London, Feb. 7.
The British str. Balgownie (1,061 tons: General Steam Navigation Ca., Ld., London) has been sunk. The Second Officer was drowned. are probably being spread with the purpose of justifying the concentration of German and Austrian forces on the Rumanian frontier with the object of breaking down the neutrality of Rumania, lengthening the southern front and carrying out flanking movements in Bessarabia id in the vicinity of the Gulf of iga, thereby avoiding costly frontal attacks on the strongly fortified Russian lines.
The military critic of the''Retch"" says that the Germgn operations on the Russian flanks are undertaken with the purpose of holding up the Russians while the Germans firmly establish themselves in Asia Minor, from whence the Germans are drawing foodstuffs and raw mater mis.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.