The Cairo bulletin., 1909-04-25

OOHsldnllHOple, apfll "a ne con-
stitutional forces are in complete con
trol of the capitol tonight. The sui.
Ia. is practically a prisoner in vi.
dlz palace. His formal submission
has not yet been given, but he and
the troops with him are at the mercy
of the army Of occupation.
Mahmoud Schefket Pasha. cont
mandcr-in-chief Of the invading forces
desires to finish the work without fur
ther bloodshed. He Is negotiating
with the sultan's representatives and
has extended a period of grace with
in which the sultan must make HIS
final decision. The Yildi2 Kiosk may
be rushed during the night, for some
5000 infantry are disposed within a
mile and half of the palace.
Sultan May Still Rule.
What disposition will be made OF
the ruler of the empire when he is in
the hands of the constitutlonalists. is
unknown to the embassies, although
the opinion is held in authoritative
quarters that he will continue as the
nominal constitutional executive, with
officials of his household largely re-
spC-sible to the cabinet, who in turn
are responsible to parliament.
Complete tranquility prevails In
the city at the present moment bur
anxious looks are cast in the direc-
tion of the Yildiz, the refusal of part
of its garrison to submit being Sc
rious feature of the situation.
Shehkt is concentrating large forces
iaar this point. 1he troops have
been pouring since noon and sew
eral batteries have been planted on
the neighboring heights But 1t is
feared that the task Of capturing the
stronghold may be extremely difficult
owing to its defensive position and
the thorough preparedness of the gar
rson.
Other positions are already cap
tured by the invading army, not pro-
yided with artillery, which gave the
assailants an immense advantage
since they were unable to shell the
barracks without reply from the ar
tilery. The Yildiz garrison not only
possesses artillery but it is believed
The neighborhood is mined.
First Advance Yesterday.
The sending forward of advance
posis of the Saloniki army yesterday
afternoon to within two and half
miles of the palace fUreshadowed the
attack upon the city which began *
O'Clock this morning. Bridges hal
been plcketed and small parties OF
cavalry had reconnoitered the ground.
After desultory firing just before
dawn, strong advance was made in
the southwest part of Pera. The at
lacking forces spread out in long
Inc AID made an assault upon the
Matchka and Tasch Kischla barracks,
south Of the palace, where they met
with stubborn resistance.
The invaders continued to advance
in three columns and occupied all
points of vantage. The volunteers
from Ghevheli received their baptism
of fire from Matchka, but they stood
their ground well and replied with
steady volleys. The strength of the
volunteers was overwhelming and the
Matchka garrison soon surrendered.
Machine Guns Used.
Almost Immediately the loyal sol
diers in Tasch Kischla barracks Oh
the opposite hill ope-ed a deadly fire.
but Notwithstanding that many OF
them fell. The Saloniki troops did
not hesitate in their advance, bu'
moved slowly and cautiously, bring
ing up machine guns, which eventu-
ally resulted t. silencing the garris-
on.
There were heavy losses on both
sides. While this attack was proceed
ing. another corps of Saloniki infant
ry encountered a sudden attack from
the artillerymen in the Taxim bar
racks. but these were. only supplied
with rifles Mukstar Bey, commands
of the salccih forces. fell dead. and
many were killed or wounded on the
first assault.
Fighting at the Porte.
The fighting in the Stamboul quar-
ter occurred at the porte. where the
garrison surrendered after a shsrl
fussilade. There is stiff lighting YET
at Aplik Haheh barracks, where tht
mntinous ariillerym-l who recently
arrived from Tehatasia, we're quarter
ed. The number Of casualties prob
ably never will be k-Own. but il |:
estimated far into the thousands
Around the Taxlm barracks alone &