THE ENTRY INTO DAMASCUS.

Taranaki Daily News, 10 December 1918, Page 8

THE ENTRY INTO DAMASCUS.

WILD SCENES OF JOYHATRED OP THE GERMANS. (From W. T. Massey.) Damascus, October 1. General Allenby's triumphant inarch northwards into byria early this morning drove the Turks completely oat of possession of Daniascus ; and there is now not a Turkish soldier in the city, nor a Turkish official doing duty. The appearance of the Australian Mounted Division north-westwards of the city at noon yesterday set tlio seal on the doom of the Turkish Government in the jlace on which Arabs centre their eyes. Today the city was enveloped by British, Australian, and Indian troops, and the King of the Hedjaz's Arab Army has marched in. Tiie few Turks who got away are scattered and demoralised. Fully 12,000 Germans and Turks are prisoners. In and about the city a number of guns have, been captured. The roads are a shambles where the enemy resisted. Transport has been smashed and most of the material left behind has been destroyed by the Germans though valuable transport, including a com-.pk-fe part of cavalry limbers was untouched. The prisoners captured since September 19 are probably over 00,000. Gesera' Allentiy crushed out the existence of the Turkish Fourth, Seventh, and Eighth Armies. It is impossible tor a triumph to be more complete. Our casualties are very light. The Entente lias been nobly served by the British Palestine Army.

Those British who entered this wonderful city to-day who have not had their emotions stirred by the enthusiastic greetings of the population must have hsen without spark of national pride. Having passed-: up the country with the cavalry, T have seen some. Circassian villages. They are quite hike-warm and nneoncortifd about our victorious advance against the Turks. I was under, the impression that Damascus would display the usual Arab calmness of iiimoanour and accept our appearance' as Kismet, while appreciating the prospects of a chancre from bad to good Government, and would receive us.with ' their' customary immobile features, gi\% imr no outward vislblo sign of their inward feelings'.-

Tour. Here,, thcy'flave" seen %hat the British namevstaanchf for. At Jerusalem the British Army was welj corned by all sects and creeds with deep 1 feelings of tliaiiKfulness, tat their con- - idrfioii; -rendered pitiable through liionV'jieYented their'welcome from being ko demonstrative, fhongh' equally' sin-cere,-as to-day's- "When a soldier ap- ; jpeared in the- streets of Damascus- he ''was surrounded 1 l>y the.excited and de- ' lighted throng. Crowds gathered to ! fear the news. When I' told some Eng-lish-speaking people, of whom there are many, nf the latest victory on the West-] : j?rn front, and of the Bulgarian arniis-. ' tiec, their' enthusiasm was remarkable. V, But they were more keenly interested: in General Allenby's army's tremendous!, stride through Palestine and Syria. Thef enormous captures of prisoners and war materia], of which they had no conception, more than anything else meant to' ,them the finish of the Turk. They said; you are settling our long accounts with i them. The thoroughness with'which it-: has been done gave them the impression that our army was composed of supermen. With eyes unused to complete and orderly equipment, tlipy admired the soldierly turn-out of the men who have fought and ridden a hard 150 miles and acclaimed- them their deliverers. They looked upon this Army as the saviours of the downtrodden peoples of this part of the East. This amazing tribute to Britain and British freedom lasted all day; at nightfall the population gave a ' firework exhibition of captured Verey lights. Even the street of Saint Paul called "Straight" was illuminated from end to end. ARRIVAL OP ARAB ARMY. Opportunities for rejoining were increased by the arrival of the Arab army, which operated on our right flank. Our cavalry during the march from Deraa arrived at Damascus at six this morning, the north-western outskirts being occupied by the Australian Mounted Division last night. Soon after daybreak the Arab army entered the - : tyj and the streets became alive with picturesquely clothed Arabs on light steeds, almost overburdened with elaborately appointed saddlery. Arab horsemen and camelry dashed about the streets, proclaiming the victory, and making much noise, and continually firing t-heir rifles. This lasted till midnight, and the inhabitants, tired out and happy, allowed the city to become normally : calm. ~ There must have been extraordinary scenes in Damascus yesterday, when the Turkish army, surprised again at the swift, unerring cavalry stroke, found the Australian Mounted Division west of the city General I/iman von Sanders, ; scenting trouble, left for Aleppo four ! davs a«o. A long thin trail of dust ■ showing against the brown hills warned ' the Turkish commander that his hold on Damascus was disappearing. He left at noon with the vali by motor along the Aleppo road. The Desert Corps Com- ' mander decided first to close all the ! exits instead of risking liarm to civilians by an attack of disease. "Meanwhile the enemy forces were ' fighting among themselves. There is ' considerable feeiing between the Germans and the Turks, and there was an open rupture between the Turks and the ; Arabs serving in the Turkish Army- The latter turned on the Turks, refused to ' fight, and declared themselves adherents of the Hedjaz Army. Even more seri--1 ous than the trouble among" the troops was the hostility of the Arabs to the Germans, who could not show themselves ' in the streets in safety. Some who left the barracks were struck and spat upon ' and went in fear of their lives. To-day an Armenian came to me and asked what he should do with three Germans, one of them wounded, sheltered at his house, to keep them from the extreme fury of the people. Those caught in our encircling movement frankly confessed that they were fortunate to escape from the Damascus.

. The departure of an Atlantic convoy is a more impressive sight than tTie landsman can conceive. It brings to the civilian traveller (writes the New Zealand Press Delegates) his first touch of the realities of war, but it stirs bis blood and deepens his admiration for the men of the two services who in the late stages of the war made this their daily task. Above all, it fills him with a sense of security, a belief that the most desperate of German submarine commanders would think twice before seeking a victim from that imposing fleet. This conviction grows as land recedes, as the transports take their allotted places in the formation, and as the escorts spread to the liorizqn from within a stone's throw of our deck. It is a case in which familiarity breeds respect. On that vova<re, lengthened, but made more vitalising by the war conditions, wo were never "i;t of touch with the other ships of our convoy, never, in daylight, out of siffht of the Tirotectinc nfivnl arm. If the reality of the risk which had occasioned tlvs ffrcnt disnlav of s/rcngth at times obtruded itself, it was accompanied by a fceliiiff of pride at the steady movement, despite the risk, of two armv divisions of men, mainly carried in 'British ships and largely under British protection. If boat drill and discipline cave the'winger a glimnse.of unpleasant possibilities, he would he a poor Britisher if he did not find comfort and satisfaction, as well as ground for gratitude, in the activities of the craft around him and above him.