TO-DAY'S NEWS.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXVIII, Issue 60, 9 November 1915, Page 5

TO-DAY'S NEWS.

The Germans claim to have captured Kruchevatz. The news has not been confirmed,' but' it 'is 'very likely'to be correct, as it was bound to follow on the (fall of Nish in'order to prevent'a rear attack from the Bidgars from that city. Candidly, the fall of Kruchevatz is bad news, because the Serbians will have to retreat in a south-westerly direction, and ; communication with Constantinople is now open. The Germans (or Teutons as they have it) seemed confident of the early capture of the town and the opening of this line, as they were making arrangements to send an Orient express to Turkey. That does not mean a passenger train (unless the Mighty War Lord will make the trip) but trainloads of munitions for Gallipoli. Now that the route is open, the Germans will not be. likely to attack Serbia further, but will leave the Bulgars to finish the job and .to keep the (Allies busy. Such is the result to date of the gar plan., But, ; on the other hand, the Serbian, army, has not been put .right out of action, and unless they and the Allies are driven put of the country for good the German plan can easily be upset,. „

To ensure permanent success, the enemy must keep armies in the Held in Serbia to hold the increasing forces of the Allies from capturing the coveted railway and cutting communications, and keeping the Orient express in Turkey with no prospects of a return journey. ' It is certainly something to have established even temporary communication with Turkey. But, first of all, the bridge at Belgrade must be repaired before the trains can cross. That will take time, and time is against the Germans. They have won the first move, but it will be some time before they can make use of it. And in that time the Bulgars are being very hard pushed, and are in danger •of being cut off from their country and cut up. It only needs more Allied troops to make a definite move up the Vardar to Uskub from Yeles and Krivolak, where they are at present seriously threatening the Bulgars left flank. More pressure and the enemy must abandon their hold on Uskub and retreat to their own border. The Allies will then direct their forces on Egri Palanka and threaten Sofia in order to interrupt the transit of munitions from Hungary to Turkey. On the whole, despite the temporary success of the Germans at Kruchevatz, the final issue is to come, and in the face of the present danger to the Bulgars, who seem to be doing the main fighting, the success cannot be very loug-li' 'd. /

The position in Greece is "as yon were." The new Ministry is to repeat at the dictaton of the King, no doubt, the benevolent neutrality, except that this time it is "very benevolent." On one side we read that the Ministry is very friendly to the Entente, and in the next breath we read that German officers are arriving in Greece. Again, we read of Greek troops co-operating with the Allies in making piers for landing troops and so on. To get at the bottom of the pool, wonld baffle the greatest Sherlock Holmes of diplomacy that ever breathed. The King seems to be pulling one way and a majoritv of his subjects the other way. ' The only way for the Allies to clear up the position seems to be that the tangle should not be untangled, but

cut. And as the Entente holds Greece as being bound to the treaty with Serbia' and insists on it, a causus belli is easily found, if necessary. In the north-east, that is along the Serbian-Roumanian frontier, the Serbs are successfully resisting . the enemy in, the Timok valley, i Here is another pin-prick for the Orient express, and the transport of munition's down the Danube. i ; • ■ > ;'