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CURRENT HISTORY CHRONICLED

[PERIOD ENDED MAY 19, 1918.]

SUMMARY OF WAR ACTIVITIES

FOUR weeks of comparative calm on

the western front intervened after the furious fighting that had continued throughout the preceding month. The Germans made several desperate efforts to smash their way through the British lines to the channel ports, but they failed. The British and French lines stood firm as granite, and the enemy suffered frightful losses. The battle lines remained practically unchanged.

From the English Channel to the Adriatic there was complete union of the British, French, American, and Italian forces under a single command; these forces, including reserves, were estimated at 6,000,000 men. No military event of importance occurred on the other fronts, though the British made some further advances in Palestine and Mesopotamia.

In political matters the month brought events of more importance, chief of which was the renewal of an alliance between Germany and Austria; this was accomplished at a meeting of the Emperors.

The acceleration of troop movements from the United States to France was a feature of the month, the estimate for the four weeks running as high as 150,000; it was semi-officially stated that in April, 1918, more than 500,000 American soldiers were in France, and that by Jan. 1, 1919, there would be 1,500,000 of our fighting men at the front, with 500,000 more at transportation, supply, and civil work; the speeding up of shipbuilding and other war work was significant. The Third Liberty Loan aggregated more than $4,000,000,000, with 17,000,000 subscribers, proving a brilliant success. The President by proclamation extended enemy alien restrictions to women also. A bill was passed enabling the President to consolidate and co-ordinate executive bureaus, thus giving him extraordinary executive powers. The sedition law was strengthened. A new commercial agreement was made with Norway.

In

In Great Britain the chief event was the triumph of the Premier over a military group that tried to overthrow his Ministry. There was a recrudescence of the spirit of rebellion in Ireland. France the conviction of the Bonnet Rouge editors on a charge of treason deepened confidence in the stability of the Government. The German penetration of Russia continued, and all the evidence indicated that the country was coming under Teutonic control, economically, industrially, and financially. The humiliating peace forced on Rumania was ratified, and the country passed practically under German and Austrian domination.

The month's record of enemy U-boat losses strengthened faith that this menace was being eliminated and that new allied tonnage would exceed losses in increasing ratio from May 1, 1918.

The chief naval event was the daring British raid on the German submarine bases at Zeebrugge and Ostend; the channel at the first named port was blocked, and the harbor entrance at Ostend, by means of a second raid, was partially blocked, resulting in a serious hampering of submarine operations. The Italians penetrated Pola Harbor, May 14, with a small torpedo boat and sank a 20,000-ton Austrian dreadnought.

DUR

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SINN FEIN PLOT FRUSTRATED URING the night of May 18 the British authorities in Ireland suddenly arrested at their homes about 500 of the leading Sinn Feiners on the charge of having treasonable communication with the German enemy. Among those arrested were the Sinn Fein members of Parliament, also the conspicuous Irish agitators and irreconcilables, both men and women. A proclamation was issued by the Lord Lieutenant declaring that a conspiracy with Germany had been discovered, calling upon all loyal Irishmen to assist in suppressing it, and urging voluntary enlistments. It was believed that this prompt action had prevented a

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contemplated uprising, which was being aided by German spies. Comparative calm followed the arrests.

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FOCH'S ARMY COMPRISES ALL RACES OF EARTH

IT seems certain that never in the

world's history were so many different races, peoples, and tongues united under the command of a single man as are now gathered together in the army of Generalissimo Foch. If we divide the human races into White, Yellow, Red, and Black, all four are largely represented. Among the white races there are Frenchmen, Italians, Portuguese, English, Scottish, Welsh, Irish, Canadians, Australians, South Africans, (of both British and Dutch descent,) New Zealanders; in the American Army, probably every other European nation is represented, with additional contingents from those already named, so that every branch of the white race figures in the ethnological total. There are representatives of many Asiatic races, including not only the volunteers from the native States of India, but elements from the French colony in Cochin China, with Annam, Cambodia, Tonkin, Laos, and Kwang Chau Wan. England and France both contribute many African tribes, including Arabs from Algeria and Tunis, Senegalese, Saharans, and many of the South African races. The red races of North America are represented in the armies of both Canada and the United States, while the Maoris, Samoans, and other Polynesian races are likewise represented. And as, in the American Army, tl.ere are men of German, Austrian, and Hungarian descent, and, in all probability, contingents also of Bulgarian and Turkish blood, it may be said that Foch commands an army representing the whole human race, united in defense of the ideals of the Allies. The presence, among Foch's strategic reserves, of 250,000 Italian soldiers is peculiarly interesting, as no Italian force at all comparable to this in numbers seems ever to have operated on French soil, though French armies have again and again fought in Italy. During the early wars of Napoleon this was the case, and again

in 1859, when the battles of Magenta and Solferino gave names to two new shades of red. In 1870 also there were French troops in Rome; their withdrawal, in the Summer of that year, opened the way for the final union of Italy.

