The Blaze in the Balkans

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 132, 22 October 1912, Page 5

The Blaze in the Balkans

CAPTURE OF PLAVA.

BLOCKADE IN THE ADRIATIC.

Brilliant Greek Victory

An Appeal for British intervention

Turkey Predicts a European War

Further Montenegrin Successes.

that to T* >' rei,oltS ' "" Mw ' from the *«* ««». to indicate rfe r ***"« M *» '<>™t of the interchange of ho.tilities and Turkey, has expressed a fear that the Great Powers may interfere v.th the undefended Asian Provinces. She is appea.ing to Great I to-ntervencstafngthatintheeventof her being crushed it will be tt prelude of a general European war.

theTnr. \ bt " eessM in theil ' engagement, having routed the Tnil s a Elassona after a desperate artillery and cavalry duel! Ihe Macedonians are commanding the highway to Salonika, and have destroyed the bridges, and wrecked many miles of railw.r ™« l^ s rr? deny that the T,,zi engiißement »"• ° f »y »»po^tante, s atmg that ,t was a small unfortified village, and that the Turks engaged were s,mp] v a small reconnoitring party, and the guns captured were only a few obsolete bronze ones. «-»prarea The Montenegrins'have captured Plava after two days' fighting, and also frustrated an attempt by the Turk, to recapture Berane, taking 280 pri lZ J;!/ tCT CaWe alS ° rePo, ' tS th ° tl ' re ° f <*** * fhe *£Z Bulgaria and Servia both suffered minor reverses, but followed this up by having the best of frontier skirmishing. P Mr. Beaumont, the special correspondent o°f the Daily Telegraph rives a Picturesque account of the Bulgarian engagement near' Philippopoli's where the Turks sustained another serious rever... , Z i™

By Cable—Press Association—Copyright. Podgoritwi, October 20. The Montenegrins have captured Plava after two days' fighting. Hassim Bey and Mahmud Begovit, with two thousand Arnauts, marched from Plava to reconquer Berane. The Montenegrins ambushed them, and after a desperate fight the Arnauts were cut up, Hassim Bey and 280 men being taken prisoners to Podgoritza.

A TURKISH VICTORY. Constantinple, October 20. Official accounts of the Bulgarian movement state that the Bulgarians on Friday attacked an inferior body of Turks at Kirkjaali, and after several hours' fighting the Bulgarians were repulsed with serious loss. On Saturday the Turkish troops counter-attacked and seized the Harmantopc mountain, which is an important strategic position. THE SERVIAN ADVANCE. Belgrade, October 20. One hundred and twenty thousand Servians crossed the frontier, the cold rain rendering operations very difficult. Arnauts ambushed seventy Servians at Comitagis, killing them all.

Athens, October 20. Greece has announced a blockade in the Adriatic from Prevenza to Corfu. The Pan-Hellenic Union has collected half a million drachmae to enable the transportion of 6000 reservists from America, who are too poor to return otherwise. Two thousand are paying their own fares.

BULGARIAN PORT BLOCKADED. Constantinople, October 20. The Turks are blockading Burgas. The fleet arrived at Varna at six and began bombarding at two in the afternoon, endeavoring to hit the torpedo boats, of which two had taken refuge at Varna, Sofia, October 20. A telegram states that three battleships harmlessly bombarded the torpedo boats in the roadstead at Varna, at ten miles' range, and then sailed. THE BULGARIAN ADVANCE. Sofia, October 20. The King, princes and suites motored up a hill, and -with field glasses watched the troops occupying the fortifications at Mustafa one after another. : The King meeting the first of the

wounded decorated them .and afterwards visited the headquarters of the first array at Tinovo and Seimenli. He returned to Varazagora. There were 170 Turkish prisoners at Mustafa. The third Bulgarian army is advancing in the valley of the Arda. The Bulgarians captured Mehoza at the point of the bayonet. Kourtkale which is 23Q0 feet above the sea, commands the Maritza and Arda Valleys. BULGARIAN PEASANTS ARMING. , Sofia, October 20. The number of recruits for the brigand chief Sandasky is increasing daily in the mountainous district, and three thousand peasants have already been armed with Mannlieher rifles. GREEK RESERVISTS. Cairo, October 20. Ten thousand Greek reservists and volunteers have left Egypt for the Piraeus. RED CROSS UNITS. London, October 20. Drs. Goldsmith and Bradford, Australians, leave to-night, and the second Red Gross unit, for Montenegro, on Friday. Sir E. Cassell is defraying the cost of three units for Turkey, and its conveyance thither. AN ANTI-TURKISH MINISTER. London, October 20. Mr. Masterman, Under-Secretary to the Home Office, speaking at Bethnal Green, made a strong anti-Turkish speecn, stating that if Britain had another opportunity of intervention, she must not, as in 1878, put her money on the wrong horse. THE CALL OF THE FATHERLAND. Vancouver, October 20. ' Hundreds of Greek and Montenegrin <reservists are leaving the United States and Canada to participate in the war. Large sums have been raised by them lin aid of their native countries.

