The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-04-19

Austria began closing anew the three-em-
peror allance-an alliance so true to the
selfish interest of each that il would wealth
| er any storm of war. and pehaps even any
division of the spoils Ii is now in orepara-
tion for the same crisis that these three
, combined powers are gathering III the sInaii
Roufnania, Bulgaria, SerYia and Monte
negro are not great factors in the peace or
valuable military aid to a friend and throw
obstacles IN the way of a foe who sought TO
enter Turkey or Greece by the back door:
Ihelr influence at this moment is the last
weight In the scale that balances uncer-
tainty IN the European concert. IL would
be decisive II thrown in war on the sioe or
Thus it comes that Austria, Germany and
Russia have worked without ceasing in
states to the three-emperor alliance, and
thus IL comes that the conSummation or
their efforts at Sofia. Bucharest, Belgrade
and CettinJe is hailed by the allied courts
as the diplomatic triumph of the month.
There is no longer doubt that Servia has
been tied TO the three-emperor agreement
by the exertions of Austria, Bulgaria and
Montenegro; by the exertiOns OF Russia ana
Roumania; by the exertions of Germany.
to get a passing idea of the Importance OF
this move You will find there picture OF
the broad territory which thus has been
key and Greece. You viii find there pic
ture of the well-rounded and invulnerable
lihe on which the allied powers can stand
for defense from which they can advance
TO the attack From the frozen sea of Kara
to the sunny Adriatic. from the Gulf of
sea TO the Caspian, there Is an unbroken eN-
panse of allied territory and allied arms;
Greece win ind themselves in "a wise on the
south, and France and Italy Will be bound
immovably within their present borders,
while England Will float about helpless TO
prevent the powers OF the east and central
Europe from following their own sweet will
at Constantinople and in the eastern Medi-
But the value of the Balkan allies is not
limited TO the strategical value OF their ter
ritory. Ii has strong military weight Tor
any war. German officer, who has seen
service in two Balkan armies, has just pub
lished a pamphlet pointing out the great
military strength of the little principalities.
Servia, he says. has been advanced under
the young King to the position OF a second
class military power, little, If any, inferior
on land 10 England herself. The regular
army on war footing is 14s,eoO strong; first
reserve 1884, coo; militia, $4,000. This ARMY
of the militia il is We'll officered 1t has no
generals of the Turkish style, who can
neither read nor write. Its privates are
well drilled. its batteries are ehlcient, Its
cavalry is we'll mounted.
Roumana, says the same officer, has a
war footing of 175 OOO including 5000 WELL
mounted Cavalry and 2so field guns. Under
King Charles, a German prince Of high mill
tary education, the officers and privates
have been Well trained in the modern princi-
pies of war; in fact, are far better acquaint-
ed with the demand of warfare to-day than
are the Spanish, Italian or English troops.
with 1000 cavalry and 432 field guns all of
approved modern type; To these forces lit
tie Montenegro can add Is, 900 lighting men,
100 guns and 1000 cavalrv
THUS, the German of! figures, the Bal
kan countries can ado e than $50, 600
troops, with more than guns and II, 900
cavalry, all operating o. terror lines, 10
any alliance which they joi-L Such force.
with none to help it, could repel any army
which such a distant alliance as that of
France and England could send against il.
When combined with the sheer endless re-
sources of the three-emperor alliance IT is
above the possibility of defeat.
Look at the staggering totals! Russia's
war footing is 100000; Germany's, 3.5o0OO;
this the strength of the Balkan allies and
you have war effective OF 10650.000, not
reckoning the steady increase. of the Ger
man and Russian strength under the serv
ice laws now In force. What could the rest
Of Europe oppose TO such an enormous
Take the conditions most favorable to the
outside powers. Suppose that France join
her hated neighbor. Italy. and her historic
foe, England. France can mobolize at the
outside 100000 although she claims more
fnan mar 4ooSe on oe paPer ds taly can P1t in the
side 100000. Thus even supposing this
most unnatural alliance to come to pass,
western Europe would be in a hopeless con-
dition Of military inferiority, with 1000, 600
men fewer than the three-emperor colossus
Nor, as intimated, do the figures tell the
whole story OF western Europe's helpless
ness. With the aid of the Balkan states
now assured, the three-emperor alliance
sits almost at the gates of Constantin0ple
and the Black sea Only a strip Of Turkey
-of Turkey subServient to the slightest
nod from st. Petersburg and Berlin-lies
between the allied millions of eastern Eu-
rope and those bones of political conten-
ton, the Dardanelles and Bosphorus. Who
can stem the tide? Some say England,
with her navy; others, France England
and Italy, with their navies. But how?
War ships cannot sail on dry land, and the
allies, after possessing themselves of the
whole Turkish territory, could prevent the
landing of "a single hostile regiment on Tur-
kiSh soil. The efforts of a naval force 10
possess the land would be like the efforts of
the whale to dispoSSeSS the wolf. The allies
could accomplish their whole purpose by re-
naming the defensive. All they would
want would be the spoils of territory, and
these they could hold in an iron grip. no
matter how long or how viciously the rest
of the world grumbled off the coast.
The combination of the Balkan states
with the three-emperor alliance marks the
elimination of international politics OF the
century. 1T finally clincheS the grasp of
central and eastern Europe OH the whole
civilization Of the old world. 1t brings be-
fore the nations of the earth the greatest
spectacle of armed strength that the world
has ever seen, not excepting the alliance
that crushed Napoleon. Ii is the last word
of an iron-shod generation.
FIGHTING STRENGTH