The Manchester “Guardian” wrote about the expectations the British people had when the war started in August 1914. They thought the Russians would beat the Germans in a few months. Another expectation was that the British could starve the Germans because of their great navy and financial power. After eight months of war, however, one could say that no Russian soldier was at the moment on German ground. Surprisingly, the Germans could always find resources to keep the war going and the German trade and industry was even being relieved through the war. There were no signs of an upcoming catastrophe.
(„Der Manchester ‚Guardian‘…“, Berliner Journal, 21 April 1915)
