The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1916-02-21
DUKE NICHOLAS
HAS THE TURKS
ON THE RUN
RUSSIANS ADVANCE ALONG THE
BLACK SEA COAST-SHELL FIRE
FROM FLEET ASSISTS LAND
FORCES-NEAR TREBlzOND.

Petrograd, Feb 2O.-Via London) )-
Grand Duke Nicholas, commander of
the Russian forces in the Caucasus,
has left Tiflis for Erzerum.
Petrograd, Feb. 2O.-The Russians
are pressing the advantage gained at
Erzerum on both flanks. On the right,
along the Black Sea coast, by the co
operation OF the sea and land forces
they are driving the Turks from one
position after another to the east of
Trebizond and it is expected that act
i've operations against that important
seaport will not be long deferred.
In the last two days the Russians
have occupied Wilde (Widje) and
pressed forward ten or twelve miles
westward. The fleet has destroyed in
succession several shore batteries
which might have been of assistance
! to the Turks, and by keeping well in
advance of the land forces, and by
destroying bridges over several
streams in the path of retraating
| Turks, has rendered their retreat more
difficult, The fleet has been working
so close to the shore that the war
ships have been reached by rifle fire
| from the Turkish troops On the other
hand, the ships have spread confusion
in the ranks of the Turks by dropping
shells among them.
| On the left flank, after the occupa-
tion Of Koph, the Russians pushed on
to Mush and Achlat, the latter on the
north shore of Lake Van. From Koph
to Mush, sixty miles over mountain
roads, they fought several battles and
occupied Mush by storm.
Days March from Baadad.
The Turks fled southwark toward
Diarbekr the next objective of the
Russian army. Once in possession of
Diarbekr, it is only a days march to
the Bagdad railway, the last remain
ling communication into Syria.
The rapid Russian offensive beyond
Erzerum, it is believed here makes it
probable that the retreat of the Turk
ish corps operating along the Black
sea coast, and of those troops which
We're active in the Mush district be
fore the Russian occupation, will be
entirely cut off and that the main Tur-
kish armies would be surrounded
This fate has already overtaken the
Thirty-iourth division of the Tenth
corps, which was ordered from Olti to
Erzertm before the fall of the fortress.
As telegraphic communication between
this group of Turkish forces and the
garrison at Erzerum had been entirely
destroyed by the Russians, the Thirty
fourth division marched serenely on
to Erzerum without suspicion that the
fortress was then about to surrender
H'9C IIOpp0 Itd'uNu EIHtIuln from
the northwest and at the very moment
that the Deye-Boina line of forts fell
into Russian hands, and the army
which they had come to aid was in
full retreat The road over which
they had passed was instantly occu-
pied by Russian cavalry and as they
were copletely surrounded, there was
no alternative but TO surrender with
arms, equipment and artillery.
1t is regarded as almost inevitable
that the Turkish crops retiring along
the BLACK sea coast under the destruc-
tive fire of the Russian fleet and the
pressure of the Russian armies, will be
caught in the same sort of trap as
the Turkish troops falling back from
Wide to Gumish Khaneh still have a
greater distance to 30 than the Rus
sian troops which are advancing from
Erzerum to cut them off.
On the Turkish right flank, where
the Ninth corps is operating. the Turks
find themselves in the same precarious
position, since all the roads of retreat
to the north are gradually falling un-
der Russian control. The retreat of
the Turkish armies everywhere is i'm .
peded by deep snow and the difficult
character Of the country They are
without food and lack war supplies
and there seems to be little possibility T.
Of their offering even temporary re-
sistance Of any strength to the Rus .
sian advance.