A FORTRESS STORMED.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1578, 23 October 1912, Page 7

A FORTRESS STORMED.

TURKS MASSACRE VILLAGERS. CORRESPONDENTS IN THE REAR. ' (Rec. October 22, 10.10 p.m.) London, October 22. Mr. Beaumont, the "Daily Telegraph's" correspondent, states that ten thousand Bulgarians attacked the fortress of Chirmen, ten miles south of Mustafa Pasha. They stormed the outworks and bayouotted tho defenders. The Bulgarians havo announced that journalists evading the censorship will bo court-niartiallod. Bulgarian officers and soldiers are forbidden to refer to tho • operations in private letters. Sixty correspondents havo gone to Eski Soghra, a town 70 'miles distant from the scene of operations.

The "Reichpost," of Vienna, states that the Turks in retiring before the Bulgarians massacred the villagers, and that 150 bodies were found at Bacevo, a hundred at Railosko, and 150 at Jakonda.

Tho mutilated corpses amid the burning ruins nt Mickut were a particularly terrible sight.

GENERAL BULGARIAN ADVANCE. Sofia, October 21. On Friday evening, General Ivanoff, with tho Bulgarian First Army Corps, occupied the banks of tho Maritza River. They found the bridge, the station, and the telegraph at Mustafa Pasha practically intact. On Saturday they drove the Turks from the forts forming the outer defences of Adrianople.

Tho Second Army Corps, under General Iladkodimitrieff, is advancing along the valley of (lie Tunja River, which joins tho Maritza River on the left bonk at Adrianople. The Bulgarians have captured Tirnovo, in the sanjak of Kirk Kilisse. Tho Third Army Corps is under General Kutincheff. The Turks in the Razlog district are arresting Bulgarian notables and demanding ransoms, asking ,£3OO from each village. They have also beaten hundreds of villagers. TURKISH SUCCESS. (Rce. October 22, 10.45 p.m.) Constantinople, October 22. It is officially stated that tho Turks in'duoed the Bulgarians ooncentratcd in tho Hanlar district at Doipad to advance by means of a feigned retreat. Tho Turks then suddenly attacked tho Bulgarians' left wing, capturing two guns. The pursuit of the Bulgarians continues. VARNA BOMBARDED. Sofia, October 21. Turkish warship's bombarded Varna. The Custom House was destroyed. Tho Turks sank one of the Bulgarian torpedoers. Tho other took refuge under the Varna forts, which the Turks have silenced. ADRIANOPLE WARNED. (Rec. October 22, 10.10 p.m.) Constantinople, October 22. The Governor of Adrianople lias issued a proclamation warning the inhabitants to be as careful of their supplies as possible in case tho town, is invested. The proclamation recommends those able to leave tho town to do so. GREEK CAMPAIGN. AEGEAN ISLAND OCCUPIED, MORE LAND FIGHTING. (Rec. October 22, 10.45 p.m./ Athens, October 22 Tho armoured cruiser Giorgos Averoff (9950 tons), and tho battleships Hydra (4808 \.ons), Spetsai (1808 Ions), and Psara (1808 tons), and a destroyer flotilla have occupied the Turkish island of Leinnos, in the Aegean Sea. A Greek destroyer captured a Turkish transport off Smyrna with officers anil men on board. Fourteen Turkish spies have been ar rested at. Piraeus, Hie port of Alliens. Several other vessels have been sonrrlii'd and fifteen Turkish ofiirors rnpfured en route to' Hie war. BATTLE AT KLASHO.N'A. (fiec. October 22, 10.45 p.m.) Athens, October 22. Two battalions of Greek troops drove tho Turkish troops out, of Disknla, a town twenty miles .nor(li-wcst of Elnssona. Constantinople, October 22. Fighting continue; nt Elns>oua, mid 'fifteen hundred Greeks have been killed,

THE NEW TORPEDO BOATS. (Rec. October 22, 10.15 p.m.) Hague, October 22. . Two Greek torpedo boats en routo from England are at Flushing.- The Government hns permitted them to remain beyond the twenty-four hours' limit allowed to belligerent vessels in a neutral port, wing (o stress of weather.

