The weekly times-record. (Valley City, N.D.) 1912-1922, 1915-10-14


to have opened hostilities against Bull
garia by bombardment of the por
of Varna. This information is con
tanned In an Amsterdam dispatch re
ceived here at midnight, which says
the Cologne Gazette is authority fol
the statement that two Russian
cruisers are actively bombarding the
Bulgarian port of Varna."
This news follows the beginning IN
earnest of the long threatened Aus
tro-Ger1nan offensive in the Balkans
Almost simultaneously with the rup
ture of diplomatic relations between
Sogia and the entente powers, an
austro. German army estimated al
400 900 with an enormous weight OF
artillery, started to attack Serbia from
the north and the west and, accord
ing to the Berlin official report, cross
ed the Drina, Danube and Save at
many points and firmly established it
self on the Serbian side.
The Anglo-French troops which
were landed at Saloniki with the tacit
consent of the Greece government, are
being hurried northWard through Ser
bia if possible to keep the Bulgarians
from capturing the Saloniki-Nish rail-
road, the only source by which the
Serbians can be fed with munitions of
war
The hope for support from Greece
has not been forthcoming, King Con-
stantine by the dismissal of Premier
Venezilos having shown that, while
his country's sympathies are with the
cause of the Allies, he is not prepared
to 20 against the Central powers or
10 fulfill the obligation of the Greek
Serbian treaty of alliance which pro.
ydes that one ally must go to the as
sistance of the other in the case Of at
tack.
A new Greek cabinet composed Of
men of pro-German and pro-Ally SYM
pathies has been appointed and the
the French made their big gains late
in September, is still the main district
expectation now is unless public opin-
ion forces the hand of the govern
ment and insists on action on the side
of the Allies, Greece will remain neu-
trail.
1t is hardly conceivable to the en-
tente diplomats that Greece will go
over to the Central powers, for, they
point out, Bulgaria is known to covet
SOME of her territory and the treat
plent of Greek nationals in Turkey
makes it virtually impossible for her
to become an ally of that country.
: As in Greece, public opinion in
Bulgaria is not entirely unanimous in
support Of King Ferdinand and reports
indicate that the Bulgarian mobili-
zation is not being carried out with
out difficulty. The king and premier,
however, have thrown in their lot
with Austria, Germany and Turkey,
having, after consultation with the
members of ministers of those coun-
tries, rejected the demand of Russia
for the dismissal of the Austro-Ger.
man officers, who, it is alleged, have
been engaged to command the Bulgar
ian army. Bulgaria, in fact, denied
the presence of such officers, and the
Russian, British, French and Italian
ministers have either left or are leav
Ing Sofia. Italy has taken action also
by giving the Bulgarian minister al
Rome his passport.
1t is possible that Bulgaria may
avoid arousing the & Greek people by
refraining from attacking Serbia, sim
ply keeping her troops on the border
This would have the effect of prevent
ing Serbia. from bringing full strength
to bear against the Austro-G German at
tack "a e
Rumania, the other Balkan state
Is still neutral. Like Greece, for tn
moment, she is, bent on. continuin!
friendly relations with all the bellig
erents.: Doubtless to influence her AM
the other Balkan states, Russia is re
ported to have commenced an ene1
getic offensive in Bukowina and t.
have attacked the Austrian position
northeast of Czernowitz.
At the other end of the easter
front, the German offensive agains
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