THE WAR.
THROUGH REUTRE'S AGENCY:1
NAVAL NEWS.
THE RECENT NAVAL ENGAGEMENT.
THE DAMAGE INFLICTED ON THE GERMAN DESTROYERS.
LONDON, September 4th. 4.10 p.m.
The Press Burean announces that, according to information from a. trustworthy source, seven Germani destroyers and torpedo-bants have arrived at Kiel in a damaged condition, It is understood that the others have sunk in the vicinity of the Canal.
[The Foreign Office message concerning the engagement which took plaos on August 28th off Heligoland, stated that "although only two of The enemy's destroyers were actually observed to sink, most of the 18 or 20 boats rounded up and attacked were well punished, and only saved themselves by scattered fight." If all but seven are sunk the German loss. must be about a dozen destroyers in addition to the three cruisers which were sunk at the same time.]
GERMAN WARSHIPS RAID BRITISH FISHING
FLEET.
FIFTEEN FISHING BOATS SUNK.
THE HONGKONG DAILY PRESS, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 7ru, 1914.
(THROUGH REUTER'S AGENCY.).
THE CONQUERED AUSTRIAN TERRITORIES.
LONDON, September 5th.
5,15 ZIL The Austrian territories conquered by Russia are being formed into s special province.
ALLIES AND PEACE CONDITIONS.
AN AGREEMENT NOT TO CONCLUDE PEACE SEPARATELY.
LONDON, September 5th.
4.36 p.00.
The Foreign Office announces that the British, French and Russian Governments mutually engage not to conclude peace soparately during the present war. The three Governments agree that when the terms of peace come to be discussed none of the Allies will demand conditions of peace without the previous agreement of each of the other Allies.
FOR THE SANCTITY OF; PUBLIC LAW."
LONDON, September 6th.
4.30 0.10
The Earl of Rosebery, speaking at Broxburn, said: We are lighting, not for an acre of territory, but for the sanctity of public
If we go under it will be for ever, but we are to win, beca
are united in a just cause." His lordship paid the generous emulation of the Dominions.
an eloquent tribute to
The following telegrams were published
an" Batra" yesterday
LONDON, September 5th. 5.45 p.m.
The Admiralty announces that & German Squadron consisting of two cruisers and four destroyers succeeded in sinking fifteen British fishing boats in the North Sea. A quantity of fish was captured and the crew taken to Wilhelmshaven as prisoners of war.
LONDON, September 6th.
1,45 ...
The Admiralty announces that all side to navigation along the East coast may be removed without further notier.
PROGRESS OF THE WAR IN FRANCE.
GERMANS NEGLECTING PARIS AND ATTEMPTING AN ENVELOPING MOVEMENT:
LONDON, September 4th.
6.20 p.m.
A Paris official communique states that the movements of
the opposing armies near Paris continued to-day without contact. The Germana in the district of Verdun sustained some checks, and the French won fresh partial successes in Lorraine and the Vonges.
LONDON, September 5th.
12.25 8.1.
The Official Press Bureau states that the situation in the French theatre of war has undergone no substantial change. The position of the Allies is well maintained. There are indications that a German movement is developing in an eastward and south-eastward direction.
11.20 a.m.
An official French"communiqué says:-"The enemy on our left, apparently neglecting Paris and attempting to execute an out-flanking movement, reached Laferte-sous-Jouarre and has passed Rheims Proceeding along the west side of the Argonne ridge the maneuvre was unsuccessful.
7.20 p.m.
A Paris communiqué says the enemy is performing a wide converging movement and continues to leave the entrenched camp of Paris on its right, marching south-east,
5.55 8.71.
It is officially announced in Paris that the German enveloping movement on the left appears to be definitely checked.
The fierce bombardment of Mauberge, which is resisting, continues The Germans have evacuated the Compeigne and Senlis districts.
GERMANS AGAIN SURPRISED IN BELGIUM.
BELGIANS BAR GERMAN PROGRESS BY OPENING THE DYKES.
LONDON, September 5th.
