Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1867-01-16
THE INsURRECrION IN CRETE.
The Fighting Between the Insurgents
and the Ottoman Army-ConditiOn
of the and-Excitement at Athens.
Athens December 2N Correspondence London


of the Island d-EXcitementat at Athens.
ATHENS December 2O Correspondents London
Times.l .r ...... .r.....
Military operations in Crete seem to have
been confined during the last three weeks
to the western part of the Island, lying be-
yOnd Canea. This district is divided into
two provinces-Kissamost to the northwest
and Selinos to the south. y EIrf4.--
The catastrophe of the monastery of Ar
kadi, about which many fabulous reports
are already in circulation, aud many myths
are in process of formation, has given q
darker character to the war by its bloody
evidence of the determination of the insur-
gents to prefer death to submission. Mus
tapha Pasha, believing that his success over
the brave defenders of the monastery has
intimidated the insurgents in the central
provinces, returned to Canea.g On the 10th
inst. he assumed in person the command of
5000 men encamped in Alikianu and the
neighboring villages, having already de-
tached about 5000 men under Mehemet Pa
sha to the west, in order to clear the PROV
ince of Kissamos of insurgents. The
Greek force engaged in the siege of the
Castle of Kissamos has been compelled to
retire. Before breaking up the siege the
Greeks made daring attempt to carry the
place by assault, but they were defeated,
and own to loss of thirty-two killed and
wounded, which they attribute to the fire
of a Turkish ship taking them in flank.
The whole force of the insurgents-Cre-
tans, Christians and Greek volunteers-iu
the western. part of the Island has been
concentrated on the hills that overlook the
eastern portion of the plain of Alillianu,
and is said to amount to nearly 5000 men.
Their headquarters are at Zurva, and Mes
kia may be regarded as the key of their
position. The force is imposing, from the
nature of its composition, for 1000 chosen
volunteers and 1000 of the best warriors
in Crete are not likely to be driven without
q desperate struggle from an entrenched
position of their own selection. The reso-
luton to risk the fate of Crete on the
chances of a general engagement seems to
have been produced by the difficulty of
procuring provisions for large bodies of
men during the winter, and the necessity
of preventing the Turks from executing
their threat of burning down every village
of which the inhabitants have not sent in
their arms. Should the insurgents prove
successful in defeating the Turks, they will
be able to protect the Western provinces,
and should they be defeated they propose
breaking up into small parties and carry
ing on a guerrilla warfare. t.Ly".' '.1IF
| In the meantime the force detached to
raise the siege of Kissamos is advancing to
| re-establish the authority of Mastapha
Pasha in the province of Selinos, which he
evacuated when he withdrew the Cretan
Mdssulman families from Kandapes! This
| division of the Ottoman army Is accom-
panied by number of Cretan Mussulmans,
who are as eagerly bent on vengeance as on
the recovery of their estates. The pres
enee of Greek officers in uniform in the
ranks of the insurgents, and of the re
shirts of the Italians, has also linfuriated
the regular troops, for it Is to their pres
enee that the Ottoman Government ascribes
the determination shown by the Christians
to reject the profferedamnesty.1 The Turk
fsh army Is in dispOsitionsjtO employ the
most cruel measures against sttheinsurgent
and henceforth the war will certainly be
carried on with terrible animosity. '-ifi
Before the Turkish troops quilted Canes
they announced very openly that they nc
longer Intended to give quarter, and, as taI
as | can learn, itwas under these. circum,
stances that the British Consul at Canea
Mr.. Dickson, alarmed ut the atrOcious cru
city which might be perpetrated, invited
Captain Pym, of Her Majesty's ship As
surAnee, TO 60 round to the WESTERN coast
arms andwho were seeking to escape mas
sacres Captain Pym cruised along the
western coast without seeing any signal OF
any signs of inhabitants on the shore, un-
til he reached the ruins of Sennos, on the
south coast. A man was then observed on
the cliffs, who appearedto be on the look
out and making signals. This being pre-
cisely the part of the coast to which fugi-
tives from the plain of Alkianu would be
comp0lledl to escape when their villages
were burnt down, Captain Pym landed to
ascertain what was going on After the
usual difficulty In arriving atthe truth, he
found that the Turkish troops had advanc-
ed as far as the ''nine villages OF Klss0mos
and that the ainhabitants had abandoned
their houses and property to save thelI
lives. The greater part of the men were al
the camp of Zurva. The people Of the vii.
| lagos of Sennos were i'll off for provisions
and crowds of women and children werC
.u9NlugIg lJh1 BIanrs affr