MEETING OF THE GERMAN AND AUSTRIAN EMPERORS

THE

HE German and Austrian Emperors held a consultation at German Great Headquarters on May 12 to discuss future relations between the two empires. Emperor Karl was accompanied by Foreign Minister Burian, Field Marshal von Arz, Chief of the General Staff, and Prince Hohenlohe, Austrian Ambassador at Berlin. Germany was represented by Imperial Chancellor von Hertling, Field Marshal von Hindenburg, General Ludendorff, Foreign Secretary von Kuehlmann, and Count von Wedel, Ambassador at Vienna.

According to an official statement issued in Berlin, all the fundamental political, economic, and military questions affecting present and future relations were thoroughly discussed, and "there was complete accord on all these questions, tending to deepen the existing alliance." In many quarters the impression prevailed that the result of the meeting was to define and recognize formally the subservient relations of Austria-Hungary toward the German Empire. The State Department at Washington made public a report based upon indications given by the Berlin newspapers that the agreement made at the meeting concerned three points:

1. The duration of the alliance was fixed for twenty-five years.

2. Germany and Austria-Hungary are to sign a military convention imposing upon each much stricter military obligations than did the preceding treaty.

3. The economic relations will be regulated so as to realize the plan of Mitteleuropa.

A solution of the Polish question was also arrived at, according to a newspaper statement published in Berlin, on the lines of complete union between AustriaHungary and Poland. Another message Isaid that the German and Austrian Em

perors had selected monarchs for Poland, Lithuania, Courland, and Esthonia. It was officially stated that no actual treaty was signed.

One of the most interesting subsequent revelations was that King Ludwig of Bavaria and King Frederick August of Saxony were also present at the meeting at German Great Headquarters.

Lord Robert denied that Great Britain had any quarrel with the Bolsheviki over their domestic policy, saying:

That is a matter for Russia, and Russia alone; we have no other desire than to see Russia great, powerful, and non-Ger

man.

ATTACKS ON HOSPITAL SHIPS

Some of the reports represented these THE British Admiralty issued an

two monarchs as having been present uninvited.

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private letter written Emperor y Charles to a relative (Prince Sixtus of Bourbon) and conveyed by him to President Poincaré and the French Premier under seal of the strictest secrecy, but with no permission to communicate it to any one except the Sovereign and Premier of this country, [Great Britain.] The letter was communicated to the French and English Premiers under these pledges.

He stated that he had no secrets from President Wilson, and added: "Every thought I have on the war or on the diplomacy connected with the war is as open to President Wilson as to any other human being." He declared that he regarded the Sixtus letter as not a peace effort, but a manoeuvre to divide the Allies. He declared that they were not fighting for a bigger Alsace-Lorraine than in 1870," and added:

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If any representative of any belligerent country desires seriously to lay before us any proposals we are ready to listen to them.

Lord Robert Cecil, Minister of Blockade, in the same debate, after indorsing the preceding statement of Mr. Balfour, added this reference to Russia:

We have no quarrel with Russia at all. On the contrary, with the Russian people we have always desired to be on the closest possible terms of friendship. We are anxious to do all we can to support and assist the Russian people to preserve Russia as a great country, not only now, but in the period after the war.

official announcement on May 1, stating that it was considered proved conclusively that the British hospital ship Guildford Castle was attacked by a German submarine in the Bristol Channel, March 10, and narrowly escaped destruction. At the time the Guilford Castle was carrying 438 wounded soldiers and flying a Red Cross flag of the largest size with distinguishing marks distinctly illuminated. The attack occurred at 5:35 P. M., in clear weather. Two torpedoes were fired. In evidence of attacks on hospital ships the British Admiralty quotes the following extracts from the German official message, sent through the German wireless stations on April 24, 1918:

With respect to the results of the submarine war for the month of March, the Deutsche Tageszeitung says: "Lloyd George and Geddes falsify the losses of ships plying in the military service (? ignoring) so-called naval losses, auxiliary cruisers, guard ships, hospital ships, and very probably also troop transports and munition steamers, that is to say, precisely that shipping space which is particularly exposed to and attacked by the U-boats.

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Two MORE LATIN-AMERICAN REPUBLICS ALIGNED AGAINST GERMANY

ON

N April 22, 1918, the National Assembly of Guatemala declared that that republic occupied the same position toward the European belligerents as did the United States. Guatemala had broken off diplomatic relations with Germany in April, 1917. On May 7 Nicaragua declared war against Germany and her allies. The declaration was in the form of a recommendation of President Chamorro, which the Nicaraguan Congress adopted with only four dissenting votes. A further declaration was adopted of solidarity with the United States and the other American republics at war with

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