Evening journal., 1918-07-05

Total Observation-Disclosures. 2000000
Since March 2i OF this year published
British casualties have run from 10000
to $1,000 a week. and we shall be for
lmnate II we end the year with fewer
than 100000 total losses Some peo-
pie have an idea that 80 per cent Of
casualties return 10 the ranks There
never was a greater deusion. CT
wounded which reach the hospitals a
large proportion are saved. but a long
convalescence Is needed before they can
undertake heavy military duty. and
during the recent push immense NUM-
bers OF wounded fell into the hands
Of the Germans and are therefore out
OF the contest.
In any case you must reckon tho
dead Out OF 1000 Australian troops
about 10000 are casualties and a.
600 have paid the supreme penalty.
There are somewhat similar figures for
Canada. Yet Australia and Canada have
between them Supplied only about one
sixth OF the forces drawn from Great
Britain At the lDwest estimate, we
must reckon that 10000 British sol
dlers have died I'm this war.
Last year we enlisted almost exactly
as many men as our casualties that Is.
100000 This year we cannot hope to
do so. 10 must be remembered that
between March q and April ~ the Brit
ish army, on sectors exclusively held
by u. resisted an attack by i02 German
divisions, or exactly five times as many
as the divisions thrown against Yer
dun between February 2l and March
22, 1916. The explanation OF with
drswals on the Western front is. more
over, ihe use OF mustard gas by the
enemy-a poison deadlier by far than
any yet used I'm war, attacking as 70
does the moisture OF the body and so
rendering terrible injury. This strug-
gle has long since ceased 20 be a mat
ter OF generalshlp In the old sense OF
that word. 10 depends upon morale,
man power and. above air the chemist
England is criticised because In the
year 1917 she was keeping 100000 men
within her own borders In SO far as
this large force was intended as a de-
fense against invasion by sea. l agree
that 70 was unwarranled The war
Office has always been unwilling to be- |
lieve that the protection OF our coasts /
Is a matter for The navy alone. This |
skeptlcism Is due to professional rival /
ry and desire by some OF our soldiers
to find reasons in time OF peace for CON |
But other factors must be /
taken into The account. The 100000 |
men included and indeed consisted OF |
the partly trained In addition. u was
held that reserves could be more easily /
fed in England than in France. which, /
after all. is a country only few hours
distant Besides. over the lighting pc
riod OF i9l7 we were losing 2sOO0 men
a week and our reserves were regarded
as q bank balance.
This year, with our much heavier
losses, we see the wisdom OF last years
arrangements. In the first onset at St.
Quentin we could not put our men
across quickly enough, but since then
over 100000 reserves have gone TO
France. and American troops in very
large numbers are completing their
training within the United Kingdom
You have habiiually understood your
forces IN Europe. but I should say that
there must be on the other side at least
a million Americans at the present
time Another factor has been there
cOvery Of man power in the French I
army, where the casualties during 1917 I
were happily much fewer than those