The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1916-12-07
Conquest Of Rumania Fore
shadows Gigantic Sweeplnto
Russia-Odessa as Objective
SPECTACULAR RACE IS
NOW IN PROGRESS
Won Falkenhayns Legions
Moving Rapidly to Cut OF
Last Avenue Of Escape-Plo-
esci In German Hands

Berlin, via Sayville, Dec. g.
The war Office late this afternoon
issued the following statement:
Bucharest has been captured
by the allied troops of the GEN.
trail powers.
The capture of Ploesci. forty
three miles northwest of the
capital, was announced In an
earlier report.
Yesterday was Field Marshal
Won Macknsen's birthday. He
was 81 years old. 1t was also
exactly one hundred days after
Rummnia declared war on AUS
tria- Hungary.
Bucharest, capital Of Rumanfa,
and ono of the worlds strongest
fortreSses, fell to the Teutons yes
tertiay.
There WAS no siege, not even
regular bombardmcnt. The
fortress fell automatically. There
could be no question OF "A de-
fence after the defenders last
route of escape to the north fell
into the invaders hands with the
capture Of Pbcscf. thirty-tyvo
miles away. When this final
blow was strickland probably
even before that there was hut
one alternative for the shattered
Rumanian forces in the region OF
the capital: To grasp the last
straw offered by the Bucharest
Cernawo1a Railroad, or allow
themselves to be Gagged" in an
utterly hopeless attempt to stay
the fall of Bucharest. Ploesci fell
few hours before the capital
itself was taken.
Spectacular Race Is On.
And now the most dramatic and
race of the whole war is
on Trapped on all sides. its capital
in the invaders hands, its King and
government refuged on the border
prepared to fee to foreign soil. its
rich resources feeding its
pursuers. the Rumanian army is wild
ly dashing toward the last loopho!e.
And there. on the opposite bank OF
the Danube, turks Mackensen's Do
the moment its prospective prey has
close enough--if he
deems is vital to bag thu Ruman-
ians himself He may leave this how
ever, to the northern army of Cen
eral Won Falkenhayn, which is now
racing east.
It is an unfair" race, according to
the sportsman's conception. The Ru-
manians have to cover some l40
miles, the Teutons only eightyfour.
Russia Is Mcnaced.
Such is the Rumanian situation af-
.er the automatic fall of bucharest
,nly as regards the plight OF the
army. AS for the POSSIBLE
ties presented to the team of the
two greatest Teuton strategists. the
picture presented by glance at the
map IS one of gigantic menace to
Russia. For If the great Teuton sweep
continues with the same clock-like
precision that has marked it thus far.
here can be but one result: The
ssta blishment of a Teuton front from
Bucharest to Lemberg-a distance of
some $50 miles-and ultimately from
Braila to the Galician capital This
means that the entire Russian south
.rn front will automatically be push
ID far to the east from where II now
stands. The Pennsylvania Alpine
'idges. the Carpathian mountains, the
and all of Southeastern
ialicia now in Muscovite hands must
,e cleared, while constantly the Teu-
on steamroIler moves nenacingty
loser to the Russo-RumaniaR from
Ter, foreshadowing huge drive
against Bessarabia, with the Black
Sea port of Odessa as the chief objec-
i've
An Apparently Inevitable Course.
The seemingly inevitable course of
his greatest strategical sweep OF this
ind all other wars may be perceived
sven now on the map by following
he railway leading northwards from
1t runs to Ploesci. then
lorthea stward to Buzeu, then north
o where il meets the Sereth. where
Upon it follows that rivers course to
Sernowitz, the Bukowina capital.
hence along the bend of the Pruth to
Koiomea. now In Russian hands, to
1emberg
Siania. seat OF King Ferdinand's
,alatial summer residence, was cap
automatically--by the
reuton Ninth Army. In southwestern
Berlin announced yester-
lay. the Rumanian forces arc RE-
reating in utter confusion"
Tho lighting Of December s, alone.
letted an additional 6.026 prioners to
he invaders. Large Rumanian ship
nents Of wheat consigned to Great
Britain were seized by Falkcnh4yn's
orces on the railroad northwest fronn
Petrogrnd's Frank AdmisaoosA
One Of the outstanding features q
he last two weeks dsvelonsnnn1n -