The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1877-07-08
WHAT rs CONC ON IN EUROPE
The week appears TO have been discou

| occupied with such dash at the outbreak Of
the hostlities Perhaps this augurs we'll for
their operations on the Danube. chi "a piano
IA sdno, says the old provcrb. aud there seems
to be but little doubt that the Grand Duke
Michael has giveu too much discretion to his
favorte. Gen. Loris Melikhoff. and that the
| General has ovorstepped the dictates OF wisdom.
At all events, IL IL announced that he Ia to be re-
| called and we have to conclude that the Gar did
not consider even the gallant capture of Bayazid
and Ardahan sufficient TO redeem the subse-
| Qucnt reverses
| II must bo remembered however. that these
reports of Russian defeats must be taken with
| grain OF salt for they all come either from
| Constnntinople or from the correspondents OF
| pro-Turksh London journals like the Standard
| and the Daily Telegraph There was no infor-
nation from any other source up to yesterday.
| when the London Times published some stato-
ments purporting to come from official Russian
sources. According to these statements Gen.
| Loris- Melikhor seems to have been repulsed in
| his attack on levin. while Gen. Tcrgukasson's
| southern column had been defeated near Deli
| baba. These reverscs compelled the two Rus
sian Generals to take up positions In the Araxes
valley which is quite II different thing from the
previously reported retreat OF all the forces
| toward the Caucasian frontier. Had such been
| the case Mukhtar Pasha would have been able
10y this time to enter Kars and communicate
| with its garrison. In view OF the confused
character Of the information. 1t is advisable to
| refrain at present from any discussion OF the
progress OF this campaign.
On the Danube things are not progressing MS
| rapidly as they might have done after two
| months spent In preparations Except the
| bombardmcnt OF Rustchuk. Turtukai. and
| Ncopolis. all OF which have been reduced to
ashes and ruins. there is scarcely any fighting
| reported. The Russians are occupied in laying
| in stores OF provisions and ammunition, and.
| according TO the London Times despatch from
| Bucharest. no important action is expected I'M
til the depots OF supplies on the southern bank
| OF the Danube are established. Fights like that
which IL said to have occurred on Friday at
Bcla must evidently be but advance-gu
| skirmishes.
OF what the Turks are doing but little Is
| known. They have actually ended the war with
| Montenegro by Withdrawing almost the whole
| Of their army from that section and sending IL
| partly toward Shuma partly TO the frontier OF
Greece. where an outbreak Of hostilities is daily
\ expected. Concerning the Danube. the theory
is now that. following the advice OF Klapka.
| Abdul Kerim Pasha has decided TO retire to the
| Balkans. and only there show bold front 10 the
invader. His great difficulty. however. apart
| from the want OF success which he Is said to be
laboring under. is that he is unable to concen-
trate moro than $4,000 men on any one point.
while the Russians can easily bring double that
number wherever they want b do so. and yet
leave ample forces for fegncd movements in
| other directions
To military circles at Constantinople. as well
| rs abroad. Abdul Kerim Pasha has become the
object Of severe criticism, for having allowed
| the Russians not only 10 invade Wallachia but
to entrench nearly the whole Of the left bank OF
! the Danube and to effect the crossing under
the cover OF these improviscd batteries.
| His answer seems to be that. with the means he
had at the outbreak Of the war, II WAS out Of
the question for him 10 enter Wallachia: while
! the construction OF the river side batteries
| could not have been prevented except within
the range Of the guns OF Widin. Silistra or
| Rustchuk Now the docks of these fortresscs
III Turkish landing places can be- so called
were full Of Italian. Greek. ani Austrian ycs-
sells. unloading car,;pss ~ grain and pro-
visions Had he opened are upon the left bank.
Il issian field batteries would have burned
! all these ships in no time In this way he has
| allowed batteries 10 be erected for the sake o.
getting the supplies he wanted These bat
| tcrics have subsequently burned both the sup
plies and the towns for which they were stored
but this eventually does not seem 10 have been
anticipated by the Turkish COMMANDMENT in
| Chief
What the eight or ten Turkish monitors have
been doing all the time at their Hncho rage ut
| Matchin and elsewhere is not stated; but it is
| acknowledged that at the pres mt moment they
! are uf uo avail. some OF them being surrounded
with torpedoes. others stranded or disabled.
| Commenting on the inactivity Of these mon
| itors and the Turkish fleet generally military
| the great question II the efficiency Of all iron
clad monitor fleets generally. What is the use
Of keeping large fleets Of nrst-class vessels
when few wcll-manned torpedo boats can
| destroy them or render them useless Neither
the French fleet during the Franco German
war nor the Turkish fleet during this war have
been ablc 10 DO any GOOD. Yet they are both
nsidered powerful. and have cost their coun-
tries millions and millions of money. Two
common steamers Of the Russian Black Sea
Navigation Company have done more work
than the whole Turkish ironclad feet put to-
grther. BY means Of some torpedo bouts they
had on board. they have destroyed on the
Asiatic coast over half a dozen merchant YES
sells loaded with horses and ammunition for tho
army OF Asia Minor. As u compensation for
! this and the two monitors blown up on the
Danube. the Turks have sunk at the mouth Of
Soulina one torpedo boat with Russian lieu
tenant and six men in it. This little craft
| brought by another ~ the Black Sea Navigation
| Company steamers. attempted 10 blow up II mon
| itor anchored at the mouth Of the Danube got
eEtanglcd in some ropes stretched from one
monitor to another, and was sent to the bottom.
! Tho daring crew Of the boat were picked out of
! the water, and sent rs Prisoners TO Constin-
tinopo.
The English feet has taken TO torpedo pro-
tccton nets. popularity called crlnolnes. But
they are not expected to be Of much use. They
simply imply two torpedo boats in the attack
| instead Of one-thc one to destroy the net. the
other to place the Internal machine.
Seldom has the old saying that our foes are
our friends been better illustrated than in Bull
| gnria The poor country for the supposed pro-
lection Of which the war has been undertaken
| will be the main sufferer in tho end. 1t is u
| perfect desert already, The Turks in their rc-
trent destroy and burn everything so as to
! deprive the invader Of all supplies for his army.
| Even the fruit trees have been fcllcd and grass
| plains have been set on Are. Yet there seem
still TO remain some Busarians clinsng to
| their native soil. AT all events the Russians
| have appointed civil governor Of Bulgaria. in
the person Of Prince Tschcrkasky. and cstab-