Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1916-01-08
WHERE GERMANY GAINS
Keeping Danube Open Enables Traf-
fio to Be Continued with
Austria and Turkey.
FOR COMMERCE
Correspondence Of The Associated Press)


BELGRADE, Serbia, Jan. 5.-what
great military and economic advantages
were gained by the Germans and their
allies with the opening OF traffic on the
Danube, has been shown by the activity
in shipping which developed directly the
Serbs had been driven from the banks
of the river. Fighting along the Danube
was still in progress when tn Austrians
started to clear a channel through the
mine fields which the Russians, Serbs
and English had laid out. Meanwhile
large tows, carrying military supplies
needed by Turkey and Bulgaria, were
being brought down the river from
Austro- Hungarian and German ports and
assembled at Semlin. ready for the min
ute when navigation became possible.
Austrian river monitors. notably the
Sava and Temes. had in the meantime
patrolled the Danube as far as LON
Palanka and later to Ruschuck, both Bull
/garian ports and in so doing had cleared
the river of some Russian armed mer-
chant vessels stationed in the Rouman-
ian port Of Turn-Severin. That these
vessels were not sunk or captured by the
Austrians is due to the fact that. on the
day which the Associated Press corre-
spondent made the trip up the river as
a guest on the sava. they were being
conveyed down stream by Roumanian
monitors. the Russians themselves NY
ing the Roumanian flag
scene OF Activity.
The Bulgarian port Of Lont Palanka
was the scene Of great activity. For over
fifteen months no boats from up stream
had arrived there Now the ietties we're
crowded with barges from Austria and
Germany. On the previous day King
Ferdinand of Bulgaria and Premier
Radoslavoff had ben at LON Palanka to
assist in the resumption OF traffic be-
tween Bulgaria and the central powers,
an event which Germany and Austria
Hungary thought important enough to
have inaugurated by Duke Albrecht of
Mecklenburg, brother-in-law of Emperor
William, who was a passenger on the
first convoy arriving.
For the first two weeks nothing but
military supplies were shipped down
stream. principally arms and ammunition
for Bulgaria and Turkey. Both these
countries stood in need Of heavy artillery
and artillery ammunition. Some OF the
later boats brought a large number of
heavy motor trucks. combat and scout
seroplanes, ambulances and sanitary
supplies. Since then ordinary mer-
chandise has been admitted to shipment
The returning barges and boats carry
raw material OF all sorts and foodstuffs.
During the last few days a regular pas
senger and mail service to Lom PaIanka
has been In operation. until today traffic
on the Danube may be considered normal
with the difference that never before had
1t known such proportions. The military
supplies of which Bulgaria and Turkey
can make use of are many and on the
other hand. Austria-Hungary and Ger
many offer an eager market for the arri-
cultural and animal industry products Of
the two first mentioned countries.
some Anxiety ia Felt.
Some anxiety had been felt in Constan-
unople' and lately. IN Sofia, that the
heavy demand which the war made on
their relatively scant stores of artillery
ammunition might soon create a problem
II would be difficult to solve in case a
free route of communication were not
opened up. This. In fact. was the nrin-
cipal reason why the lons-delayed often
siVe against Serbia was undertaken.
when 1t was. though the attitude OF Bull
garia necessarily played an important
part in this
But German and Austrian war stores
were not the sole factor. The central
powers could make good use of Turkish
ana bulgarian wool, skins. hides, cereals
and copper ores. and Turkey and Bull
garia needed the revenues which would
= come from the sale of these materials.
1t is to be doubted that history ever be-
fore presented an instance in which the
opening of line of commun' cation met
so adequately the needs of four allied
peoples engaged in war, or that from this
condition so urgent a necessity had
sprung
For the first time since the outbreak of
the European war Germany and Aus
tria-Hungary are relatively independent
economically, while Turkey and Bulgaria
now have within their reach an inex-
haustible supply of war materials, mex
haustible today because the German and
Austro-Hungarian arms and ammunition
manufacturers now have access to the
great mineral stores OF the Balkans and
the Ottoman empire.
End of n Shortage,
The shortage OF copper in the central
states has been ended by the taking OF
copper mine near Mlanovac and else
where in Serbia, Bulgaria, too, has a
large number Of copper mines. the best
OF them near Mesdra, on the Mesdra-
LON Palanka branch railroad, and the
Turks can meet any possible shortage
with ores from Anatolia, notably from
the Smyrna region.
Chemical raw material also may be
brought from Turkey in Asia, and a
paucity Of cotton for explosives is now
altogether unlikely. since this staple is
produced in considerable quantities IN
the C1lician plain. 1t is of interest to
learn that even a placer gold field has
fallen into the hands OF the central pow
ers. that near Milanovac. Serbia.
In single day The Associated Press
correspondent saw as many as nine tows
80 down the river. each carrying the
equivalent OF 100 freight cars, giving the
days traffic total of $500 carloads. or
2l5 trains OF average size. For the five
days spent on the river the total cannot
he less than a. 600 "a rioads or ,,-t.h h,,t,-