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Newspaper
Ashburton Guardian
Location
Ashburton, Canterbury, New Zealand
Date
Dec 07, 1915
Page
5
Telegrams from London and Amsterdam report German withdraws after Austro Bulgarian victories in Serbia. Hindenburg says Entente not ready for peace and expects continued pressure. Russian reserves may not form new armies. The piece frames the Balkan front and aims to punish England Serbia and Italy as culprits.
The High Commissioner reports General Townshend has reached Kill-el-Amara without further fighting after his advance.
A Turkish communique dated December 7 reports the British successfully withdrew to Eiat-el-Amaru and confirms Allies conduct naval operations in the Dardanelles with vigorous attacks against the centre and left.
Paris December 6 General Joffre presided at the first meeting of the General War Council for coordinated military operations. The session opened to discuss strategic planning and a unified approach to the war effort.
Danish reports say Ford's ship will make a first call in Norway where peace talks are allowed if they do not affect Norwegian interests. Word's ship reportedly has King support, and Denmark has permitted meetings.
Report from New York dated December 6 describes a mixed farewell to Mr Ford's party. Bryan Edison offered fervent blessings while German workers on the quay cheered with Gott Straife and some reporters and pressmen were noted among attendees.
Geneva reports three leading German Socialists Walscher Poetsch and Thermeyer sentenced to imprisonment for urging the public to stop the war before more lives are sacrificed. A fourth man received nine months for blaming German militarism and longing for an Allied victory.
The Pope, in a December 6 secret consistory, appealed for a speedy peace. He warned that modern nations must not wage extermination wars and said peace should be just and lasting without favoring any single group.
A British merchant ship the Japanese Prince eluded a submarine after five hours of heavy shelling. The captain and crew held steady amid danger as the ship outpaced the pursuer and reached port. Shipowners awarded £500 to the captain and another £500 to the crew for gallantry.
Rumor says Cabinet Ministers plan a one third cut in their salaries and urge Commons members to follow suit. A Birrell spoke in Bristol urging swift action for economy, noting ministers lead by example.
Sydney reports a hospital ship arrived yesterday and that granting week-end leave to soldiers has been very successful. All men returned to duty punctually with minimal drunkenness.
A Samoa repatriation voyage departs from Saipan as the Samoan delegation sails aboard the Atwa to mark a Samoate-day celebration.
At the Honkers Conference in New Castle, it was stated that national savings during the first year of the war rose from 300 million to 600 million pounds and in the second year are expected to exceed one billion pounds, illustrating widespread personal economy.
The article notes a forthcoming statement on the recruitment question by a key figure. It mentions able bodied men of military age and suggests a surprise remark promised yesterday. New Zealand observers await further clarity and action on the issue.
The following Ashburton County men are accepted for service in the New Zealand Expeditionary Forces Infantry. Patrick Whearty labourer Eiffelton. Joseph Whearty labourer Eiffelton. Claude Lawford Coe stock agent Ashburton Mounted. Charles Gibson McConachie stock buyer Ashburton.
Three lieutenants Hertzog Seyde litz and Langebach face court martial at Donnington Hall. Hertzog allegedly struck a non-commissioned officer at a dining hall entry during a prohibited tour. The others are charged with defying surrender of civilian clothes as escapees are found with English money and aluminium tokens used at canteens.
The December 6 TM Standard reports three Spanish papers claiming the Bavarian Premier told a Diet Finance Committee private session that Germany Austria and Turkey were pledged to revive Italian territorial claims to restore the Papal State. German Catholic papers allegedly present Germany as champion of the temporal power.
Wellington December 7 list of New Zealand casualties includes Canterbury Mounted died of gunshot wounds and skull fracture buried at sea between Madras and Malta and others in England Dardanelles and at various medical and garrison posts. Names include J Mitchell J B Dalton J C Spence H S Rudman R F Richards A S Dick W Lathrum B A Shannon K P Baile L M Bartrop F T Best A D Cook J J Douglas S Fletcher A T Irvin P Gibson C B Harrison KR Haydon J H Metcalfe A McKingon A D McLeod P G Palmer R A Richmond L Black F Clark.
Torr Wallenberg departed for Christiania amid speculation his task ties to the political outcome of the three Kings meeting in Malmoe. Wallenberg has Norway and Denmark’s confidence, while Herr Reventlow views the mission with misgivings.
Fragmentary OCR list includes names and ranks such as Sergeant C L Dawes, Sergeant J McCarthy, Trooper W A Falkiner, Trooper J Wotheringham, Trooper G C W Francis, Trooper R L Gleeson, Trooper H A Godfrey, Sergeant Major W J Harmer, Corporal B Harrison, Trooper Hewitt, Trooper T A T Hickman, Trooper Te Jones, Trooper C C Milling, Sergeant G We We, Otter Trooper MM Poole, Froopar Wheatley, and others, with numerous cut or garbled pieces.
Private B A Collins of Auckland battalion and Private J Osborne of the divisional train are noted among unit personnel. The fragment lists soldiers under the Wield Engineers umbrella with unclear regiment names.
Casualty List No 120 reports several named personnel including Pete Aeite Clarke RB Long Hartley and E A Hartley. Mentions hospital stays at Hornsby and London and embarks for England with Privates Hil D Borne W A Marshall and J Chishot.
