Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-01-12
REFUGEES FLEE BEFORE
BULGARS TO SALONTCA

| Continued from Page One
rians are driving the Allies back toward
| SalonIca.
You can always believe him, this man
with his family travelling out IN the cold
/ and the mud, with the worried face and
/ the perplexed soul; he doesn't leave his
| home and his farm until he must; until
the guns are booming and the shells are
| ploughing his farm for him. When he
| goes YOU may be sure the enemy is COM
| ing on behind him and that the army Of
his country is In retreat. I've seen him
| In Gallcia, France, Italy, Serbia, Greece.
| He has never lied. His presence always
| means retreat"
Being a Serbian, his Christmas will
| come on January Z. Small chance Santa
Claus will have to get down the chin
ney of this mans home this year. On
the outskirts OF Salonica this afternoon
men are erecting tents, In n muddy field,
for the Serbian refugees and their
families. Within the last six weeks near
ly half a million dollars OF American and
British money has been sent here for such
an emergency, and today, for the fret
time. the money is being put to use.
TRANSPORTS LEAvE.sHARBoR.
The harbor Of Saionicn is almost empty
of boats, though usually IL Is full For
several days 46 transports. loaded with
troops who had newly come to Salonica
and who had not dsembnrked, lay In the
harbor. Now they have gone, troops and
all. No one in salonica knows where
People are speculating about the pos
sibility that the Allies may be driven
clear back and out Of Salonica and forced
to leave Greece II will take at least
three weeks to get away from Saonicn on
ships. There are hundreds OF tons of
wagons, cannon ammunition. foodstuffs.
shovels. lumber, horses. portable houses
and camp fittings to be loaded onto the
boats as II 10000 circuses rolled into one
were moving. And there are tens of thou
sands Of men-perhaps twenty OF them
who must be embarked IL the ALLIES
should decide to withdraw.
II this thing should happen, there will
be three weeks full of fighting. the Bull
garlans pressing against the Allied line
trying to interfere with the embarkation
Salonlca must be rlnged with Allied
trenches and Allied soldiers must be fight
ing to hold back the Bulgars while other
Allied soldiers work like bees at loading
the ships.
All this, II the Buigars continue to
press on toward Salonica. Just at
present the allied retreat is In full tide.
The Bulgars are nearing the borders OF
Greece. not much more than 25 miles
from Salonica.
To have view of this 6O-mile strip of
retreat to hear the Bulgarian guns BOOM
ing. and to stand beside the French and
British guns as they answer: to sit be-
side the temporary campfire of retreatng
French soldiers and tn,K TO them OF home
and of wl..s the future holds for them
and their country; to sleep In n tent be-
side railroad where. Throughout. the
night the thunder of trains carrying sup
plies and wounded soldiers back to the
safety OF Salonica. shook the ground; to
cross bridges which were LOADED" with
dynamite and were to be blown up within
"a hours: to chat with group after group
of steel-casqued French zouaves who
came, on foot trudging slowly but stead
lily toward Greece, with grim faces, but
affable greetings to chat with British
soldiers who knew that -he next day
would see them moving in that direction
which n British soldier i-A'es-the dlrec-
tion away from the enc.ny-nine days of
all this association with the Allied with
drawal leaves on my mrd the impression
that have had some monstrous dream
all on the same theme. but full of n
weird mixture of small detail.
REPORTS REVEAL LITTLE.
There is play and fun mixed up in this
story, we'll as tragedy and sorrow.
When the communicates use the simple
word retreat" or retirement" they ar,
and human emotions, and to see this
activity and behold the human emotions
at work under such circumstances is an
opportunity which, / believe. few war
reporters have had in this war
My experience began on the afternoon
of December 2 in the office of Gen. Sarrail
when he said: Would you like to see
the allied front in Serbian"
When I answered in the affirmative he
put his hand on my shoulder and pushed
me to one side OF the room, where he
had herded few correspondents. After
he had collected us into favored group, |
he said. rubbing his right hand through !
his gray. curly hair: please be at the
railroad station at Z o'clock in the morn |
ing. An officer will be there to take |
charge Of you. You shall see Krivolak. |
where the French are fighting the Bull |
garians. and you shall also see the Brit
ish front. Good day. gentlemen, and bon |
chance"
See the British front! The British had |
refused us permission. British fronts in |
this war have been hard to get to. Every
British officer from Kitchener Down, has |
been against correspondents seeing the /
British front The fog of war had hidden |
the British front more than any other. !
And now we're to see the British front |
with the permission of a French general |