The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1918-04-02
The Week In the War

Nj ENEK IN the niStory OF the WoTIu HAS '"e'e
~ been fought battle of the magnitude of
tshat which has ragged during the past week. Never
has blood been and bodies mangled in such vast
quantities Never has such vast masses OF men
been hurled in serried masses upon foe as dur
ing the past seven days,
Germany has advanced Its forward lines on the
Western front several miles during the past week,
The British have fallen back in good order and
without confusion to previously prepared and
stronger positions. In some sectors the French
have given some ground to the enemy. But for
every loot Of advance that has been made by the
Hun forces a terrible price has been exacted.
4 Though the kaiser's forces have made long ad-
vance they have not achieved a victory. An ad-
vance made at such awful cost savors more OF de-
feat than of triumph.
" 1.-THE situation has been much improved, says
LLOYD George, but we are in only the earlier
stages OF the great engagement" The British, the
+, French and our own army leaders in France all
speak with great confidence. They can see only
one end. an end which is as yet long way OFT,
the ultimate defeat of the Central Powers. Their
confidence has not been diminished but their de-
termination has been vastly increased
Heavy losses of men and losses OF guns as we'll
have fallen to the Allies during the week OF
fighting but such losses have been multiplied
z many fold by those sustained by Germany. No
, nation can long sustain such losses The decrease
in that country'S man power is certain to be ma
terially felt and Despite territory that has
been given over there is cause for the Allies
and for the people Of this country to be dis
couraged. set your teeth and go to it, must
now be the policy.
\ Without shadow of a doubt the selection of a
supreme commander for the combined armies OF
co-beligerents is the most important announce
4 meat OF the week. The formation of a supreme
war council a step in the right direction and
"a long 1t led directly to the second step OF a
: single head to the fighting forces 1t has thus
brought about a coordination similar to that which
IA Ciefnany already possessed and which Lloyd
4 George says has in the past given to the enemy
an incaculabe advantage The selection OF Gene
raj Foch for the position OF greatest responsibility
4 has also given keen satisfaction. -
N Perhaps next in Importance is the general par
ticpaton Of the forces of the United States which
the dispatches of yesterday indicated is close
at hand. 1t comes earlier than had been expected
They have not all had the full training which il
was planned and desired to give them. That will
make it the harder for them, perhaps, but if they
are needed at the front at this time that is tn,
+, place for them Their position is worse, is in
hnitely better than that of the soldiers Of on
r allies in the early days of the Our boys have
had a training which those soldiers had not beer
able to obtain. Our least trained men are mmeas
urably better trained than were the green troop
OF Britain and France in those days for by NJ
means all of their forces had had military training
Active participation Of really large numbers o
American soldiers will bring a thrill of satisfac
ton to millions Of American patriots. The boy
who have been training over there have bee
chatting at the delay their training required. The
will 60 into the fighting with enthusiasm tina
is truly American. Some grimly determined
some smiling, some singing they ARE on thel
way" these reports said They will mostly wei
come the change of plan.
This greater participation is going to bring tn
war closer home to all of us. Many heart ache
many a sob is destined to follow the news tina
must come after the announcement of the genera
entry into battle Of the American forces. w
must look for larger casualty lists The names {
some of those know, some of those we love
will be among them We must expect this w
have expected it but the unhappy realization
d now upon us. TO meet it must ever keep
mind the great cause for which sons on
brothers, the husbands Of the women of the Ian
in some instances the fathers of some of the lit
ones about us, offering all that they have, tn
liberty and the peaceful happiness Of the wor
Those soldiers, have not hestated, not hesita
ing and we must be as brace, as sacrificing al
they.
-W w. S. S. "