SERVIAN. PROGRESS. ARMY HEADQUARTERS IN TURKEY. Belgrade, October 21. Tho Servian army headquarters havo been transferred from Nish, 40 miles from tho frontier, to Zibeoche, a town on the Turkish side of the frontier, on the railway running from Nish to Salonika, via Uskub. Tho Servians, under General Janovics, captured the Turkish trenches at Podujevo, near llitrovilza. Seven Servians were killed and 120 wounded. The Arnauts (Albanians), while retreating on Prcpolatz, hoisted a white flag and then killed Captain Popovitch and twelve men. The Servian artillery reopened their fire, killing two hundred of the Arnauts. THE CAPTURE OF PLAVA. 1 NIKE HUNDRED KILLED, (lice. October 22, 10.10 p.m.) ,* Cetinjo, October 22. The fighting at Plava, on tho Montenegrin, border, which has been captured by the Montenegrin army, was very severe. Tho Albanians only left when the town wns in flames. Nine hundred were killed, including women and children, who were Mind dead with weapons still in their hands. EUROPE INDICTED. BALKAN PROCLAMATIONS. Vienna, October 21. Tho newspaper "Die Zeit" says that tho manifesto of King Peter of Servia is grave and significant, and indicts not merely Turkish misrule, but Europe, whose diplomacy is blameable for the war—firstly, for want of timely intervention, and, secondly, for indolence in dealing with Turkey. Every effort must, says tho paper, bo made to coerce Turkey into treating non-Turkish races as human beings. A TURKISH CONTRAST. Constantinople, October 21. Turkish opinion deprecates the proclamations of King Ferdinand and King Peter, which emphasise tho point that tho struggle is one of Cross against Crescent, and contrasts the Su?tan's proclamation, in which he states that the motive of tho war is political, not religious, and exhorts the Ottoman soldiers to remember that their opponents are men deluded by vain-glorious ambitions.

ARMY COMMANDERS. TURKISH APPOINTMENTS. Constantinople, October, 21. Turkish commanders have been appointed as follow:—Ali Riza Pasha, generalissimo of the western nmiy at Salonika; Faik Pasha, commander of the cavalry division at Uskub, and Fethi Pasha, commander at Kossovo. BRITISH NEUTRALITY. PROTEST AGAINST A SPEECH. London, October 21. The proclamation of Britain's neutrality has been gazetted, ' Mr. George Floyd, M.P., says that in view of Britain's neutrality, lie must protest against tho speech at Betlinal Green by Mr. C. F. Mastermnn, Financial Secretary to the Treasury, who said if Britain had another opportunity of intervention she must not, as in 1878, put her money on tho wrong horse. Dr. Mark Gardner, of Melbourne, has joined the British Red Cross unit which sails for Turkey on Friday next. Tho Telegraph Office advises that telegraphic communication with Bulgaria, Greece, Montenegro, and Servin is interrupted. Privnte telegrams for Crcto must bo written in Greek, French, English, Italian, or German, otherwiso they will bo stopped on arrival. WHO'S WHO IN THE WAR. ABDULLAH PASHA, Conininnder-in-(hief of the Turkish Armv. BKGOVIL, Mahnuul, leading Turkish al- , ~,< no ' c on .Montenegrins at lierane. lIEROHTOLD. Count, Austio-Htuigarian Foreign Minister. BOSCHKOVICS. General, commanding a division of the Montenegrin armv'. COROMILAS. M., Greek Minister for Foreign Affairs. ESSAD PASHA, Turkish general defend>"g Scutari ngninst Montenegrins. l'Alh. PASHA, commander of Turkish cavalry division at Uskub. FETHI PASHA, Turkish general commnnding at Kossovo. GHAZI MUKHTAR PASHA, Turkish Grand Vizier. He is the father of Mahmud Mukhtar Paslia, was born in 18.12, in Brusa, received his commission as an officer in (he army in 1851, and took part in the Crimenn War, and has seen service in, Yemen, Crete, Asia M.inor, and elsewhere. In 1805 he was appointed tutor to Prince Yusuf. Izz-cd-Din. now Heir-Apparent; to the Ottoman Throne. He greatly distinguished himself during the RussoTnrkish Wnr of 1877-78, especially by I lie relief of Kars, and was given' tho title of Glmzi (Victorious) for his exploits as commander of the Turkish Army in Asia Minor. From 1881 till after (he Turkish Revolution he was Ottoman Commissioner in Egypt. GVKSHOFF, 11., Prime Minister of Hub curia. I.UOVII'K. General, commanding a division of (he Montenegrin armv. lIAKSIM HEY, lending Turkish attack on llornne, near Montenegrin frontier. IVANOFF. General, coinmniiiling First Bulgarian Army Corps, now advancing on Adi'innnnln. ICAIiAGFORGF.VITOH. Prince Arsene, /brother of King of Servin, and commander of Hen-inn cavnlrv. TCIAMIL PASHA, Turkish Foreign Minister. KUTOHINF.FF, General, commanding Third Viiiliwrinn Armv Corn*. MAHTINOVICS, General, lending Monloiio'Tii) ndvnuce on Scutari. NADIH PASHA. Turkish General with nnnv corns in Mnrednuin. NAZIM PASHA. Turkish Minister for War. who Ins suureme command of Hie iirmy. With Hi* troops ot. Adrlaiioplo. The remarkable influence, of,

