New Britain herald., 1920-01-16
Red Russian Armies Successful And Now On Threshold of Iudia, Persia And Asiatic Turkey
FALL OF POLAND
 WOULD BE DISASTER

London, Jan. 16.-yAttcntion of the British people is fixed on the Near East where recent Bolshevik sue cesses have carried the Red Russian armies along up to the threshold of India. Persia, Mesopotam:a and Asi- atic Turkey. Cabinet members and chiefs of the British army and navy are today in Paris, Whither they were hastily summoned yesterday and are conferring with Premier David Lloyd George on military and naval mat ters in connection, it isr believed, with conditions in southwestern Asia.
 Apprehension was aroused by the issuance of semi official staten ent t yesterday pointing out the situation that has arisen through the collapse of Gen. Denil<ine's army in southern Russia, and Bolshevik penetration Of trans Caspia. Not only was it ad- nitted the menace from q Russ ian Bolsheviki invasion of the near east was very real, but it was pointed out that internal conditions in Persia, Turkey and AfghaniStan were threat ching. In Mesopotamia, too, the Brit ish are forced to contend with dif- faculties arising from racial dissension It was said that a soviet advance that captures the Crimea' would nuke tho Black sea virtually a Russian Bolshe- Vik lake and it was further indicated that Great Britain could hope for lit tie help from the new republics of Georgia, DGGhcstan and Azerhaijan. which are directly in the path of the Soviet advance.
 FaH of Poland a Mcnacc.
 4 h l,C Bolsheviki may launch an overwheln ing attack against Poland. the state ment issued yesterday showed tho greatest preoccupation of Ctficia ldom was, over the debacle of Denikine'S armies and the rapid advance of tho Soviet forces towards the Persian and Afghanistan frontiers.
 The situation which now comforts Great Britain and more or less Japan and China, is not of sudden growth, however. For the last two months ol more the BolsheViki have had an almost unbroken series of successes which have swept them forward on all fronts where their forces are believed to be formidable.
 Kolchak Completely Defeated.
 Admiral Kolchak's army in Siberia seems to have been com pletely de-
  are today far east of Krasnoyarsk and are moving nearer Irkutsk. While reports from Siberia have dealt almost entirely with operations along the Siberian railroad, occasional ad- vices have indicated the BolSheVik: have moved far south of that line and have esta blished themselves near the Mongolian frontier southwest of Irk- utSk.
 Further to the southwest, the Soviet forces have passed AkmolinSk and are believed to have moved southWard and eastward toward the frontier of Chinese Turkestan. The capture of Bokhara less than 200 miles from the Afghanis,tan border was announced from Moscow a week ago and it WIS said KrasnodoVsk, on the eastern shore of the Caspian Sea was firmly in the hands of the Red forces. Thus from the Yenisei river to the Caspian, a distance of moro than 2,2O0 miles. the Bclsheviki seem to be quite firmly established. From this line 1t Woult- appear they might be able to essay incursions toward China, to the south- cast or AfghGnistan and India, to tlt south. Persia lies south of the Cas- plan Sea, and BolshcVik agents arc said to be active there.
 Odessa IIcmmGI In.
 Odessa is hemmed in by the RedG who have moved southward until they have drawn the lines across. the baso of the Crimean peninsula from Nlko- pol to MelitOpol.
 Thinly yelled threats to resort to methods of terrorism should the Bol- sheviki be opposed by the Entente arc contained in d wireless message re ccivcd here from Moscow. It is said capital punishment will be inflicted upon enemies of the Soviet govern ment only when sentences are ap- proved by the allRussian cXtraordl- nary commission. but q return to wholesale executions was hlnted should the Entente nations take steps