8.55 p.til towards Termonde The Belgiana
A strong German Army left Brussels proceeding in order to cut communications between Antwerp and Ostend. opened the dykes south-west of Malipes and flooded the district. The Germans were completely surprised, but heroically stood in the water and tried to save their guns. The Gernians suffered beavy losses from the fire of the Antwerp forts.
SANGUINARY FIGHTING IN AUSTRIA.
RUBBIANS TAKE 5,000 MORE AUSTRIANS PRISONERS.
LONDON, September 6th. 1,45 8.11. Sanguinary fighting continues on the Lubin-Kholm front where the Austrians have made a fruitless attempt to pierce the Russian-linės, losing 5,000. prispej
GREAT PATRIOTIC MEETING IN LONDON.
STIRRING ADDRESSES BY THE PRIME MINISTER AND MR. BONAR LAW.
LONDON, September 4th.
1.45 p.m.
great patriotic demonstration was held at the Guildhall to-day. The Right Hon. H. H. Asquith, the Prime Minister, received a magnificent ovation. The Lord Mayor (the Right Hon. Sir T. Vanaittart Bowater) presided, and the Premier was also supported by the Rt. Hon. Winston Churchill (Secretary of State for the Navy), who was loudly cheered on entering the hall, and by other members of the Cabinet and the Opposition Front Bench....
Mr. ASQUITH said that 3 years ago he addressed in the Guildhall gathering of citizens to celebrate and approve a joint declaration by the two great English speaking States that in future any difficulties between them should be settled, if not by agreement, at any tale after judicial enquiry and arbitration, but never by war. They were not sanguine enough then to think or hope that the era of war had been brought to a close, still less were they prepared to anticipate the terrible spectacle that now confronted them contest which for the number and importance of the Powers engaged, the scale of their armaments and armies, the width of the theatre of conflict, the outpouring of blood and loss of life, the incalculable toll of suffering levied upon non-combataxits, the material and moral losses accummulating day by day, but in the highest interests of civilisation, a contest which in every one of these aspects was without They were very confident three precedent in the annals of the world. years ago in the righteousness of their position. "We are equally confident in it to-day, when reluctantly and against our will, but with clear judgment and clean conscience we find ourselves involved with our whole strength and power in a bloody arbitrament between might and right. (Loud cheers.) What would be our position to-day as a nation if we had been base enough, through timidity, through perverted calculation of self- interest or through paralysis of the sense of honour and duty, to be false to The British people would have our word, and faithless to our friends?
been standing by with folded arms and with such countenance as we could command while a small and unprotected State, in defence of her vital liberties, made a hercie stand against an overweening, overwhelming force; we should have been admiring, as detached spectators, the siege of Liege and the steady, manly resistance of the small Belgian army; we should have seen the occupation of their capital and the gradual forcing back of the patriotic defenders to the ramparts of Antwerp; the countless outrages suffered; the buccaneering lovies exacted from an unoffending civil population; and, finally, the greatest crime committed against civilisation and culture since the Thirty Years War-the sack of Louvain, a shameless holocaust of irreparable treasures lit up by blind, barbarian vangennoo. (Loud cheera) What account would the Government and people have been able to reader to the tribunal of national conscience and sense of honour if in defiance of our plighted eclema obligations we had endured-if we had not done our best to prevent, aye and to avenge, these intolerable wrongst Booner than be a silent witness of this tragic triumph of force over law, of brutality over freedom, I would see this country of ours blotted out of the page of history. (Loud cheers,) The violation of Belgian neutrality was the first step in a deliberato policy to crush the of which the ultimate sad not far distant sim was independence and autonomy of the Free States of Europe-first Belgium, then Holland and Switzerland, countries, like our own, imbued with and sustained by the spirit of liberty. One after another they were to be bent to the yoke And these azbitions were fed and fostered by a new philosophy, Free and full self-developmam which, by professors and learned men. to those small States, to ourselves, to our Dominions, and to our kinsmen across the Atlantic, was the well-spring and life-broath of national existence was the one capital offence in the code of those who made force their suprema divinity, and upon its altara were prepared to sacrifice both the gathered fruits and the potential germs of the unfettered human boil. This was not merely & material, it was also a spiritual, commer (Choers) Upon its issue everything that contained promise and hope, that led to emancipation and a fuller liberty for the millions who made up the mass of mankind, would be found sooner or later to depend.”
