The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1916-01-05
TIE VAR LAST WEEK
PROBABLE DEFENCE OF SALON
M IF IT Is ATTACKED

PED0ABLE UEFENeE vi SALUN=
IN IF IT Is ATTACKED
TURKS To GO TO EUROPE
New York Times Expert Says Soldiers
Of Ottoman Empire are Not the
Fighters of Former Days and VIII
be Used by Kaiser Reluctantly Be-
cause Of Deteriorating Influence.
Movements Of greater Importance
have prevented review in these col
umns of the last act on the Serbian
stage-the withdrawal of the French
and British forces from Macedonia to
Saloniki. It seems timely, therefore,
in order that the subject may be
brought up to cate, to make brief
mention of these last moves in Serbia.
When it was evident to the Allies
that they were not strong enough to
take Veles and Uskub and, by open
ing the Katchanik Pass, to establish
contact with the Serbs retreating
from the north, the Franco-British
forces found themselves in a very
serious predicament. They were left
an isolated force, with both flanks in
the air, and against them were great
1yyr ~
bers.
The French held the angle between
the Vardar and the Cerna rivers, in
which practically all Of the French
contingent was concentrated. The
lire extended along the Vardar
through Demir Kapu and thence into
the Strumitza sector, where it was
joined by the British forces, which
held the extreme right.
The ontflanking of this line by the
Bulgarian superiority in numbers was
an easy task and the French evacua-
ton was begun. All the troops and
stores north OF Demir kapu were sue
cessfully removed through the gorge
of that name and the railroad tunnel
near the gorge was blown up. This
blocked Bulgarian pursuit from the
: northwest and forced the Bulgars to
make their principal attack against
the British section Of the line in the
Strumitza sector.
This attack, which cost the British
heavily, forced their retirement to a
very short line from the station Of
5 Strumitza, on the Saloniki railroad,
across the line of hills just north Of
Lake Doiran, to the Greek frontier.
Nothing was to be gained, however,
on this line, and general retirement
consequently was made to the imme-
date ighhorhood Of Saloniki. In
asmuch as the near future may de-
velop an attack on this town, de-
scription of the military elements of
the Saloniki position is timely.
Saloniki is situated at the head of
small gulf or estuary, not on a
peninsula. Any defending line, there
fore, must be almost full circle,
running from a point on the gulf
south of Saloniki, completely around
the city to another point on the Gp-
posite side of the gulf.
While, therefore, it may be used
as another Torres Vedres, the mill
tary situation Will be in no way SINH
lar-Lisbon being on q peninsula,
the Torres Vedras position was de-
Tended by a very short, straight line
running from east to west. It was,
therefore, held by a minimum num-
ber Of troops. The horseshoe shaped
defense line necessary to guard Sa-
loniE requires maximum number
Of troops.
Although OF the coast, Saloniki is
really the centre Of a mountain coun-
try and is surrounded by q series Of
hills and ridges varying in height
from three thousand to six hundred
feet. Where the continuity of the
ridges Is broken as it is north of the
city there is, nevertheless, continu-
Gus line of positions All within sup
porting distance Of each other from
the Paiik Mountains to the ridge of
Bechik Dagh
But this series Of positions is not
enough, as they are all capable Of
being ffanked by an operation along
the Monastir-Saloniki railroad. The
line must, therefore, be extended
south so that both flanks will be
. safely guarded and viii rest on g nat
ural obstacle-the Gulf of Saloniki.
a series Of good defensive posi-
lions exist that would permit such an
extension Of both wings, but it would
make q line considerably over one
hundred miles long, nearer one hum
dred and twenty-five in fact, and the
forces available to the Allies for
Sa2oniki's defense are not sufficiently
great to hold it. The line that the
Allies elect to hold will, Of course, be
thoroughly intrenched, SO that the
: situation on the western front will be
duplicated with the Allies playing the
role Of the Germans.
Germany is holding the western
line with the minimum number OF
men required to prevent an advance.
All the men that can possibly be
spared are needed in other fields,
where the Teutons are much more
active. The western line is about
two hundred miles long and is held
by approximately one million men, or
five thousand to the mile on an aver
age. This number can not be reduced
with safety.
1t can, therefore, be assumed
that If the Allies construct around
Salonik the most modern and ef-
ieient field works-and none other
VIII be safe-as least six hundred
thousand men Will be necessary to
hold the line from the Paiik Noun
tains to Bechik Dagh with the
needed flank extensions.
The Allies, of course, have not nor
{ viii they have any such number of
men in the Saloniki trenches. The
maximum number that they can ex-
pect to utilize for this purpose is
about two hundred thousand. With
this number fixed the only alternative
is the selection Of a position that can
be held with the troops available
position not more than forty miles
long.
Otherwise the defense line will be