The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-11-06
GREEKS HAVE HARD
 JOB IN ANATOL|A
Winter Campaign Likely to Be Disastrous In Bar
 ren Country

DIuSds AoAd AAAAAOAg OSbObOA As- Ae problem of holding, throughout the autumn and winter. the large area ir Anatolia the Greeks occupy since their advance in Angora has beer checked appears to be a serious one In the judgment of competent mili- tary critics, 1t will not be possible unless the Greeks are able to erect l barracks or other shelters suitable for the rains and heavy snows which are bound to ensue.
 A great part of this territory is devoid of living abodes of any kind To shelter the troops in tents during the cold months will be out of the question. The making of earth dug outs might solve the problem, but the country furnishes absolutely no wood or other fuel.
 Some observers go as far as to pre- dict that if the Hellenic forces at- tempt to hold this vast area during the winter they will repeat Napoleon disastrous retreat from Moscow. When the Greeks set themselves the task of reaching Angora through a long detour south of the Sakaris river, they had very imperfect con ception of the real typographical fea- lures of the country. They depended
  been made 25 years ago and which In many cases gave no indication of the mountainous character and physical obstacles of the country.
 Once they drove the Turks east of the Sakaria, they believed their way would be relatively easy. But they found their adversaries strongly en- trenched in commanding ridges of the hills and mountains which were all but impregnable. It was from these dominant positions that the Turks poured down upon the Greeks on the plains and valleys a whitening ma chine gun and artillery fire which only superhuman effort could have overcome.
 The Greek losses in dead and wounded are estimated at more than 15,O00. The Turkish casualties are believed to be somewhat less. The prisoners taken by the Greeks num- bered approximately .1,500.
 The exhaustion of the Greek troops after their several hundreds of miles of marching and their 16 days battle was another vital reason that prompted the Greek general staff to halt the struggle against the kemal- ists. It was clear the Greek troops could not have gone on much longer. Not only were they greatly enervated by their long, hard marches over desert-like land, but they had insufficient food. water and sleep.
 It is also undeniable that some of them were badly shaken by the fierce, unrelenting fighting of their foemen and the heavy losses among their comrades and officers. In some in- stances they refused openly to go for ward until assured of adequate pro tection of their Hanks and proper ar tillery support. All this was perhaps perfectly natural in struggle against an enemy in his own country and who had so many points in his favor.
 The necessity of shortening their lines of communication, embracing hundreds of kilometers of sandy, hilly roads, constituted the fourth impor- tant factor which made 1t seem wise to stop the campaign. The Greeks had sufficient motor trucks and other vehicles. but it took days for muni- tions and supplies to reach the front And their supply trains were con stantly menaced by bands of Turkish irregulars which infested the noun tain sides. It was found extremely difficult to move the heavy guns and to get adequate quantities of muni- tions to the front in time to be of use.
 Both sides fought with great valor and determination. The Kemalists were conscious that their capital was in danger. and they put all their strength and spirit into the struggle Their counter attacks were especially daring and brilliant. The work of their artillery, too, was of high or der.
 The Greeks, flushed with their suc- cesses at Kutahia and Eski-Shehir, attacked with all the energy and self confidence of victors. They bore without complaint the great hard ships and privations Incident to a campaign in a strange, difficult and inhospitable country. If they failed in their ambition of reaching Angoya 1t was not because of inherent weak ness in themselves. but because they faced an opponent quite as brave and resolute as themselves and encoun- tered physical barriers which 1t re- quired greater strength than theirs n oyercona