Mexico Missouri message., 1917-08-09

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ministration, though 1t doubtless will
De remedied with the willing assist
ance of the American railway execu.
yves. The demand for cars already is
tremendous, for the moving of materi-
ais and supplies for the army training
camps and for a dozen other purposes,
ana 1t will be increased Immediately
as the men Of the National Guard and
OF the national army begin moving to
their allotted places.
Russia's Collapse In GaIIeia.
The collapse of Russia's offensive
In Galicia, due to INSTRUMENTATION in
stigated by German agents, developed
mo general retreat, and the retreat
into virtual rout. Abandoning vast
military stores and burning villages,
the mutinous Slavs flew everywhere
before the easy advance of the leu
tons, except on the Roumanian front,
where for the time at least, they stood
firm. Farther north, indeed all the
way to the Baltic, the Russians gave
ground.
Premier Kerensky, armed with dicta-
torial powers, declared he would apply
policy Of blood and iron to stop the
mudny and treason, and General Korn-
Hon ordered his loyal troops to shoot
down any who deserted or refused to
obey orders, but this was Intellectual to
retrieve the disaster. Stanislau, Halicz
and other important cities were evac-
uated, and from the wooded Carpathi-
ans to the region of Tarnopol the
country was full of long columns of
fleeing Russians on which the Teu-
ton field guns played with merciless
slaughter.
One story from Petrograd told how
loyal troops in Korniloff's army blew
to pieces an entire mutinous division
with It's own guns.
On the demand of the military COM
manders at the front, the provisional
government has again put in force cap
ital punishment for treason, which was
abolished at the time of the revolu-
ton.
However, this second great Russian
slump, serious though it be, is not IA
tai. Kerensky and his colleagues are
determined to rid their country of the
German agents and their traitorOus
Russian aids. Lenine, the chief of the
latter, is already under arrest, and it
is believed he will be either executed
as an agent of the German general
staff or at least isolated as insane
Russians and their friends still believe
mill ~;
umphant from the chaotic conditions
that now hold it almost helpless.
The Guard of Death" the battalion
of Russian women raised by Vera
Butchkareff, was in action on Tuesday
for the first time, at Krevo. The wom-
en- fought well, gaining the respect of
the male soldiers.
No Military Success for Germany.
Germany has scored no real mill
tary success of moment for a long
time. The Galician affair is not a sue
cess of arms, and though the kaiser
decorated some of his commanders
there, they gained no glory by the pur-
suit of mutinous and disorganized
troops. Rather should Wilhelm have
bestowed his decorations upon the
spies who stirred up the insubordina-
ton.
In the Champagne region the crown |
prince hurled his troops against the
French lines with the utmost reck-
lessness all week long, but the only re-
suit was tremendous losses for the
Germans, for the pollus were indomita-
BILE and If now and then their line |
was bent, they counter-attacked so flu
riously that the Teuton could not hold
his small gains more than an hour or
so. In some places, especially on the
California plateau, the French adj
vanced their lines considerably and re-
pulsed all attempts to drive them from
the new positions.
Germany's hullabaloo over peace
terms and internal reforms has sim
mered down to discontinued discus
sion of Chancellor Michaelis' inten-
lions and policies, based on his speech
to the reichstag, which is universally
admitted to have been ambiguous and
even secretive. AS has been said be-
fore, the political upheavaI there
doesn't bring appreciably nearer the
end OF the war. Many Of the opposi-
ion leaders and newspapers more
han hint that the U-boat campaign is
really failure in that II is not starv-
ng England, and they realize that Its
is reducing daily the num-
Der OF friends Germany will have after
'eace is concluded. But the mllitar-
SITS Of Prussia can't let go of that