Evening star., 1897-04-16
CAPTURE OF KRANIA
A Severe Check Given the Advancing
Greeks.
FIERCE FIGHTING ON BOTH SIDES
Iregu;ars Said to Have Been Badly
Handled.
TURKS HOLD THE PASSES

| Copyrighted. 1897. by the Associated Press.)
LARISSA. Headquarters of the Greek
| Army in Thessaiy. April 16-Severe fight
| ing has occurred In Macedonia between
the Greek irregulars and Turkish forces.
\ The column Of irreguiars sent to the right
| from Pigavitza. after having invested and
captured Sitovon. continued Its advance
| toward kritudes. Plisia and Kourduzi. with
| orders to hold Kourduzi at all costs, as it
| commands the right approach to Grevena,
| the objective point. This column. COM
manded by Chiefs Zermos and Luzzo, at
| tackled kritudes Tuesday. The place vas
defended by two companies of Turks.
After a severe fight, during which eighty
| Turks were killed and twenty-five were
| taken prisoners. the position was captured
1 by the Greeks, who also obtained losses
| sion of $50 rifles and a quantity of
| cartridges.
Greek Reverse.
The insurgents. however. have suffered
| a severe check In another direction. A
| strong force of Turkish troops, from Meco-
| Won, with a number of mountain guns, ad-
| vanced on Krania, which had previously
| been captured by the Greeks and attacked
the four hundred irregulars of Greece. who
| occupied an entrenched position. 1t is re-
ported that the fighting was ferocious on
both sides.
The insurgents eventually were compelled
to retreat north to the mountains. Some
of them. however, succeeded in breaking
| through the Turkish lines and escaped to
| Baltino. the town just across the frontier.
In Macedonia, first captured by the Greek
| irregulars and used by them as a depot fer
provisions and ammunition.
Chief Mflonas wounded.
The accounts given by the refugees of
| the Turkish losses are believed to be ex
| aggerated. They say that 255 Turks were
| killed, while the irregulars only had eight
men killed and seventeen wounded. The
| leader of the Greeks operating i'm that di-
| rection, Chief Milonas. was among the
wounded. and returned later into Greek
territory with number OF the refugees.
One OF the latter says that portion OF
| the Turkish force was composed of irreg-
| ulars. whose dress resembles that of the
Greek Insurgents. This, 1t appears, en-
| abled the Turkish force to execute flank
movement unheeded by the leaders of the
Greeks. The refugee referred to blames the
Greek leaders for badly handling their
men.
All the refugees bore traces of having
| experienced great fatigue, and it Is report
ed that the Ethnika Hetairia. or National
League. has ordered the Greek irregulars
| to retreat into Greek territory. regarding
regular army Of Greece supports the
| irregulars.
| Arrival of the Crown Princess.
The crown princess has arrived here 20
| take part in the work of the ambulance
corps.
1t is thought probable that Prince Con-
stantine the crown prince and commander
| in-chief of the Greek forces. will shortly
move his Headquarters to a more central
position near Zarkos.
There is feeling of great satisfaction
here at the declarations made by Premier
Delyannis in the Greek chamber of dep
uties.
| Three hundred Hungarian horses intend
ed for cavalry remounts, were landed at
| Volo yesterday, and are being forwarded to
Trikhala.
(Copyrigl ted, 1897. by the Associated Press.J
IrrexuIars Organised by Regulars.
ELASSONA. Headquarters of the Turk
ish army in Macedonia, Thursday evening.
April, Is delayed in transmission).-
representative of the Associated Press at
| the Turkish headquarters has just seen
prisoner who was captured by the Turks
| during the fighting which has taken place
at krania with the Greek irregulars. The
man was dirty, wore tattered clothes and
| had on his head a helmet upon which was
| the badge of the Ethnike Hetairia, the Ma
tional League of Greece He declared that
| he belonged to a band of irregulars which
| left Trikhala, after receiving an ovation
from the Inhabitants of that place, under
the command OF q captain ana TWO neu-
tenants of the Greek regular army. and ac-
companied by medical officer. who was
wounded. This expedition, the prisoner
added. was organized by officers of the
Greek regular army, and was openly order
| ed to invade Turkey, not to harm the vii
| layers and to fight the Turkish troops only.
After these statements 1t is difficult to
deny that the Greek irregulars were or
Eanized with the knowledge of the Greek
authorities. This confirms the inquiries
made On this subject by Seyfoulah Bey, an
officer on the staff of Edhem Pasha. the
Turkish commander chief. formerly an
attache of the Turkish legation at Athens
and, consequently, familiar with the per-
I sonal appearance of many Greek officers
some of whom he recognized among the
insurgents
The whole matter appears to form the
basis for a grave accusation against Greek
good faith.
Passes Held by the Turks.
The representative OF the Associated
Press has visited the greater part of the
frontier line in this district and. after in
specting all the passes. is convinced that
Turks hold such strong positions that the
Greeks will never be able to enter Turkish
territory in force. In fact, the correspon-
dent cannot even imagine the Greeks will
make an attempt to do so. while the
other hand. the Turkish commander-in-
chief could send a mass of troops into
Greece by several routes and easily cap
ture Larissa.
FISHERMEN WARNED OFF.