The Prime Minister eulogised the exertions of Sir Edward Grey Had his proposals for a mediating conference in the cause of peace. between Germany, France, Italy, and ourselves been accepted the actual controversy would have been settled with honour to everybody, and the whole of this terrible welter would have been avoided. With whom does responsibility rest for the refusal, for all the, illimitable suffering now.
(THROUGH REUTER'S AGENCY.]
confronting the world the Prime Minister asked, With one Power, and one Power only. That Power in Germany (Loud hisses,) Germany is the fountain and origin of this world-wide catastrophe, (Cheers.) In the hope of peace we had persevered to the ond, straining almost, to breaking point our most cherished. friendship and obligations, but at last we reached the dividing line which made or marred a nation worthy of the name. Then, and only then, did we declare for war. Did any in the whole Empire blame or repent our decision 7. (Lond cries of "No.") Then we must steel ourselves to the task and in the spirit animating our forefathers, in the struggle againt Napoleon, wo must, we shally persevere to the end. (Loud choors.) While it would be a criminal mistake to under estimate the magnitude or the fighting quality or staying power of the enemy, it would be equally foolish and indefensible to belittle our own foros. There was happily little more to be done as regards the Navy He did not flatter it when he said its superiority was equally marked in every departnerit and in every sphere of its activity. We relied on it with the most absolute confidence. It had hunted the German mercantile marine from the high seas, and whon a few Garman cruisers still infesting the distant ocean had been, ilisposed of, as they would be very soon, the Navy would have achieved for British and neutral commerce a security as complete as it ever enjoyed in days of unbroken peace."
Now as regards the Army, there was a call for now, continuous and united effort. We had not merely to replace wastage caused by: casualties; we had to enlarge the scale of the Army, increase its numbers Our and multiply many times its effectiveness as n fighting instrument. self-governing Dominions, throughout the Empire, without any solicitation on our part lemonstrated with a spontaneousness and unanimity unparalleled in history, their determination to afirm their brotherhood with us and to make our cause their own. (Cheers.) Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Fouth Africa, Newfour dland, children of the Empire, assert, not as an obligation but as a privilege, their right and their willingness to contribute money, material, and, what is better than all, their strength, (Cheers.) their sinews, their fortunes and the lives of their best men India, too, with not less alacrity, has claimed her share in the common. task. (Cheers,) Every class and creed, British and native, Princes and people, Hindoos and Mahommedans, vie with one another in noble, omuloas rivalry. (Cheers.) Two divisions of their magnificent Army are already on the way. (Cheers.) We welcome with appreciation and affection: their proffered aid, and in an Empire which knows no distinction of race or class, where all alike are subjects of the King-Emperor, are joint, equal custodians of our common interest and fortunes, we here bail with profound and heartfelt gratitude their association side by side, shoulder to shoulder, with the Heme and Dominion troops, under- the flag which is a symbol to all of a unity that the world in arms cannot dissever or dissolve. (Load cheers.) Immediately after mobilisation This Lord Kitchener issued his call for a hundred thousand recruits. has been followed by a second call. This response up to to-day gave us between 250,000 and 300,000 men, (Loud cheers.) No fewer than 42,000 Londoners had been accepted. We wanted more men, then of the best fighting quality, and prompt provision would be made for the incorporation of all willing and ble men in the fighting forces of the King Wherever possible men desiring to serve together would be allotted to the same regiment or corps, and the raising of battalions by counties and municipalities would everywhere be encouraged, No lesa urgently they wanted a larger supply of ex-non-commissioned officers and men who were asked to give up their regular employment and return to work which they alore were competent to do. Employers might surely assure to such men reinstatement at the end of the war. (Cheora.) He appealed also to retired commissioned officers to come forward and take their places. in training the new Army, my,
He would only say regarding the actual progress of the war that in every direction there was abundant ground for pride and comfort. We were watching the fluctuation of the early stages of a protracted struggle. We must learn to take long views and cultivate patience, endurance, and steadfastness. Let us realise we are fighting as a United Empire in a cause worthy of the highest traditions of the
race.
