Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1913-01-08


In keeping with all other signs OF Iur-
kish Generalization and wrongheadeo-
ness, which might easily lead the bul-
garians to think that Adrianople WouIo
not resist brilliant onslaught.
Mustapha Pasha became the mead
quarters Of the second Bulgarian army
under General Ivanoff, who was 70
have the thankless task of the opera
lions around Adrianople, while easy
glory was to be the fortune OF Deme
trieff, who commanded the first army
until the first army had to take po-
sitions in front without any opportu'
nifty for fanking, which was the ma
ture Of Ivanoff's task from the start
Ivanoff Wakes Up.
1t was Papastepe and kartaltepe
which awakened Ivanhoff from MS
dream of final brilliant stroke IN
keeping with the earlier ones or the
war just as Tchatalja brought Deme-
trieff down from the clouds OF over
confidence. Papastepe is one of many
hills in the narrowing rib of the zO5
Meter Hill of the siege. With guns IN
position there, Adrianople would Do
under bombardment. The Bulgar1ans
took it by sending in the usual cloud
of infantry and losing about a thous-
and men But the Turks took 1t PACK
again. Four times, / am told, II cnang'
ed hands in the course of those night
actions which we observed only by the
brilliant flashes in the sky above the
hills.
Far up the valley in the mist was
Kartaltepe, that other important hill
which commanded the river bottom
of the Arda We took Kartaltepe IN
November and a month afterward, IN
one of their splendid sorties. the
Turks. so far as 1 could learn, had
taken it back; but it was as untenaDle
for them as Papastepe was for the
Bulgarians Possibly because 1t was
again ours and very evidently ours
permanently, the Bulgarian censors
had found it worth while to confound
skepticism and persistent unfriendly
rumors by allowing the correspondents
to enter the promised land of their
Dreams where for weeks, between the
batteries on the hills and the infantry
in the muddy river bottom of the Arda,
hell had ragged in the winter rains.
We did not know then, as we were
to know few days later, that beyond
Kartaltepe in the direction Of Dele
catch was another force isolated from
the Adrianople garrison and the main
Turkish army, that of Taver Pasha
with 10000 men, caught in the literal
flood of that 100-yard dash OF the
ready, informed, prepared aggressor
against the unready enemy taken I'M
aware and fastening endorsements
to the scattered garrisons and trying
to adjust itself for the blow to fan
with the crash of pile driver releas-
ed from its clutch.
DiscIoses War SRcret.
But Taver Pasna's 10000 were still
force in being, with guns and full
equipment-a force in a box; force
in desperation.
Do you see the Adrianople garrison
(Which was In touch by wireless with
the Turkish main army striking out
to connect up with Taver Pasha? Do
you see Taver Pasha trying out lines
Of least resistance in savage effort
to reach Adrianople or the main Tur
kish army?
Something to stir the blood, this, in
the way of a war drama, while not
single foreign correspondent or at.
tache knew even of the existence OF
Taver Pasha's command until its sur
render.
The news Of this was conveyed with
the official assurance that now no 9th,
er Turkish force except that OF Adrt
anople remained in Thrace, when we
had been under the impression for
over month that it was the only one!
The censors did not smile as they
posted the bulletin, but some of the
correspondents smiled-at themselves.
No, after the first rainbow hope of
a successful general attack was over,
Ivanhoff was fully occupied in holding
Adrianople safely in siege. That bat
terry of old Krupps, which fired over
the advanced Servian infantry posi-.
ton, while a battery of Creusots in
turn fired over it, added their items
of evidence to the same end.
These Krupps were taken by the
Russians at Plevna in the war of 1877
70 and given to the little army Of the
new nation of Bulgaria. Bulgarians re-
cruits had dragged them through TIE
muddy raods and over the pastures
and beautifully emplaced them, and
were working them against the enemy
with boyish pride. But the world was
thinking only of the modern Creusots
and their brilliant showing
The Bulgarians almost proved that
you can make bricks without straw.
They won the war by the bravery of
their selfconfidence as well as by
their courage.
Adrianople, which was about to
starve if it did not fall, had, am con-
vinced, two months supplies when the
armistice was signed With the 10
and 20-year-old conscripts already on
I