KIRK KILASSIA SURRENDERS. Received 21, 5.5 p.m. Sofia, October 20. The fortress at Kirk Kilassia has been Bin-rounded since Saturday. The Bulgarians and Servians captured Egrijasalanka, and had taken several bridges over the railways before the Turks were able to blow them up. GUISINJE CAPTURED. Received 21, 5.5 p.m. Podgoritza, October 20. News from Plava states that the Montenegrins captured Guisinje. SERVIANS ADVANCING. \ Received 21, 5.5 p.m. The Servians are advancing on Uskub, meeting with little resistance. The road is almost impassaWe.

THE ASIAN PROVINCES. TURKEY .APP^|islS6aiGffl^KT:., . i 'BRITAIN. PRELUDE OE^J^^TiqiI^JGGLE. | Received jjM, 9.50 JUB-j ] * London, Jjctober 21. fllie Chronicle's Constariigagßk correspondent interviewed Kamil Pasha. He says that Turkey fears the intervention of certain Great Powers iii the Asian Provinces, which are now undefended, and appeals to Britain to see that the ring is not rushed. If Turkey is absolutely crushed, it preludes a gigantic struggle, involving the whole of Europe. A CONTRADICTORY REPORT. THE TUZI FIGHT MINIMISED. Received 21, 9.50 p.m. Constantinople, October 21. The WariOffice denies the capture of six battalions and eight quick-firing guns at Tuzi. The village is an unimportant one, without fortifications. Three hundred troops were merely sent to watch the Montenegrin movements, and retired when the Malissori attacked in the rear. A small rearguard was "captured, and eight worthless bronze guns. There have been only skirmishes on the Bulgarian frontier.

WAR CORRESPONDENT'S REPORT. DARING MOTOR DASH. A BULGARIAN VICTORY. . MACEDONIANS HOLDING SALONIKA. Received 21, 9.55 p.m. London, October 21. Mr. Beaumont, the Daily Telegraph's Sofia correspondent, says that by'a daring dash a motor ear crossed three moun tain ranges and reached Philippopolis. The authorities threatened to arrest the occupants if they continued-their effort to reach the fighting front. Mr. Beaumont states that a member of King Ferdinand's staff told him that eleven hundred Bulgarian cavalry had a sharp fight with two thousand cavalry. A general melee ensued, in which the Bulgarians lost a hundred men, but were finally vie-, torious. King Ferdinand watched the 'onslaught. The wounded were taken to the waiting-room at Philippopolis station. , The Bulgarians have occupied numerous villages, and are enrolling non-Mos-lems capable of service. Mr. Beaumont heard that the Macedonian rebels are masters of the Salonika highway, and have dynamited bridges and great stretches of railway.

THE TURKISH FLEET. Received 21, 9.50 p.m. Sofia, October 21. The Turkish battleships reappeared at Varna on Sunday. It is semi-officially stated that the intervention of the fleet is to bluff the Powers, who are negotiating with a view to the neutrality of /the Black Sea. A DESPERATE FIGHT. • GREEKS DEFEAT THE TURKS. THE CROWN PRINCE UNDER FIRE. / Received 21, 10.40 p.m. Athens, October 21. . Six thousand Turks,, with seven siege guns, are occupying the heights behind Elassona. Five Greek divisions had a preliminary artillery duel with them. The new Schneider guns did great havoc. At two o'clock the Crown Prince ordered the first division to charge with the bayonet. The Turks made a desperate resistance, but the Greek cavalry completed their discomfiture.

Meanwhile, the second division was clearing the hills to the east, threatening to cut off their retreat. The Turks withdrew by the Servia road, leaving eighty prisoners and seven guns.

The Crown Prince's eldest son received his baptism of fire. The Turks retreated through the stone gates of a heavily fortified defile.

ABDUL HAMTD. Received 21, 10.40 p.m. Constantinople, October 21. Abdul Hamil will be housed in the place where his brother was. imprisoned. The Tanin newspaper violently attacks the Government for transferring Abdul Hamid, which, it says, constitutes a national danger.

THE TURKISH ARMY. RAPIDLY ORGANISING. Received 21, 11.40 p.m. London, October 21. The Times' Constantinople correspondent states that 700,000 Turks will be with the colors at the end of October. Twelve thousand are passing on the European railways daily, irrespective of infantry despatched by marching routes. Bulgaria has given Turke)' an unexpected ten days' breathing space, enabling the Turkish general staff to organise, to the surprise of European observers.

The Salonika correspondent estimates the Macedonian army at 170,000, of which Hassin Tahsin Pasln has 30,000 defending the Creek frontier, and Alinabir Pasha 100,000 between Kuprili and TJsknb. These figure* are being rapidly augmented from the Asia Minor. Redifs. The fortnight's delay has cost the Allies dear.

Zeki Pasha is expected to fight his way to Sofia, via Egripalanka, assisted by -10,000 Albanian irregulars. THE COMMISSARIAT. Received 21, 11.45 p.m. Constantinople, October 21. The commissariat of the Western Army is giving difficulty. The harvest has been a failure, and the situation of the Macedonian villages is pitiful.