig and build defences such as these.
They haven't had to. But they have
learned how TO turn them into death
traps for their occupants, to assume
the tenancy themselves, and protect
them from recapture They have
done more than this. They compelled
Hindenburg to abandon this method
of defence in favor of the so-called
defence in DEPTH" without front-Hne
shellholes, steel 'pill-boXes, block
houses, redoubts, fortresses and such.
But more still; with a speeding up
of the munitions, engineering and sup
ply departments, with a resourceful-
ness born of relentless determination,
with an ever-increasing morale such
as no army in history ever before at
tanned, they have demonstrated the
futility of these new devices
Some of our American officers have
had the privilege of watching the gi-
gantic preparations necessary for an
up-to- date Haig push, as well as the
thing itself. 1t is unfortunate that
more of them cannot be spared from
the training camps for this educa-
tional experience. To the soldier
schooled only at West Point, or in the
Cuban, Philippines or Mexican cam
paigns, a study of the inside work.
/ ings of the great British military ma
chine, 1917 model while it is evolv-
! ing one of these pushes, is bound to
be tremendously instructive.
Like u Great Machine.
To the untutored civilian it is be-
wildering, battling. Sprawled out
over the towns, roads, and fields of
Northern France, from the channel
, bases to the battle lines, it seems at
casual view a huge, intricate mass of
disjointed junk, with a lot of men
aimlessly tinkering and potterlng
| about, trying to fix it up so it will run.
But closer inspection along with
sympathetic instruction, reveals COM
pactness, and coordination. and ter
rible power masterfully directed And
soon one learns that all this tnkering
and pottering is for another purpose.
1t is not to make the machine run,
but to make it run faster, and smooth
er, and further.
This machine is no more like the
feeble, wheezy contra ption of three
years ago than the Tommy of today
resembles his comrade of the First
| Hundred Thousand. Both were doubt
less the best that could be produced
at short notice. They did the work
cut out for them as well as could be
expected in the circumstances; but
the shortcomings of both were mani
fest. Each has progressed immeasura-
bly,.
Tommy is now a scientific. special
| lied fighting man He has learned
and is learning every day-trickS of
warfare never dreamed of by Kitch-
ener's men. Many of these he in
vented himself. Others he has ac-
quired from the GermanS-but ne
never fails to improve on the latter,
as for example in the fine arts of
sniping, casing, liquid-firing, grenad-
ing and camouflage.
Abounds in Self Confidence.
The British army of today is strong
| for individuality. The enlisted man,
as we'll as the officer, is encouraged to
develop himself. Whenever he shows
aptitude in any particular line he is
! ODDOTtunltV talents
have full swing. This keeps him in
/ terested in his work. British soldiers
mostly talk shop. They take only cas-
ual notice of things outside the big
: business in which they are engaged.
Tommy is cheerful because he is
confident. He KNOWS he is a better
l man than the boche. He hasn't the