London reports the Allies have answered Greece with new proposals as Greece weighs them. Many Serbians have crossed into Greece and remain undisarmed. Dr Dillon from Rome warns Greece may reject Entente guarantees, urging a strong military and naval display to break stalemate. The Paris desk notes Greece offering to reembark troops under Greek protection.
Prisoners at Donnington occupy their time with classes in chemistry metallurgy and English. Naval personnel focus on naval construction and gunfire effects. Map drawing reveals detailed knowledge of British terrain while airmen model aircraft. Fights arise as German foes are weak at fists and scratching.
In the House of Commons, Mr H J Tennant rejects claims soldiers with forged tickets organized the disturbance at Memorial Hall. He says disorder began when stewards under Ramsay MacDonald’s orders moved five colonial soldiers from front seats. Other platform remarks and stewardess comments followed. Ponsonby calls the report misrepresentations. MacDonald denies any instigation.
Melbourne dispatch states that as of the end of November the Defence Department reports 118990 men on active service and 5b,a6L in training amid ongoing mobilization in Australia.
A December 6 report states $6 worth of chemicals were dropped into the Minnesota's boilers, triggering a breakdown aboard the vessel en route to Britain with war supplies. The incident occurred in San Francisco as the ship faced mechanical failure during its voyage.
The National Register lists 109,688 New Zealand men aged 19 to 44 as willing to join an Expeditionary Force if needed. Breakdown shows 88,127 single or widowed without dependents, 16,821 single with dependents, 1,? widowers with dependents, 54,? married with wife only, 60,? married with wife and other dependents. Also figures for not prepared to volunteer, but willing to serve civilly, volunteers rejected, incapacitated British subjects, and foreign subjects.
The War Pensions Board gazettes new regulations under the War Pensions Act 1915. They provide that an inquiry into a child’s paternity may be referred to a Sependiary Magistrate, with hearings in private unless special reasons require an open court, and the magistrate’s determination is final and report to the board. Additional rules allow a lump sum pension option up to £600, subject to medical elimination by a board appointed practitioner, and paid in full retirement of all Crown claims.
The Tui line carried three interned Germans from Samoa to Wellington. Ernest Heider William Hansell and Theodore Brenner were a missionary Finense planter and road works overseer respectively. They left Auckland under guard by the mid day express yesterday with no definite charges.
Report from Sydney dated December 7 mentions three New Zealanders aboard the AM Hospitae ship. Details are sparse in the fragmentary OCR.
Wellin glon reports Prime Minister Massey hints at undisclosed moves on recruitment. He says no noise means activity is underway and promises a reveal within a week or two. The National Register may be completed by week’s end or early next, with Cabinet aware of completed figures.
Salonika reports show Bulgaria growing tired of the war with an anti war demonstration opposite Sofia's Royal Palace. Police clashed with crowds, with several reported killed or wounded as troops crave return home amid the unrest.
It is reported that Austrian armies concentrate at Nish. A Sofia communique announces Nish Sofia railway restored. Nish Belgrade line remains out of service.
The Observer reports MS Skovloudis told correspondents telegrams must be censored by Jean Larren who is revealed as Aaron von Scheme's agent and a Turkish Legation spy. The matter has been referred to the Allied Legations.
A telegram from general headquarters in the Mediterranean to the War Office notes initial Suvia operations planning and indicates substantial water in the Biyuk Anafurte valley on the Suvla plain. The message describes preparations to guard against risks discovered during verification.
An advertisement claims Chamberlain's Tablets relieve stomach disturbances and liver torpidity. It states large doses act as a cathartic and small doses as a laxative, with one tablet aiding digestion and higher doses stimulating the liver.
The telegram describes a high level reservoir with 30 000 gallons capacity and a 44 pipe distribution system to tanks. A stationary engine from Egypt broke down requiring water shippers and lighters under naval control for distribution. The Admiralty data show tanks with 195 000 gallon capacity and 300 buckets and six pumps, enabling beach or well erection and water distribution to troops.
A Turkish communique reports Turkish forces occupying Baghela west of Kutel Amare and capturing three tugs and a 25 ton lighter with ammunition.
The Morning Post defends the expedition as ample justification to maintain British prestige in the East and urges rapid action by Sir John Nixon to mount an offensive. The Daily News stresses pushing toward Baghdad as a major blow to Turkish and German influence, while the Daily Mail criticizes the expedition as consuming energy that should target the Germans. With British, Australian, and New Zealand forces, the aim is to drive Germans across the Rhine and protect the Suez Canal.
London December 6 report in the Daily Chronicle states the Mesopotamia situation should be retrieved quickly. Reinforcement is possible from India rather than Constantinople, improving relief and recovery prospects for operations in the theater.
The Times reports London December 6 praise for the Australasian corps if they had stormed Krithia and pressed the Turkish defenders. It notes Sir Tan Hamilton could have moved south with the exhausted 20th Division and perhaps captured Achi Baba at sunrise, but losses from the landing are estimated and debated.
London reports December observations from the front describe constant shelling and dreadful winter conditions. Soldiers endure knee deep water and rain as German positions show the strain, with talks of dugouts and cupola forts shaping a static, brutal war.
Desperate effort reported as German forces faced a fright during a British and French offensive in September. The Swiss correspondent notes pressure and pondered if a peace move would be sought, describing January and December dated dispatches from London and across the front.
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