Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1916-12-08
BUCHAREST TAKEN
BY TEUT0N ARMY;
ENEMY FACES TRAP
Roumanian Forces Near Disaster
in Flight.
RAIL CENTER ALSO CAPTURED
City of PIoechti on Line of Retreat
Seized and Causes Fear That
Ferdinand's Troops May Be
Caught by Mackensen.

Berlin, Dec. 7.-Bucharest, capital
of Roumania, has been captured, it
was announced officially here.
Ploechti, the important railway
junction town, SO miles northwest of
Bucharest, also has been taken.
Field Marshal Won Mackensen's
troops, advancing VIGOROUSLY, APP
preached the railway line running
northward from Bucharest to Ploech-
ii, causing the Roumanians to evacu-
ate their positions north of Sinaia, the
war Office announced.
South of Bucharest the Teutonic
troops have occupied other towns
along the River Alt. More than 5000
Roumanians were captured yesterday.
Retreat Believed Cut of.
The capture of Ploechti, on the rail-
way running north from Bucharest,
cuts the main line of retreat for the
Roumanian armies operating in the
Bucharest region. The official state
ment does not indicate whether the
charest and Ploechti was simultane-
Gus. The capture of Ploechti before
that of the capital would be far more
serious for the Roumanians. Many
military observers looked for the Rou-
manians not to attempt a defense of
the capital TO the last, expecting an
evacuation in time to save the forces
defending it by withdrawal of the
railway route remaining to them.
The taking of Bucharest virtually
completes the conquest by the Teu-
tonic forces of the southern section of
the Roumanian kingdom, embracing
territory Of more than $4,000 square
miles.
Brilliant Success Scored.
The capture of Bucharest marks the
elimination of an operation accounted
by military commentators one of the
most soundly conceived and brilliantly
executed strategical feats of the great
war.
From the hour when Field Marshal
Won Mackensen forced a crossing of
the Danube on November "a and set
foot on Roumanian soil, effecting a
junction shortly afterward with Gen.
Won Falkenhayn's armies, driving
through Wallachia from the west,
there seemed little doubt of the ulti-
mate fate of the Roumanian capital.
The relentless pressure of the Teuton-
ic invading armies, with their prepon-
derance of heavy artillery, proved too
much for King Ferdinand's forces
once the Roumanian front was broken
in western Wallachia and the Danube
crossed behind the line of the north
ern Teutonic invasion.
outfianked Continuously.
Continuously outflanked on the
south by Won Mackensen's advance
and on the north by further Austro-
German irruptions through the noun
tain passes, the Roumanians had no
choice but to fall back upon the line
of their capital, and now have been
forced to yield even that.
The beginning of the Teutonic cam
paign against Roumania dates back
to the Roumanian entrance into the
war on August q. Perhaps taken by
surprise by the speed with which the
Roumanians threw their troops across
the Transylyanian Alps into Hun
gary and took possession of Kron-
stadt, Hermannstadt and a wide
sweep of Hungarian country, the Aus
tro-German military authorities were
awake to the opportunities in Dubrud-
ia on the Roumanian southeast front.
Within few days the Bulgarians
were found to be winning signal sue
cesses along the Danube, capturing
Turtukai on September and Silistria
on September 10.
There remained then the operation
of clearing Dobrudia up to the impor-
tant railway line running into interior
Roumania over the bridge at Tchena-
voda. This Won Mackensen accom-.
plished something more than q month
later, defeating the Russo Roumanian
army and capturing the railway, thus
shutting off Bucharest from direct rail
communication with the Black sea and
cutting the most convenient line fol
sending Russian re-enforeements anf
supplies into Roumania.
Famous Nut Cracker Effective.
This accomplished, there began IN,
process of crushing Roumanla in III,
nut-cracker fashion made familiar h,
the Germans in this war. First tn
ROumanians were pushed back TO +hei
frontier on the north. This was eaSil
accomplished. as the invaders of HIM
gary were apparently ill-equipped +
hold their ground. General Won Fa1
kenhayn. in charge of this operation
then began hammering at the passe
through the Transylvan,9n Alps. whic
it was necessary to carry to reach III
Roumanian plain.
81, 4