Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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"/ THE WAR LAST WEEK DARDANELLES ATTACK WORST FAILURE IN HISTORY ' > r. TURKS HOLD OFF FOES New York Time* Reviewer Explaint -if ■ ^ the Dardanelles Operation*, Show ing Why Britiah and French Aban- 1 doned All Effort* and Turn to the Balkans for Action. On October 29, 1914, German in trigue^ substantially backed with Ger nian gold and ably assisted by the ef* fort* of a few Turks under tlie leader ship of Enver Hey, drew Turkey into the war and forced a declaration of hostilities against Russia. Tills move was a painful one for the Allies to contemplate. The strength of the British empire lies in the Orient and In Egypt, the gate way to the Far East. Th6 Turk ish empire has a population of many millions, the vast majority of whom art in Asia. The Turks, if left free to operate in Mesopotamia, Palestine, and in the Sinai peninsula, would threaten the very heart of Great Bfis tain, not alone through their own ef forts, but through *ne disaffection they would endeavor to create throughout the British colonial pos sessions. To meet such a move and preserve British prestige it was necensary to deflect to the threatened points troops that were much needed in oth er fields. This applied also with equal force to Russia, and developed In con sequence an entirely new—theatre of war—that of the Caucasus. The con sequences to Russia, however, were more serious than those involved’in ths mere diversion of troops, and were Incident to Russia’s geographi cal situation. For the greater part of the year Russia is practically an inland na tion. With the Black Sea closed by the forts of the Bosporus, her only outlet is through her, nprthern ports, the' chief ef which is Archangel. But only for a few months of the year can this port be used; the remainder of the year it is entirely closed by ice. Russia, moreover, is not a manu facturing country, and while there are, of course, ammunition plants, their output in no degree is equal to the demand placed on them by the ■ndreamed-of use of artillery. More over, much of Russia's wealth, and the situation demanded money, lies i%.her exportation of grain. ^mbe country along the Black Sea Mie richest wheat belt of the world, Russia needed to exchange her wheat, directly or indirectly, for the ammunition of her atitea and of neu trals. To do so through Archangel Vas Impossible, both because of weather conditions and lack of transporUtion facilities. There was but oae solution to the eastern poUti- eould be heutrallsed and (he way to the Golden Ronropened wide.' They knew, or should have known, as It is eomnpon knowledge to every military man, that effective opera Rons against a position on land can not be conducted without co-opera tion of both lind and nayal forces. They knew, or should have known, that the succees of sulch an operation against the Gallipoli forts would in * great measure depend on the element of surprise. And yets in blind, fetich like faith, the navy was sent alope on Its amphibious errand. -t The result might easily have been foreseen. The flret guns fired On February 2B against Sedd-el-Balir was a warning to the Turks what was in the air, and when the signal was flashed, troops, ammunition, 1 and sup plies were hastened to the forte and a line of strong entrenchments was constructed in the strongest defensive position of Europe—what Is now gen erally known .as the Achl Baba posi tion, crossing the penlLsul.'. north oi Krithla. Subsequent revelations, made as a result of a split in the British cabi net that resulted In the resignation of Chiirchlll,' give the point of view of those responsible for the fact that at the Inception of the movement only the navy was need. As has been stated above, It was the belief of ^Ipe, British authorities that a nprfow channel flanked on either side by modern fortifications defended by powerful guns, the channel protected by submerged torpedoes, and charac terized by a current that could carry unanchored mines against the ad vancing fleet by the guns of the bat tleships alone. That the gamble was big was admitted, but, it was claim ed, the size of the stake justified the admiralty in taking the chance. True In a sense—but it was not necessary to take the chance with the- navy alone. The idea of taking Constantinople, of carrying the war home to the Turk Instead of waiting for him to appear on the battlefields of central Europe, has received the unqualified approval of military men of all coun tries, belligerent or ne-tral. It was the methods only that were criticised, and the point of view of the admiral ty as reflected In the methods that have been universally condemned. As the result of this failure to dlrfect the forces at hand on lines of sane strat egy and in the ilghf of the most ex pert professional knowledge we have . _ the history of-the failure ef the most formr * at Buvts' BIT alfiT At ‘Ahzac cal problem of Great Britain, and' to the financial problem of Russia—Con stantinople. If the Allies could take Constanti nople, the Turkish empire would be shaken to its foundation, and not only the Turk but the colonials of India and Egypt would tremble at the thought of British power. , Russia then would have a seaport in the south, not merely for war purposes and during the war, but a port over which she could exercise suzerainty until it was wrested from her in the distant future by military conquest. From a strictly military point of view, putting aside the question of opening an avenue o' munition sup ply, the effect would be to cut Tur key off completely from all commu nication with the central powers and to change thereby the whole face of the war. The stakes therefore was tremendous. And Just as the British answer to Napoleon was the guns of Trafalgar, so on February 25, 1915, more than a century later, the answer to the two Kaisers and their Moslem ally was