The Big Sandy news. [volume] (Louisa, Ky.) 1885-1929, 1917-12-14
Jerusalem Captured By British.

Jerusalem was captured by the Brit :
fish troops Monday. aftee a long strug-
gle, much to the JOY OF Christians thru ;
out the world.
The capture mark. the end with two
brief interludes, OF more than 1.20n
years possession OF the seat Of the
Christian religion ny the Mohammed-
ans. For 673 years the Holy City has
been in undisDuted ownership OF the
Turks. the last Christian ruler OF
Jerusalem marks the definite COLLAPSE,
OF the long -protracted efforts uf the
Turks to capture the Suez Canal and
invade Egypt. Almost the first move
made by Turkey after her entrance in
TO the war was a campaign against
Egypt across the great desert Of the
Sinai Peninsula.
In November. 1914 Tlrkish army,
variously estimated at from 10000 to
| 250, 900 men, marched on the Suez Ca
nal and succeeded jn reaching within
striking distance Of the great artificial
waterway at several points. For sew
eral months bitter fighting took place
the canal being defended by an Anglo
Egyrtian army aided by australians
and New Zealai.ders and French and
British forces.
There had peen no hint from either
official or unofficial sources ais to y
British intention to undertake def
mite invasion CT the Holy Land ant
1t was with intense surprise that the
world learned on March i last thai
the British forces had captured K
Khulil, fifteen miles south OF Jerusalem
Ell Khulil is the modern name Of an
ciert He bion. The campaign lapsed in.
to stagnancy through the heated per
iod, but was actively renewed with tn
setting in OF cooler weather last fall.
Early in November the British .ac
tiyity resulted in the capture Of Beer
sheba, forty miles south of Jerusalem,
simultaneously coastal column be
came active BY November 2 the cit.
of GAIA was IN their hands and tn
British were pursuing the Turks north
ward after having inflicted casiialtie
estimated as in excess of 10000.
Push On To Jaffa,
BY this time the British inland fore
was again up in the neighborhood o
Hebron. where the Turks were r.sport
ed organizing for the defense OF Jern
salem. Gen Alienby, the British com
mander. meanwhile kept his force
near the cast in rapid motion an
. pushed on 10 Jaffa, the port Of Jeru
sai=m. in mid November.
BY November 22 The British pushe
within five miles of Jerusalem. on Tn
northwest, and on December GeI
Alienby announced that he had def
mite posses sion Of Hebron. JerusaleI
thus was yirtuslly cut off on all side
but the east.
Few details have come throug
since that date, but the encirclin
movement must have been carried oil
with considerable rapidity culminai
ing in the surrender of the city
In sentimental and romantic aspe,
the capture of Jerusalem far exceed
1.-THE fall of fabl-ecrowned Bagdad. TT
n modern city of Jerusalem contain
4 Iabout 10000 inhabitants and is ii
n nome of pestilence filth and fever
y but in historic interest il naturally SUI
passes, to the Christian world, all oth'
: lplaces in the world.
Since the days when Joshua wreste
I. it frem the hands Of Jebusites to NAL
: II the capital OF the Jewish race, Jerl
salem has been the prize and prey
!. half the races of the world. 1t has pas
: ed successivel,- into the hands of II
Assyrians, Rabylonians, Greeks, r,
/. mans, Psrsians. Arabs, Turks the mo
ley crowds Of the Crusaders, finally
fall before the descendants of thi
Richard the Lior Hearted who stro'
II in vain for its possession more this
Il 700 years ego.