this sturdy soldier over tho rank and I file (says "Tho Timos") was never bet- I ter manifested than during the period between Ainil iH and April 23, 11109, when his appeals to the mutinous i soldiery saved Constantinople, from plunder, if not worse, while the cnerev shown by him at Adrianople in tho preceding year mode liini a popular figure in llie commissioned ranks. TASK'S, .M., Prime Miwlstor of Servia. KADICOOI.MITUIKFF, General, com- . manding Srcond Bulgarian Army Corps advancing on Salonika. RIZA HEY. an Albanian leader co-oper-aling with Turks against Montenegrin*. RIZA PASHA, generalissimo of Turkish western arinv nt Salonika. SANDANSKY, Bulgarian brigand with a force in neighbourhood of Kiver Struma. SAZANOFF, M., Russian Foreign Minister. TAHSIX PASHA, Turkish General defending Greek frontier. VENEZELOS, St., I'rimo Minister of Greece. VUKOVK.'S, General, commander of a division of tho Montenegrin army attempting to junction with Servians. ZEKI PASHA, Turkish General at Vskub. TURKEY AND BULGARIA. COMPARATIVE FORCES. How would tho Bulgarians fare in the event of a long-drawn-out war with Turkev? The query, says the London "Daily Telegraph," is prompted by a comparison—as far as comparison is possible with tho details available—of tho military forces of the two countries. Tho warlike attributes of tho Bulgarians leave no room for doubt as to their courage, but the forces which tho Turks, theoretically at any rate, have at their command, are very great. The last few years, it is true, havo seen a considerable advance in tho effectiveness of tho Bulgarian army, the organisation of which on. really sound lines was first undertaken bv Russian officers in the years 1879 to 1885. Bulgarian peasants make excellent soldiers—full of fight, obedient, and not easily daunted by the hardships of war—and the application of modern military science to theso qualities lias gone far towards levelling the army up to the higher Continental standard. Moreover, tho complete organisation of the staff, and the painstaking keenness of tho officers, trained at tho Sofia Military School, has not been without their effect on the men of the lower ranks. Military service is compulsory in Bulgaria, save to the Moslems, who may purchase exemption for J2O, and the conditions aro arduous. Tho army is composed of an active or field force, with an active reserve, a reserve force, and the militia, and while, in times of peace, only tho nctivo army remains on a permanent footin?, all save the militia are liable to be called on should occasion arise. Tho latter may be used only for pui pose of de- ■ fence within-tho frontier.

