Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1912-12-21
rench System Is Declared to
Have Triumphed with
Startling Consistency

fldNC IIIulttpttCu WiUI
Startling Consistency
BERLIN, .Nov. 1.-THE Balkan WAT
.1s brought surprises 10 many peo-
Ne. There is not a nation In Europe
.Orth OF tie LanGbe that was not
|taTtled by the Successes of the four
lilies. But the most badly sIrpIiscd
Ieople Of all are the Germans. Gel
many has for many years, certainly
nee the easy defeat OF the Greeks
~ Turkey in 1897, hoped great things
10 the Ottomans. First OF ell Turkey
vas to be, and actually is, fruitful
iefd for German commerce. Then
her army. composed, as it was sup
posed to be, of the fInest lighting ma
feTiai in the world, was TO be drilled
and organized by Prussian officers,
1rmed with Krupp guns, and turned
into a most formidable military ma
chine. Then, when providence should
be pleased to send us the world-war
In,due season, Turkey, II was hoped,
would throw In her 10; with the
Triple Alliance, drive the English out
OF Egypt with her Fegenerated army,
and embarrass Russia by invading
the Caucasus. Il.
Meanwhile, irrigation and the. Bag
dad railway were 10 conycft the plain
OF Mesopotamia into the greatest cot
Ton field In the world. The cotton
would be carried over German rails
TO the coast, shipped on German
ships TO Hambarg, and woven into
cloth on the looms OF Saxony; and
lancashire and the cotton states of
America could 60 out Of business.
The last part Of this vision, trimmed
and debated to square with realities.
may one day come to fruitlon; but
the seductive dream of endless Turk
ish bsttalions throwing away their
lives under the impression that they
are thereby securing safe seat In
Paradise, while in reality they would
simply be clearing Germany's place
In the sun of distractions, has van
rsbed beyond recall.
First Part Was Realized.
And the worst of II Is that the first
part of the military program was real
lied. The Turkish army was for
years instructed by German officers.
The most brilliant OF living German
soldiers, Field Marshal Won der Goltz
pasha. generally accounted the first
authority on strategy In the world.
was lent TO Abdul Hamid to reorgan-
young Turkish officer was sent TO
serve a year or two in the German
army. to inibtbe the Potsdam spirit
IN It's native home and learn how to
win battles on tho Sadowa and Sedan
model. The Turkish plan of cam
pnign against Bulgaria was iundoubt-
cdiy drafted by Field Marshal Won der
Goltz. The Adrianople-K Kirk Kilisseh
line Of defence was his idea. He call
flIlated that the Turks would want
two or three weeks longer for mobili-
ration than the Bulgarians, because
even Prussianised Oriental rftains
his dignity OF movement The Adrian
opfe- Kirk -Kilisseh forts were 10
screen the Turkish "Aufmarsch,'
holding the Bulgarians In check while
the main army was gathering IN the
rear Further, the Turkish artillery
was armed with the incompatible
Krupp gun.
Now malicious critics, chiefly
French, are pointing out gleefully that
Won der Goltz Pasha's plan failed ut
tei5y. Kirk-Kilisseh delayed the Bull
eaflans some three days. The Prus-
sianized Turks fled as only sheep and
Greeks and Cinnamon we're supposed
% be able to do a few weeks ago
whereas the same Turk in his unim-
proved state was q Homeric fighter
and never ran except forward. The
Krupp artillery was a conspicuous
failure, even In the general break
down The shells refused to burst
and when they did burst II was always
long way from the nearest Bulga-
rian.
How much Of ell this was the fault
OF the German Instructors and how
did those picked officers come to form
such an utter uniustified belief in the
efficiency Of their pupils? This-is q
question which In private is being
asked here not without anxiety. Fol-
herman officers with experience Of
the Turkish army sang its praises al
home with such persistence that nc
one believed In the possibility Of such
a catastrophe. The war with Italy
set the seal on Germany's confidence
In her Oriental proteges. A year age
the chauvinist newspapers used tc
discuss quite openly the adyisability
OF expelling the unreliable Italians
from the Triple Alliance and bestow'
ing their place on Turkey.
Nistnke About Balkan Christians.
Further, since Bismarek's famous
mot about the whole Balkans not be
ing worth the bones Of single Pom
eranian grenadier. IL has been the
fashion in Germany to consider the
Balkan Christians beneath contempt
10 great men would only realize the
harm they do by coming easily re
membered phrases, the world would
be considerably less ill-informed thar
II is. The Christians Of the Balkans
have always been synonymous here
with dirt, treachery, and worthless
~, Ro,., he n orr, mos