BATTLESHIPS IN THE STRAITS

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2407, 12 March 1915, Page 5

BATTLESHIPS IN THE STRAITS

ANOTHER BOMBARDMENT BAD WEATHER HAMPERS OPERATIONS , . Paris, March 10. Official. —"H.M.S. Queen Elizabeth, with four battleships supporting her, bombarded Rum'.H on Monday from inside the Straits. "Bad weather hindored tho operations. "The French battleship Suffren advanced to tho edge of tho mine-field. 'Admiral Guopratte had a narrow escape from being hit by fragments of a shell." I EFFECT OF MONDAY'S BOMBARDMENT. Athens, March 10. Tho bombardment in tho Dardanelles on Monday destroyed thirty puns belonging to Turkish motor battsrir.si , Fob on Tuesday necessitated i MSlpoiiemint of we owi'stiOßSt,

TURKISH GUNNERS SHORT OF 'AMMUNITION. (Rec. March 11, 5.10 p.m.) London, March 11. Turkey's ammunition, and especially her supply r-f projectiles, is reported to he almost exhausted. The gunners who are defending the Dardanelles are economising their shots in order to hido the poverty of their magazines. Germany is pressing Rumania to allow the transit of ammunition through to Turkey, but her efforts have been unsuccessful. A wireless message from Berlin declares that not a single warship has reached the mine-fields in the Dardanelles, and that an attempt at a landing has failed. Constantinople is quiet, and full of confidence. The Socialist newspaper "Vorwaerts" predicts that the Australians and New Zealanders will go to the Dardanelles.—"Times" and Sydney "Sun" Services. ' t TWENTY-TWO . TRANSPORTS E N ROUTE TO THE STRAITS. London, March 10. According to a message from Berlin, the "Frankfurter Zeitung" has received a telegram from Home stating that twenty-two French transports are near Malta, en route to the Dardanelles. DID MR. LLOYD GEORGE SUGGEST THE BOMBARDMENT ? Paris, March 10. The newspaper "Eclair" states that the decision of the Allies to force the Dardanelles was due to Mr. Lloyd George persuading tho belligerents of the emptiness of the legend that they were inviolable by recalling the German successes at Namur, Maubeuge, and Antwerp. GERMAN SUGGESTION IN ANTICIPATION OF DEFEAT. Amsterdam, March 10. The Cologne newspaper "Kolnische Zeitung" says:—"lf the Turks are unable to retain Constantinople they should make it a free city, guaranteed by an alliance of Bulgaria, Rumania, and Greece, and under the protectorate of Italy." END OF CENTURIES 1 OF TURKISH MISRULE. ' (Rec. March' 11, 5.10 p.m.) London, March 11: Mr. Herbert Samuel (President of the Local Government Board), speaking at a dinner in honour of Serua at the Lyceum Club, said that there was reason to hope that the taking of Constantinople would not ho delayed long. The Turkish rule of four and a half centuries had done nothing for civilisation. It had been the negation of freedom) and its termination was imminent. — "Times" and Sydney "Sun" Services. GREEK CABINET AND THE WAR LONG PERIOD OF PEACE IMPERATIVE. (Rec. March 11, 10.45 p.m.) r Athens, March 11. 'A Ministerial declaration states that Greece, after her victorious wars, needs a long period of peace, and that therefore lier neutrality in the present war is imperative. GREEK CABINET CRISIS ACCORDING TO GERMANY. (Rec. March 11, 5.10 p.m.) London, March 11. The political situation in Greece occupies the foremost place in the columns of the German newspapers. The crisis is regarded as a blow for the diplomacy of the Triple Entento._ A telegram from Brindisi states that Greek families are arriving by every steamer. —"Times" and Sydney i "Sun" Services. , , IF BULGARIA ABANDONS HER NEUTRALITY. (Rec. March' 11, 5.10 p.m.) i - «■ London, March li. A Belgian deputy, after visiting Bulgaria, declares that if Bulgaria abandons, her neutrality she will assist the Allies in the attack on Turkey.— "Times" and Sydney "San" Services. (Rec. March 11, 8.50 p.m.) / ' London, March 11. Reports from Sofia state that the situation in Bulgaria is critical. The progress of the Allies in the Dardanelles is watched with intense interest, and the outcome of the Greek crisis is_ anxiously awaited. The early return of the M. Venizelos to the Premiership is anticipated. SIGNIFICANT ACTION BY ITALY f LIBERTY OF ACTION TO ITALIANS SERVING IN FRANCE. (Rec. March' 11, 8.53 p m.) London, March 11. Italy is' summoning her reservists from France, and lias restored liberty of action to Italians wno are serving in France.