The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1912-11-04

Portsmouth is preparing for any Lcvant
cruise
Three German battleships the Her
tha. Vineta and Geier, now In the
Mediterranean, have been ordered to
Turkish waters. and two German
cruisers are steamng from klcl for the
same destination.
Four Italian battleships In the AIEean
Sea have received orders to be ready to
take aboard all Italian citizens at Con-
stantinoplc and Catholic missionaries
and nuns Irrespective of nationality at
the first sign Of disorder in Constantl-
nople. They are to take them to
Rhodes.
Word has been received that King
Peter of Servia has entered with ccrc-
mony the town of tskub that fell to his
fighting men. In the presence oe great
crowds, who cheered Enthusiastically.
he embraced his sons, who have been
in the thickest of the fighting. He
promised the former Turkish Mayor
that the Turks would not be harmed
under the new regime.
The Greeks took Prevesa on the
Turkish side of the entrance to the Gulf
Of Arta after capturing the heights of
Nikopolis. which look down on the
3 fed, but the Greeks captured some four
hundred A Turkish torpedo boat in
the Gulf Of Arta was burned.
The correspondent of the Daily
Chronicle with the Turkish army.
writing from Tchorlu on November 1
and sending his despatch from that
place by automobile to Constantlnople
and by sea to kustendje, confirms the
previous reports of the defeat of the
Turks In the big battle with the Bull
garians, which he says was "irretriev-
able. terrible and appalling" He says
II was followed by rout scarcely par
alleled in history" Forty thousand of
the Turkish troops. says the corre-
spondent, have fallen and 75 per cent.
Of the artillery was captured.
Abdullah Pasha had a narrow escape
from capture. The army found its way
back to Tchorlu by handfuls. The Bull
garan artillery moved down thousands
Of Turks during the battle. The Bull
'garian artillery was much superior TO
that Of the Turks.
1t appears from this correspondents
story that the Bulgarians had a bad
quarter of an hours battle after cap
turing the town of Lulc Burgas They
advanced from the railway station, a
distance of four miles. and during this
time passed through a depression be-
tween the hills. Here the Bulgars
were tremendously mauled by Turkish
shrapnel from the heights above and
when the confusion among them was at
the worst Turkish cavalry. dashing
from concealment and shouting al
lah." Allah" swept like a tornado on
the remnant of the Bulgars. who fed.
with the cavalry pursuing and riding
them down. But the Turkish cavalry
. rode too far and came within range of
the Bulgarian machine guns. which
brought horses and riders to the ground
in a torn and mangled mass, from
which few issued alive.
The Turks soon afterward severely
bombarded Lue- Burgas and compelled
the Bulgarian captors to evacuate 1t
temporarily.
Toward evening the Bulgarian ad-
vance became more rapid. The men,
/ bers OF the Turkish staff were amazed
at the manner in which the Bulgarian
artillery chose positions. They had ap-
parenfly been previously selected and
the gunners got the range to a nicely
-~every time. Their craftsmanship was
4 superb and murderous.
L
J set was poorly supplied with ammuni-
tion, and what they had was practi-
calIy all expended in the fighting in the
morning. This resulted in the gunners
being compelled to stand around their
guns unable to reply to the Bulgarian
fire. Their arms were folded and they
calmly awaited death with true Otto
man courage. They seldom had long
to wait either.
1t was this terrible Bulgarian shell
fire. says the correspondent, that de-
stroyed the Turkish morale Men fell
by the hundreds during the endless
carnage.
When night fell the survivors were
exhausted and there was no food, as
the commssary service was non-cN-
istent Sleep was IMPOSSIBLE for the
Bulgarians who seemed to be endowed
with untirng energy, pursued the
Turks relentlessly.
The Turkish dead and wounded lay
everywhere. There were few doctors
and absolutely no ambulances, Some
attempt was made to remove and sue
cor the wounded. but most of them per
ished during the cold night.
The retreat continued orderly fol
about an hour and then the disorGaniza
ton began. Two hours after sunrise
the Bulgarans learned what had hap
pened and then started again in pur-
suit of the fleeing Turks Then came
the rout.
The correspondent ascribes the dis
aster to gross ineficicncy, incapacitS
and mudding. He says there was ar
jnsufficiency of trained officers. anc
many of the reserves were ignorant o
the manipulation Of the Mauser mech
anism. The AnatoliarS use muzzl'
leaders and many of them had neve
seen a magazine rifle. Their weapons
had to be loaded for them by officers o.
by their better instructed comrades
Even while their fire lasted II was ut
terly valueless, as they were ignoran
as TO how to aim, and sometimes sho
their own comrades.
Two battalions OF infantry arrived a
Lule- -Burgas from the Dardanelles ol
the day of the principal engagement
and went Immediately into the hghtin
line. There were only six of them aliv
at the end of the day