26 FEBRUARY 1916, Page 1
The reasons why the German attack should not only begin
at Verdun but should begin now are plain. Germany must do something to win the war, and must do it promptly. As she found last year, time goes at a gallop for armies in the field.. What makes the need for immediate action tho more imperative is the belief in Germany, probably well founded, that directly the ground is dry enough for us and the French to advance we shall advance, and advance in immense strength. But the Germans are above all things believers in tho attack. There- fore there could be nothing more natural for them than a deter. mination to anticipate us in this respect. But if such anticipa., tion were decided upon, the Germans must act at once in order to possess the initiative.
