Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-10-10
Allies and Greeks Must Rescue Serbia
From Being Crushed Between
Teutons and Bulgars.

1V0SO4kO al
feated the Bulgarians. who had cut the
railroad, and at the same time struck
the main Bu1gar force to the east at
kilkis and drove 1t headlong back upon
Strumnitza. where 1t met one wing of
the army which the Serbs had defeat
ed. and the entire force retreated
through the Struma passes.
A Second Chance.
Now Bulgaria is to have a second
chance: indeed, it is q third chance, for
in 1912 she sent an army south upon
Salonikf which arrived but few hours
after the Greek crown prince had re-
ceived the surrender of the Turkish
commander at Saloniki. Unquestion-
ably the main effort Of the Bulgars
Will be directed at the Nish-Saloniki
railroad, and the nearest point on the
line Tor the Bulgars Is about Guevgheli.
the scene of their temporary success in
1913, and for the moment separated
Serbia from Greece.
There is third railroad which will
play ai an important part in any new
Constantinople railroad. which parai-
lels the Nish- Saloniki line almost to
the Bulgarian frontier south of Strum-
nitza, near Dorian. and then follows
|
and enters Bulgarian Thrace east Of
Drama. On this line must depend the
troops defending the Greek frontier,
defending Kavala and Drama, which
hopes to regain in any conflict; defend
ing Sores, which is at the foot of the
main road from the Aegean to western
Bulgaria, the road up which King Con-
stantine led his victorious armies two
years ago.
Importance Of Railroad.
Unquestionably desperate effort will
be made by the Bulgarians to cut this
line. probably about Sores, and to &C.
cupy the country along 1t, which Is
mainly Inhabited by Bulgars, or was
before the second Balkan war. Such
an operation will doubtless be sun.
ported by another army moving east
aiong this railroad. AS seen BY a glance
at the map. the only way the Bulgae
rams can munition their troops in Mace
trict is by the railroad. This line
comes east from Constantinople to
SaIoniki and enters Bulgar an terri
tory south Of Adrianople, where it con-
nects with the Bulgarian railroad sys-
In the second Balkan war the Greeks
drove the Bulgars north from this line,
through the Struma passes, and the
Sugars were unable to make a sue
feesstui stand until they reached their
Is the end of railroad from Sofia
In sum, we may look for BULGARIAN
onensives striking at Nish from the
s sou no as the Germans strike at it from
railroad. both from Kustendil at Vranja
and from Strumnitza at sGueygheii:
striking at the Constantinople- Saionik;
line In Greek territory. both from Bull
s Gads5 Lhrace toward Drama and from
Macedonia toward Sores and Doiran,
south Of Strumnitza Bulgarias mis-
sion will thus be to isolate Serbia while
Germany brushes her. and incidentally
bulgaria will endeavor to occupy as
much as possible Of Serbian and Greek
territory. which she hopes to acquire,
With German help. when the war ends.
What Greece Will Do.
Now the immediate object of Greece
must be to retain her own territory
and defend her own frontiers Her
army, when mobilized. will presumably
take its post along the Constantinople-
Salontkt railroad from Drama to Dorian.
AS Serbia has also offered her the
Guevgheli district as the reward for
fulfilling her treaty obligation to Ser
bia and entering the war. it is natural
to expect that portion of King Con-
stantine's forces will stand along the
Nish salonikl railroad and defend it
from the Bulgar attack originating
about Strumnitza.
Roughly speaking. the Greek army
may be expected to stand from the
mouth Of the Mesta. southeast Of
resting on the two railroads. 1t it
elects to take the offensive 1t will un-
doubtedly strike for Strumnitza and
for the Struma passes. north of Sores,
aiming to roll the Bulgarians back into
the mountains and abolish their threat
to the vital railroad lines n Greek
and In Serbian territory. Such an
operation would be the safest defensive
for both Saloniki and Kavala which
are exposed to landward attack
There remains one other operation
that the Greeks may undertake AS
Bulgaria aims to regain Macedonia.
Greece plans 20 take Bulgarian Thrace
from the Mesta river. east of Drama
to the Martha river, west of Enos
This region was almost wholly peopled
by Greeks before the Balkan wars:
Dedeagatch was occupied by the
Greeks in the second war. and the sur
render of this territory to the Bulgars
at Bucharest was bitterly opposed in