Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1921-03-10
THE DARDANELLES

Provision has been made for an in
ternational force along the Darda-
nelles to guarantee free passage to
ships of all nations through the
straits and the Sea Of Marmora.
Even our own Mississippi or Penn
sylvania some day may rest at anchor
in this deep, swift strait, 81 miles in
length, between the goose-neck penin-
sula of Gallipoli and the mainland of
Turkey, or steam into the Sea of Mar
mora and thence to the Bosphorus, for
the American jackies to "Oh" and
"Ah !" at the mosques and minarets Of
Constantinople in the distance.
Mention of the Dardanelles conjures
before the American mind the story Of
a fierce and interest-cOmpelling fight
in 1915 and 1916 and history which
trails back into dim neurological times
when Leander swan across its three
fourths mile width at, Abydos every
night to tell the same old story" to
Hero, who hung her light out to in
form him she wanted to hear it.
Lord Byron, not to be outdone as
a swimmer by his predecessor, "did"
the Hellespont in 1910. Though it was
regarded as rather a prOdigious feat
when these two accomplished it, many
modern athletes could don their trunks
and visit their lady loves and regard
the effort as a part Of their training to
keep physically fit.
Xerxes, in 4S0 B. c., having an IN
canny feeling that his thousands Of
Persians were not Billingtons and
Kellermans, lashed boats together as
a bridgeway, which Herodotus tells us
groaned for seven days and nights,
during the unloading of Asiatics on the
soil of Europe Alexander the Great,
about 100 years later, before he was
reduced to tears at the failure of the
world to provide him excitement, tried
out the thrill Of Xerxes by leading his
Macedonians into Asia.
The approach by which the Ameri-
can soldier and sailor will enter Con-
stantinople may well be likened to the
entrance to a dwelling house-the OAR
/, danelles being the outside or storm
door, the Sea of Marmora the vesti-
bule and the Bosphorus the inner
door.
This storm door, which is about the
width of the Hudson river, is COM
manded by the Dardanelles castles
built by Mohammed II in 1470. One
fort is on the European side and one
on the Asiatic. Many guide books pub
lished before 1914 carried this ON
inous and prophetic sentence: "The
castles on both sides have been lately
restored and armed with Krupp guns"
According to the treaty of July, 1841,
and the Paris peace Of 1856, no for
eign ship of war was allowed to en-
ter the strait without the permission
of Turkey, and merchant vessels only
during the daytime.
On the Asiatic side a short distance
from the fort lies the town Of Darda-
nelles, which was named for Darda-
nus, the NEUROLOGICAL ancestor of the
Trojan king, Aeneas, and hence of
the Roman people. This city of $1,000
inhabitants, situated prettily on a fer
tile stretch of land, is the point from
which most of the excursionists start
for the plains Of Troy, a short dis
tance beyond. Here, too, ships must
stop to show their papers, the num-
Der of merchant vessels alone during
single year numbering more than
1900.
Across on the European side is
Gallipoh or beautiful town." 1t was
the first European town to be cap
tured by the Turks in 1857. Superbly
located On the steep projecting coast
of the Gallipoli peninsula, it commands
a view Of the Asiatic side-the plains
of Troy and the broken foothills of
Mount Ida. On this narrow peninsula
| in April, 1915, allied forces were landed
in an attempt to capture the Darda-
nelIes. When the floods drove the Brit
ish soldiers from their trenches like
rats out of holes Turkish snipers on
the hills above picked them off almost
as fast as they appeared. The cam
paign was abandoned in January, 1916.