New-York tribune., 1917-05-05
On The Salonica Front
Bv Gordon Gordon-Smith

20, from, submarines on their seven days
yovagc from Marseilles 70 Salonica. The re-
turn VOYAGE took up as much time ana eN-
poqod tbem TO cqual risks. But few weeks
ago somebody discovered the egg OF Colum-
bus" and perceived that II troops ana stores
o,oro transported by rail 10 Taranto, IN
Southern italy. they could be transported by
.ca ,o Greece in few hours steaming. IN
copseouence n clause was put IN the recent
ultimatum 10 King Constantine demanding
tho right for the Allies TO land troops ana
stores at tea in the Gulf Of Cornth' Inc
Italians have also completed a route cross
able between Sante Quarante and Monastlr,
by which motor lorries can convey stores ana
troops can be marched As Sante Quarante
10 onlv three or four hours steaming from
Bari and other italian ports the submarine
danger is reduced TO a minimum, and as the
same vessels can 20 backward and forward
several times in the week, there - thus
diminution in the demands on tonnage
Another objection raised against the Sa-
lonca front was the want Of means OF COM
munication and the difcuty Of supplying an
army in the field There is no doubt that
Macedonia offers many difficult problems for
transport officers, but there are none Of them
insuperable. Eighteen months ago there were
few roads and railways. But this has been
70 n great extent remedied Hundreds ot
thousands of men have been at york for the
last year and a half and thousands OF kilo-
metres OF roads and hundreds Of kilometres
Of light railways have been constructed
Mountains on which a year ago there were
only sheep paths, arc now accessible FOR
heavy artillery.
I have spent the last eight months with
the Serbian army and have followed the
operations of the Second Army in the Moglene
mountain range: of the Third Army, on the
Kaymakchalan (when It forced its way over
that 12,OO0-foot giant Of the Macedonian
crests and reached the valley OF the Czerna
Reka). and the operations Of the First Army
under Field Marshal Mishitch, which cul-
minated in the capture Of Monastlr Inc
Serbs have proved that the mountain nature
of the country offers no insuperable DIM
culties to military operations. Proof Of this
was already given six years ago, when the
Balkan States attacked and defeated Turkey
in the mountains and on the Plains Of Mace
donia, in which the army Of the Orient IS
now operating
In the Fever Zone
But probably the most imperative reason
for an energetic offensive is the absolute
necessity for the army Of the Orient TO push
forward out Of the fever stricken plains OF
Salonica II it is kept on the front it at
present occupies it is going toward disaster.
The malaria which RACES on these plains IS
one of the worst forms of malaria tropica.
Any soldier attacked by it is incapacitated
for weeks, perhaps months.
II General Sarrail's force does not push
forward out of the fever zone there will not
be hospital ships enough to repatriate the
sick or hospitals in Salonica for their treat
ment A few short miles from its present
front the army Of the Orient will be in
healthy country. Last year the German Bul-
garisn armies in the upper plateauX looked
on Mt the army Of Salonica melting away in
the fever stricken plains below. Unless the
army moves forward out Of its present posi-
ton the reinforcements sent to it recently
will only serve to provide fresh victims for
malaria.