Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-09-06
THE FIGHTING TURKS.

LldNC bSSA AA5
no small proportions. They have
been fighting Great Britain,
France, Russia, Persia, Arabs,
Greeks and Servians. For the past
two years they have been fighting
the Greeks alone, and getting the
best of the fighting also. 1t is
considered an axiom in modern
warfare than a country cannot
fight without money or credit.
Turkey has neither. 1t has had
neither for a long time. Mes
opotamia and the rich valley was
torn from them by Great Britain
and Palestine and Syria were seiz-
ed and occupied by France and
England. The new Arab kingdom
took Mecca and the holy places of
Islam from the Turk and the great
desert tribes revolted and joined
the Arab kingdom. Russia took
large part of Armenia. The allied
fleets took Constantinople, and the
Greeks drove the Turks back from
the narrow seas into Anatolia. The
Turks seemed cornered and sur
rounded by enemies, without
money or credit anywhere. Yet
they kept on fighting. Moreover
they grew stronger instead of
weaker, and step by step they
! drove the Greek army back over
ground they had conquered. The
Greeks were given the province OF
Smyrna in Asiastic Turkey at the
conclusion of the war by the al
lies. 1t lies on the Mediterranean
coast opposite a lot of islands set
tied by Greeks and already claimed
by Greece before the war. The
Greeks promptly pushed their arm
les west of Smyrna and almost to
! Angora, the seat of the Turkish
nationalist government which was
; all that was left of Turkey after
, the allied fleet took Constantine
pic. The sultan still resides there
: under the guns of allied warships
: but all real power passed to tht
! Angora government and the gen
eral of the fighting Turks at An
CORA. Recent dispatches tell OF
big battle and three army corps o.
the Greek army smashed and dis
persed while Broussa has been oc
e cupied by the Turks. This IS
city only about 20 miles from thu
: Sea of Marmora, and about a hun
bred miles south of Constantinople
n 1t is an ancient and historical cit.
d once the residence of kings o
e Bithynia Turkish soverigns resides
c there in the Fourteenth century. l
: brings the victorious armies o
D." Renal, the Turkish general, yer,
d near to the borders of Smyrna an
l. must occasion much alarm a
Athens.
e The Greek campaign against tn
S. Turks was made without the sane
o ton of the allies and against thel
o advice by the Greeks. Conse
:e o~uently they are not likely to re
ie ceive any financial aid from FL
n rope. In fact the Greek finance
d are at a very low ebb, but the
u could not be worse then the I
l. nances of the Turks. The latte
'e seem to be able to raise and equi
lie armies without money or credl
Perhaps the Greeks can do tt
st same. Meantime their campaig
against the Turks in Asia has CON
Of TO a sad end. More armies WI
st have to be raised and transporte
N to Smyrna before they can hope
i'd retrieve their losses, or perhaE
is even to retain their hold O
n SMYRNA. That is the name OF or
I'd of the finest seaports on the Med
r. terranean west of Asia. 1t is ais
lie the name of a province of abo'
I'd twenty-five thousand square mile
is and two and one half million soul
a About a million of these are
ID Greek blood. AS the province
&c rich in mineral wealth as well
v food products the Greeks will
he doubt make every effort to reta
nd it. To the American citizen ii
ng name is familiar mostly because
If produces the finest figs in Il
ty world. Full details of the Veto
it of the Turks has not reached al
ne perhaps will not reach us tor
We long time. The Turks have no pu
he licity agents. But as the loss
to Broussa is admitted at Athens
he we'll as the defeat of their army,
Id. seems likely that the Turkish vi
,ol tory is a very decisive one. Xii
in Constantine whom the Greeks 7
ad called has been conducting tt
he Asiatic campaign in person. 1t