The Dominion. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 19, 1916. THE SALONIKA PUZZLE

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2955, 19 December 1916, Page 4

The Dominion. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 19, 1916. THE SALONIKA PUZZLE

One of the most unsatisfactory and puzzling features of the war plans of the Allies has been the comparative inaction of the large forces of French, British, Italian, .Russian, and Serbian troops under General Sarrail in the south-east-ern theatre of war. /It is true that recently there has been some display pi activity along the Macedonian frontier, but it came too late in the' year to give any prospect of a material advance being niade either in Serbia or in Bulgaria. For many months General ' Sarkajl's forces were practically idle, and the precious days of summer and autumn were allowed to pass without the expected.advanco taking place. There has been a great dealof comment in England and elsewhere, on the seeming waste of miht-xvy f orco at Sa _ lomka, and cr^ c i sm has grown sharper sjnr,, our AUies the Ru . raanians & ave ] 3een f Drced . to {all back ' un d or the p resslu;e 0 f the pow- ? r xtir armies thrown against them , toy the Central Powers and Bulgaria. In the latest issue of the Manchester Guardian to hand, Mr. Jokn Dillon discusses tho situation at some length, basing his comments on private, information from Balkan sources, as well as on the news available in the British, and French Pross. Mr. Dillon confidently expresses the opinion that the unsatisfatory position in the Balkans is due to divided opinions, and suggests that certain members of the Asquith Cabinet and tho military authorities differed as to the extent to which the campaign in'the Near East should be prosecuted. The consequence has been that the demands of General Sarrail were insufficiently met. The point of chief interest which Mr. Dillon's interpretation or' the situation r suggests is that General Sarrail's advance was not delayed because of fear of Greek treachery; but that tho Greeks were encouraged in tbeir hostility to the Entente Powers by tho seeming impotence of the Allies. It seems .probable in the light of recent events that General Sarrail was hampered by the failure to meet his full requirements in men and munitions, but that ho also had to take into account the increasing danger from Greek hostility, due in part to his own enforced inaction. What is of most concern, however, is that with the change of Government in Great Britain, the elements which were mainly responsible for tho weakness of our policy in the Near East have been removed. Mr. Lloyd George and M. Briand, the French Premier, appear to have been in complete accord as to the advantages of a powerful offensive having as its objective the cutting of the German lino of communications with Bulgaria and Turkey, but the British Government at that time seems to have regarded such a venture as involving a dissipation of, military strength unwarranted by the _ advantages in prospect. Even with Rumania hard pressed to stem the tide of invasion, there are military critics as well as politicians who still hold that it would be unwise to develop on a largo scale the Allied campaign in tho Balkans, they contending that the issue of the war can be settled with greater advantage on the main Western front.

On the other hand, tho latest mail brings to hand some interesting information giving quite a different aspect of the situation at Salonika. Tho European correspondent of tho Providence Journal, in a general survey of the war, regards the situation in the Near East as full of promise for tho Entente Powers. His interpretation of the delay on General Sarrail's part is convincing enough if we accept his facts as accurate. French officers in command at. Salonika, he states, have never doubted their ability at any time during the last two months— ho is writing early in October—to move forward and occupy Serbia whenever they are prepared to begin the campaign. But they have been held back by the knowledge that the facilities at Salonika for dockage of transports and arrival of supplies, guns, and ammunition nave been entirely inadequate for tho continual support of an advancing victorious army gradually getting further from its base.

In order to change these conditions, no proceeds, tho leading dockage engineers of Great Britain and France havo been for months working with thousands of labourers on plans which will, when completed, create at Salonika the greatest and most complete system of wharves and receiving sheds in existence. Two wharves, each oyer a mile aud a half long, are already under construction, and when those plans aro completed it is estimated that fully 50 transports can discharge eido by side without difficulty or confusion.

Until these works aro completed we are told there,will bo no serious attempt on tho part of the Allies to advance into Serbia, "but that when it is made the invasion of Austria will become a certainty a few weeks after the word is given

to move forward." This is certainly the m%t 'hopeful and encouraging news we have had relating to this quarter for a very Jong time, wen though we may feel inclined to discount a little such sanguino anticipations. Wc are certainly justiled in looking forward with some confidence to the adoption of a stronger and bolder policy in the 'Near Last as tho result of tho change of Government in Great Britain, more especially in view of tho fact that M. Biuand and Mb. Lloyd Georgb aro both said to favour such a policy. The differences of opinion between tho British and French Governments as to Balkan policy, which has led in tho past to temporising and to wasteful inaction, will no longer bo allowed to stand in the way and hamper the efforts of our commanders in this theatre of war.