* Large War Reserve. . Two years with tho infantry and three with tilo cavalry is the period of service with tho colours, recruits joining at 19 in times of peace and at 18 during war, and after that there are eighteen years in tho reserve, with annual training. In this way some 21,000 young men are embodied each year, and the result of the system is tlio building up of a largo war reserve of trained men. This army is divided into nine divisions, each comprising two brigades of four regiments each and nine batteries, and there are in all six regiments of cavalry, an arm in which Bulgaria is somewhat weak. The headquarters arc at Sofia, Philippolis, Slivon, Schumla, Rustchuk, Vrntza, Dubnitza, E;kizagord, and Plevna. Bulgaria is not as well off in tho matter of armaments as in men—at all events as far. as the infantry is concerned, for while tho active army is provided with tho Mann--1 idler rifle, part, at least, of tho reserve has only the Berdan, n weapon which is not regarded as being among tho most effective in these days. There is also a machine-gun section attached to each infantry regiment, while the artillery is armed with the Schneider-Canst quick-firing-cun and the Krupp mountain gun. In addition, the transport fervice ha% to some degree, been brought; up to date. As far as can be gathered from the figures available, the pence establishment— or number of tho nctivo army—is as follows:— Infantry 35,505 Cavalry , r ),CBO Artillery 7,937 Engineers .1,112 Other branches 4,07!)

Total 50,593 To this total have to be added the men in the reserve, bringing tho number up to 220,000, and beyond these aro tho militia, a force of somo 55,000, for service in tlie country only. This makes the fighting force of Bulgaria, approximately, 275.000 men. and help might also bo expected from the, Komitaii?, a force of half-trained and experienced guerillas, numbered at about 20,000. Turkey's Army. On paper, at any rate, Turkey lias, it is estimated, upwards of a million troops to oppose again'st tho force given above, of this huge total it is doubtful whether at least half would be of any real fighting value in the field, despito the reorganisation which is proceeding. Tho exemption from compulsory militnry service, formerly granted to Christians and the population of Constantinople, on tho payment of a fee, has been revoked, and all "Ottomans" nro now subject to service, Arabs and Kurds, however, who are linble, evade the law in large numbers, and there aro certain recognised rights to exemption, Much money has been spent in armaments during the two years in which the reorganisation has been in progress. Tho Empire is divided into seven military districts, and last year the reorganisation of the fortes into fourteen army corps began. In nil there are forty-two divisions,' seme of them with ten battalions in pence and thirteen in war, and others with seven in poaco and ten in war. In times of supremo necessity all males up to the ago of 70 years can be called on to join the colours, and recruits liable to service are divided into the Nizam, or regular army, tho Redif, and the Mustahfiz. the period of service being three years in the first, with six in the reserve; nine years in the second, and two years' in the third. _ . The Niznm has twenty-two divisions, with 357 battalions; twenty cavalry brigades, with 207 squadrons; and sixteen artillery brigades, with 271 batteries. These troops are said to number 200.000, with 120,000 as a reserve; while (he Redif and jMiistnhfiz number between 600,000 and 7(10,000. The tvoops ore armed with Mauser repealing nnd Martini-Henry rides; while the artillery, composed' entirely of Hie Nizam, or regular army, has guns of various Krupn types. The very close attention which Turkey has been paying recently to the subject of its army will probably, in the course of time, have tho desired effect in (he establishment of a land force as efficient and powerful as it is numerous. But Turkey has much work to do before that end is atlained, and meanwhile it remains to bo seen whothor her striking-powev is anything near so great ns tho vaslncss of numbers would appear to indicate. THE RIGHT PIANO. We can furnish you. on temis to suit yourself, with a piano from any one of inany famous factories. We can explain to you the points and qualities of such superb, world-famous pianos as tho Broadwood, tho I.ipp, tho Ronisch, nnd the Steinway.—Tho Dresden Piano Co., Ltd., Wellington. M. J. Brookes, North Island manager.

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