PROGRESS OF THE WAR

New Zealand Times, Volume XLIII, Issue 10086, 27 September 1918, Page 4

PROGRESS OF THE WAR

Tho military critic of the Fans “Matin,” commenting on tho masterly tactics of General Desperoy, which have at one stroke broken np the Bulgarian line of 100 miles in Macedonia, goes into elaborate detail. He makes clear what was suspiciously on the cards yesterday, the impossibility ot any rejunction of tho two Bulgarian ai"inios. Tho Serbian wedge, driving along the Vardar Valley between the divided armies, is driving them further apart with every step of its advance, as it pushes forward its fifteen-mile front. One part of the pierced line must go north-east towards Sofia, the other must go north on the other side of the Vardar in any direction that may be permitted it. Nor is this all, for the wedgo threatens to open out when it reaches the meeting place of many roads, and thrust botn divisions into the roadless mountains, to wander in regions where there are no passes, and be inevitably rolled up and destroyed.

Take the armies under Theodorof, retiring by the Strunmitza river and the valley of the Struma, which loads ro a pass round the western end of the mass of the Khodope Balkan ranges, extending from Seres, along the coast, to Dedeagatch and the valley of the Maritsa, coming down from Adrianople. This mass of mountains is the mountain region described by the “Matin’s" military writer ns devoid of passes—moaning, probably, passes practically for military use. There must surely be paths practicable for goats and men on foot without impedimenta, -In a range so old in historic use that goes without saying. But for guns ana wheeled transport there ean bo no passage at all.

Now suppose that the Serbian and French wedge in the Vardar gets to Voles before the hurrying army of Theodorof. with the British and Greeks in close pursuit behind. The wedge winning the race throws out a column to the eastward, striking the Strumavalley and iprning the heads of the retreating columns out of tho valley, away from the pass leading to Sofia, and throwing them into tho rough country of the Ehodope masses of mountain. If that happens tho army of Theodorof. turned out of the valley and pressed hard bv tho. British advance from Doiran in the Strumnitza and Struma region, is doomed. Everything depends on its fighting condition. It was forced by the thrust oi the wedge behind it in the Vardar valley to retreat. ( It did so hurriedly, leaving detachments to hamper the pursuit of the British and Greeks. But the report did not describe it .as rout, ed or even disorganised. Its retreat was strategic, and if it is well held together it may either reach Voles first or force its wav strongly up to the final pass in the hope of holding it until the whole force can pass to the Sofia sido. The wedge at Veles will resist mightily, and the. British co-operation in the enemy’s rear will not be negligible. But if the retreating enemy is a solid fighting forco its fighting power may save it. If it is unsteady or demoralised nothing will save it. "What is clear, however, is that to all appearance (so far as we can judge) it has a fighting chance.

With tho other divisions of the broken lino under Tosof the case is far worse. Those forces are broken, routed, disorganised and famished. Hurrying in vast disorder along the mountain roads and oaths west of the Vardan their solo hope of reaching Veles is the Bahuna Pass, piercing the range from Prilep towards Voles- They wore making for the "Vardar when the wedge thrust forward bv General Desperoy

pushed them awav from the Vardar crossings and sens tnem hustling ior in© Baouna. me weuge reaching v eies can inrow out a column westward and mock tne exit oi the liauuna from tne uortn. -Vi tne same time tne Ames, wnuse cavalry nas seized i’niep, commanding me near end 01 the Baouna, are tinea teams to prevent mem reaching me Bauuna at an. ior them mere does not appear to be any tnau.ee at aU, not even a remote lighting chance.

The'question arises: Has the enemy any lorces wnion ne can throw forward from Uskud to restore matters in me vardar and Babuna regions. The answer that suggests itself is that it mere had been auv such reserves they would ero this have made their appearance. That answer may be snghtiy discounted by me extraordinary rapidity of the Bulgarian collapse. Moreover, the danger is such to the enemy that we mav be sure that the German commanders will sweep up whatever troops iire available—Turks from the Doorudja and Adnanoplo, Bulgarians from Sofia and wish, and Austrians and Germans from Hungary to Ttoumania.

Again a question arises: Are there any troops to sweep up sufficiently numerous to stop the great armies moving so rapidly under the orders of General JOespereyf To put it another way, has General Desperey's victory pricked a great Balkan bubble? Has it revealed tne tact that all the enemy’s forces are deeply engaged elsewhere? The Turks will be wanting to resist Allenby, who is carrying all before him in Pales, tine; to provide against a possible advance by General Marshall from Mesopotamia, co-ordinating with General Allenby against Aleppo; to hold their own in the new Caucasus country which Brest-Litovsk gave them without any guarantee of possession. The Central Powers have discovered that Russia requires very much greater forces to make good than they thought possible only the other day, before the Czechs made their brilliant moves and before the Allies intervened. Moreover, the Italian front cannot bo weakened, and the Western front is tottering visibly. Where, one asks, are the Central Powers to find forces to stop the great offensive of General Desperey, which grows daily more menacing to their vital interests in the Balkans?

The attention of General Allenby is, according to the latest cables, directed to the Turkish army east of the Jordan, which he is reported to have split into two, cutting off the whole from its communications by the Hedjaz railway with Damascus. The destruction of this force seems imminent. General Maurice thinks that Liman von Sanders may make a stand west and south of the Sea of Galilee. But as the success of that plan, given the good fight, ing quality of the troops engaged in it (which is the doubtful item) de. pends on co-ordination with the eastern Turkish forces, the defeat the latter are now undergoing has probably nipped the von Sanders plan in the bud. The country is difficult,, but the activity of Allenby’s advance has overcome worse. His prisoners now amount to 40,000. and it is reported that his capture of 265 guns comprises the whole artillery of those two defeated Turkish armies. Jpn the whole the chances of any attempt that may be made to cover Damascus appear very small.

The main point of interest on the West front to-dav is St. Quentin, which place a German general declares in one of the Gorman newspapers to be untenable. This is evidently a comment on the new advance of French and British troops west and south of St. Oven, tin, of which tfio beginning was reported by Marshal Haig and the French Headquarters yesxerday, and of which the solid progress is reported to-day. The advance has closed in a semi-circle on St. Quentin, of which the circumference is from a mile and a half to two miles from the city. According to the German general above quoted St. Quentin is about to fall into the hands of the Allies.

Between this new assault and Moeuvres, to the north, tho enemy has shown his anxiety by making several heavy co'unter-attacks. As these have been all repulsed, it is a fair conclusion that when St. Quentin falls this part of the Hindenburg line will be abandoned by the enemy. Not improbably the fall of St. Quentin may bring down Cambrai and Douai.

The French report a new FrancoAmerican offensive east of the Moselle. There are no particulars as to width of front, or the manner of the attack. All that appears is that the assault has gained all its first objectives. This may be the beginning of a formidable assault on the Metz sector. If it is, it will give the enemy plenty to do, without thinking of carrying out that writing general’s suggestion of widening his attack between the sea and Ypres.