Mr. Asquith concluded:-Let us keep in mind the patient, indomitable seamen never relaxing for a moment their stern vigil on the lonely seas; let us keep in mind our gallant troops who to-day, after a fortnight's continuous fighting, under conditions whch try the mettle of the best Army that ever took the field, maintain not only on undefeated but an unbroken front. (Loud cheers.) Finally, let us recall the memories of the great men, the great deeds of the past; let us not forget the dying message of the younger Pitt, his last public utterance in the Guildhall itself, "England has saved herself by her exertions, and will, as I trust, save Europe by her example." The England of those days gave a noble answer to his appeal, and did not sheath the sword until, after nearly twenty years fighting, the freedom of Europe was secured. Let us go, and do likewise. (Loud and prolonged cheering.)
MK. BONAR LAW ON GERMANY'S "ACCURSED SYSTEM." MP BONAR LAW, who was loudly cheered, said this war was one of the greatest crimes in history. The head of the German Government had only but to whisper the word "Peace" and there would have been no war. He did not speak that word; he had drawn the sword, and may the accursed system for which he stands perish by the sword! (Loud cheers.) As Cromwell said to his Ironsides, we know what we are fighting for and we love what wo know. The German nation had allowed itself to be organised as a Military machine which recognised no law except the law of force. It was against that we were fighting to-day. Mr. Bonar Law denounced Germany for breaking treaties and committing atrocities. The destruction of Louvain proclaimed in trumpet tones what German methods were. The British people only required to realise the issue to make them fight in the spirit of their fathers. The Germans had called us a decadent nation, but did they say that to-day? (Lond cries of "No.") The long battle beginning at Mons gave the answer. (Loud sheers.) He appealed to the patriotism of those able to fight and to those compelled to remain behind. Let us as a nation realise our obligations.
He said Mr. BALFOUR then rose in response to prolonged cries. that the Prime Minister and Mr. Bonar Law had symbolised the unity of the Empire. That unity must produce irresistible pressure on the course of the war. If, which is unthinkable, we shrink from the final issue before gaining our end, then slowly but with absolute certainty we shall· have fallen from our high state and then be little more than subservient vassals to a State which knows how to create power but is utterly ignorant of how to use it (Loud cheers.).
The gathering demanded a few words from Mr. CHURCHILL, whose rising was greeted with great enthusiasın. He said the country could rely upon the strength and efficiency of the Navy which enabled us to draw the means of life and power from the uttermost ends of the earth and You have only would give us time to create powerful Military forces.
to go right on and at the end of the road, be it short or long, victory and honour will be found" (Loud cheers.)
A resolution supporting Mr. Asquith's appeal was carried amid enthusiastic cheering, the vast audience singing the National Anthem and giving rousing cheers for the King, and the Army and Navy. The cheering never ceased till the gathering dispersed.
All the papers welcome Mr. Asquith's trumpet call to arms as again demonstrating the perfect unity of the British race in face of an unexampled danger.
BIR EDWARD GREY ON THE IMMORALITY OF
PRUSSIAN MILITARISM.;
LONDON, Boptember 6th.
Sir Edward Grey, writing to a meeting at Berwick, said the progress of the war had revealed the terrible immorality of Prussian militarism. That overcome, a brighter day would dawn for the Empire, compensating for the awful sacrifices of the war,
FRENCH PROTEST TO THE POWERS.
LONDON, September 5th.
2.40 a.m.
France has protested to the Powers against Germany's conduct of the war, which, France says, constitutes the negation of all international
law.
PROMOTING FOREIGN TRADE.
LONDON, September 5th.
5.15 8.m.
Mr. Lloyd George announces that after consultation with leading. trade by assisting acceptors of approved bills to meet their liabilities.
PUBLIC HOUSE CLOSING TIME IN LONDON.
LONDON, September 5th.
5.15 8.m.
The public houses in London are closing at 11 pm. during the war.