Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-26
SLAVS ALSO EVACUATE
BIALYSTOK. is REPORT
Teutonic Invaders Rapidly Gaining
Possession of Important
Railroads.
RUSS SHELL CRISIS Is OVER
Plenty of Munitions Going Forward
and Army Is Said to Be in Splen-
did Fighting Condi-
ton Now. -,

LONDON. August eo.-The
Russian fortress of Brest Litovsk
has been captured by Teutonic
forces. Announcement to this ef-
lect was made today by the Ger
man army headquarters staff.
German and Austro-Hungarian
troops stormed the works on the
western and northwestern front
and succeeded last night in en-
terinS the center fortress. The
Russians. the statement adds.
then gave up the fortress.
The invaders OF Russia. with
| Ossowetz safely in their hand. are
now rapidly gaining the whole
triangular railroad system which.
with its apex at Bialystok. also
serves Grodno and Ossowetz.
The mass OF heavy artillery freed
by the fall OF Ossowetz and kov-
no is now being brought against
Grodno. but not without great
difficulties.
| According to the Times Petro-
grad correspondent. the Russians
have already evacuated Bialystok.
but will continue to hold Grodno
until the bulk OF the armies of the
grand duke have reached their ap-
i pointed positions to the east of
/ Wilma.
Bialvstok Is Russian fortress
town on the borders OF Litflania
and Poland. some fortv-tive miles
southwest OF Grodno 1t is the
junction point OF the railroad line
running from Warsaw to Pctro-
grad and from the East Prussian
frontier to Brest Litovsk and
southeast.
Shell Crisis Is Over.
The shell crisis in Russia is over. ac-
cordiAg to an announcement made BY
Chairman ShinSareff of the duma de-
fense committee to the Daily Chroni-
cle's Petrograd correspondent. The
quantity of munitions. the statement
continues. has been more than doubled
and all necessary supplies are going
forward promptly. The Russian army
now is in splendid fighting condition. if
is stated. and the machinery Of the in
ternal administration is gradually be-
ing adapted to the new conditions.
The word evacuation. says the
correspondent, lis losing its terrors in
the minds of the people who are be-
ginning to regard the idea of some
what protracted mobility as feasible
military scheme
New Phase Beginning.
The Daily Mails Petrograd corrs-
spondent also telegraphs in opti-
mistic vein. He says a new phase of
the Russian operations is now begin
ming, in which the Russians will have
two useful allies. namely. autumn mist
and autumn mud.
Already" says the correspondent
seven Teutonic armies in many places
are fioundering through marshy dis
tricts where there is a thick fog in
the morning and evening, and where
the rains are turning the roads into
deep mud Amid the lakes and bogs
where the operations must now take
place the Germans Will often be Obliged
to move in narrow causeways under
the concentrated fire of the Russian ar
tillery. which thus will be able to in-
iict terrible losses at small cost The
her
man airTnen feeling out the Russian
positions.
Will Make Stand.
An indication of what the Russians
will do is given in an official announce
ment that the time has come for the
Russian armies to select A suitable po-
sition upon which to remain until il
can he made to serve a point of de-
parture for decisive advance. In
other words. the Russians plan to d'S
themselves into fortified defensive
front such as exists in the west
Russians Prepared
to Continue Retreat
on Brest Lit0vSk's Fall
PETROGRAD, August o6-Should
German fianking operations succeed at
Brest Litovsk. Russian war Office offi-
cials forecast the evacuation of the
fortress. When strategic conditions
so demand" is the semi official COM
ment. "Brest Litovsk will be abau-
doned as easily as we abandoned other
points of support after they had served
their purpose in screening our opera