The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1914-09-25
BIG RUSSIAN ARMY
ADVANCING into
EAST PRUSSIA
Germans and Austrians Uniting
To Oppose II
PITCHED BATTLE EXPECTED
Clash viii Involve More Than Two
Million Men-Cracow In
Danger

London, Sept 24.-The news OF the
war in the east indicates, after all rea
sonable allowances for exaggeration
are made, that immense forces of Rus
slams are rapidly nearing the German
frontier, on a line of advance $50
miles wide.
London expects within a week to
hear of pitched battle as vast as
that of the Aisne. A million Germans
and Austrians are concentrating on
this line to save the Kaisers terri
tory from 100000 Russians.
Belief that the direct Russian adj
vance against Germany is rapidly pro
crossing Is partially confirmed today
by an announcement of the Breslau
Gazette that the military authorities
there have cut all telegraph commu-
nication between Breslau, Posen, APP
peln aad Liebnitz. This would indi-
cate the approach Of the Russian arm
les. There were rumors two days ago
that Cossacks had been seen few
miles east OF Breslau.
Dispatches from Rome. Petrograd
and Amsterdam confirm today preyi-
Gus limitations that all attempts to
hold the Russians within Galacia and
Poland until the combats in the west
are decided have failed, and that the
Germans. Withdrawing from Russian
territory are combining with such
Austrian forces as have escaped cap
ture or disintegration in final effort
to block the Russians from Prussia
and Silesia-
II is now certain that the Russian
advance is double movement. a
great army is moving westward from
Warsaw and the south for the pur-
pose OF striking at Posen, while an
other army, released from Galicia by
the collapse of Austrian resistance, is
cooperating by an advance against
Cracow. IL is conservatively estimat-
ed that the Russian strength in the
two armies is not less than 1900. 600.
this exclusive of the reserves held to
guard Galicia and Russian Poland
and to complete siege operations.
There are reliable reports, also, that
Russia, having now at the front
troops ample for the invasion of Ger
many, is assembling second line of
100000.
Details supporting such progress of
the Russian advance were supplied to
day by the correspondents of Roman
and London newspapers. The Pctro-
grad correspondent OF the Central
News cables via Rome that a force of
Cossacks is already near Cracow. the
gateway to Silesia. 1t is assumed of
this cavalry is many miles in advance
of the main Russian army in Galicia.
but the presence OF Cossacks so far
westward emphasizes the swiftness
OF the Russian movement.
The Russian minister OF war an
nounced today that Russian advance
through Galicia has arrived at the
river Wistoka. which runs north and
south about sixty-five miles east of
Cracow and bisects the main line OF
the railroad from Lemberg to the Ger
man frontier. II is asserted also that
large Austrian field force is still re-
sisting south and west OF Pfzemysl.
now being bombarded by the Rus
SLAMS; but since the Russians to the
no.thward are much farther toward
Cracow. il is assumed that this force
is practically surrounded. The great
er part OF the routed Austrians have
been rctreating toward Cracow in an
attempt to combine with the Ger
mans.