New-York tribune., 1918-05-05
Mountain Heights Capt
ured in Drive From
Salonica
Bulgarian Troops
Badly Defeated
Tactics of Victorious Army
Are Explained in
Interview

WASHINGTON May 4.-The i'm
portance of recent Serbian victories
and their possible effect upon the course
of developments in the Salonica cam
paign were explained to-day by Cor
don Gordon Smith representative of
the Serbian government in Washing
ton. The fresh victories Of the Serbs,
he declared, are taking the Allies
within measurable distance of cutting
the Berlin -Constantinoplc railway. lie
said:
"The recent Serbian victory on
as it Will etfectually loosen the Bul-
garans hold on the Dobropolje, the
last stronghold in their hands which
bars the advance of the second Serbian
army under command of Field Marshal
Stepanovtch, on to Serbian soil.
"1n order to understand the task
which lay before the Serbian army and
the work it has accomplished one must
consider the Typographical disposition
of the Salonica front.
Salonica's Position
"Salonica, on the gulf, has as hinter-
land large plain, on to which de-
bouch two valleys. TO the east this
plain runs up to the plain of the Mog-
lene, which is barred toward the north
by frowning range of giant noun
tains, in the centre of which lies the
kaymakchalan, the highest peak of the
balkans. After running eastward along
the base of this range for about forty
miles the plain of the Moglene reaches
the plain of Monastir, and thence runs
northward for about thirty miles be-
tween two ranges of mountains.
Hkirhfnon rnOntbc ho Cor1,;
army was given the mission Of clearing
the Bulgarians and the Germans out of
the plain of Moglene and the plain Of
Monastir. After four months hard
lighting the enemy was driven from the
plain of Mogelene into the mountains
and the whole Serbian army advanced
to the base of the range.
Three Sectors Established
"Three sectors were established
That to the extreme RIGHT was intrust-
Marshal Stepanovitch, who established
his headquarters in the little village of
Dragamantzi. The central sector was
given to the third army, under General
Vasitch, who had his headquarters at
Ostrove, on the lake of that name
while the first army under Field Mar
shall Misitch, took up it's position fac
ing Florina, the town which guards the
entrance to the plain of Monastir.
''ln September, 1916, the Serbians at
tackled along the whole line. The Serbs
pushed forward to Vrbeni, twenty miles
from Monastir. The Germans and Bull
village about twelve miles from Mon~
astir, and ran their lines of trenches
right across the plain.
1.-The third Serbian army then at
tackled the Kaymakohalan Mountain
stronghold. 1t was intrenched from
base to summit. Foot by foot the Bull
garian army was driven back, until in
the month of October the cloud capped
summit was stormed at the point of the
bayonet. The Bulgarian losses were
terrible The trenches on the summit
were full of the dead bodies of King
Ferdinand's soldiers.
"This success allowed the third army
to descend the opposite slope on to
Serbian soil and occupy the bend of the
Czerna River.
Then the second Serbian army at
tackled several mountain heights in
succession. The operations lasted
four months. One after another these
fortresses fell to the Serbs, with the
exception of the rocky summit of
Mount Veternik, which rises sheer
from the upper crest. This summit.
which the Serbs named the Rock of
Blood, on account of the ferceness of
the struggle for its possession, re-
mained in the hands Of the Bulgarians.
ut was this fact which checked the
further Serbian advance, as it's pos
session made the attack on Dobropolje
height, the mountain running behind
Mounts Polar and Kutunatz, a difficult
If not an impossible task with the
forces at the disposal of Field Marshal
Stepanovitch. Between the summit of
the Polar and the Dobropolje lies a
narrow valley, across which the Serbs
had to advance, and the fight
ing was most desperate. To the
left of Dobropolje lies precipi-
tous mountain, shaped like a sugar
loaf, called the Sokol. This was in
the hands of the Bulgarans. The Ser
bian force advancing to frontal at
tack of the Dobropolje was, therefore,
under cross fire from the Bulgarian