the roar of the guns of the British dreadnought* as their high explosive shells were thrown into Die fort at Sedd-el-Bahr. The battle for'lhe control of the strait with Constantinople a* the prize waa on; and it was on that day. February 25, that England made the greatest, the most colos sal blunder of all that she has been guilty of since, at the beginning of the war, her failure to send promis ed aid to Belgium threw open the gate to the Teutonic invasion by leaving exposed the entire left flank of the defending army. The reason for this is plain. The objective in the Dardanelles Is a nar row channel of water with its critical point at the Narrows between the forts of Kilid Bahr and Kale I Sul- tanie, the former on the European side, the latter on the Asiatic. Tne distance between these points is but a mile, so that from either one any point on the other can be efficiently reached by shell fire. Both of those forts are defended by powerful mod ern guns, so that within a radius of a half mile are established permanent works fhat control the military des tinies of the entire thirty miles of strait. There rhay.'of course, be in troduced other factors. Temporary batteries, for example, might be established, unexpected forms of at tack might-be-^hev-e been, indeed— devised against ships advancing along the waterway. But the crux of tho situation is and will remain the control of the forts at the Narrows. With these taken, the temporary batteries and other Uneans of attack might for a tlpne harass a hostile fleet, but it would be for a time only,'and for a short time at that. With Uie Narrows in their hands a hostil force would soon he able to clear both banks and their fleet would be able to go through. This is the-military problem of the Dardanelles reduced to its simplest term*, a problem thoroughly tfh dSF-- atood and recognised by the British military and naval antborities before the first move was made. They knew that actual physical possession by a military fore* ef the fortrees of Kilid promising movement In the first year of the great war. At first the allied fleet made rapid progress. Headed by the powerfully cannoned Vueen Elizabeth with her lA-inch guns, the allied fleet reduced the forts at Nedd-el-liahr and Kum Kale which guard the month of the "trait and leveled the batteries for ten miles up the channel, none of which, however, bad any Importance. Tills part of the work was simple, as the guns of the Queen EUzalieth outranged those in any of the Turk ish forts. After a bombardment last ing about a month, tho fleet attempt ed to force the channel, believing that it had silenced the forta. It had. but only for a time. Hilendug a fort and destroying it are two sep arate matters, and each fort was re occupied as soon as the firing ceased. In their attempt to forco the channel three liattleshlps—^the French Boufet and the British Irresistible and Ocern —were literally blown out of the water and destroyed by mines, and several othef Ships put out of action by shell fire of the lend forts. Tills was enough to indicate the vital mistake the admira’ty had made, and the lesson had been cruelly driven home by the naval losses sus tained. The naval forces practically withdrew, being content with long range firing, and putting the matter sonsrelv up to the sruiy in adml»Mnar their own defeat. The net result of the naval operation then was to at tempt a task themselves which was physically impossible, and In doing •o, by depriving the situation of all element of surprise, to mane it al most impossible for the army. The operations of the army may then be out between the series .f hills. Its- ommunlcations by lund are-poor. One fiirly good, ronghiy^kvbd rond runs the full length of the peninsula from Sedd-el-Bahr to the town of Gal lipoli and from there on to Bulatr, where the peninsula is only three miles wide. Unless a railroad has been laid by the Germans since the war .began, there is no artificial means of communication,of any sort and the forts are dependent entirely on roads for th&If supplies. From Hedd-el-Uahr to a point somewhat north of the Narrows the European side dominates the Asiatic, so that if the land/forces on Gallipoli were successful the way could be readily cleared for the advance of the fleet. The Turkish line in' front of the Krithja pos'tlon is thoroughly guarded from any attack against the flanks. In front of either there is a deep ravine that breaks in from the coast. These ravines have almost perpendicular sides and therefore protect from direct assault any line formed behind them. The line runs behind both ravines and follows the general line of the hills between the Aegean and the Dardanelles. The town of Krithia, on the outskirts of which the Allies’ line funs, could not be held by the Turks were it really a part of the Turkish defense. But it is not. The entire basin in which the town is located is entirely controlled by two dominating hill positions in the main defensive line. These two points are absolutely essential to the Allies’ ad vance. Krithia, although on the only road to the Turkish base at Maidos, is more than useless unless the posi tions which control it, are either broken or made untenable by artil lery fire. Behind the Turks’ position there is yet another, the plkteau of Pasha Dagh, which includes the fort at Kilid Bahr, which position is fully as strong as the Achl Baba position. To accomplish anything, therefore, the Allies would not have to take one alone but both—and in nearly eight months' fighting they IumI not taken the first. Frontal attacks against the Turk ish line having been carried out for some months without having pro duced any result except a great ex penditure of shell and a heavy loss in effectives, the Allies' method* changed and a threat was made against the Turkish line of supply. This took shape in the landing of RUSSIANS SEIZE VARNA; I TURKS CLAIM MUCH SPOIL TROOPS ON BULOAR SOIL i ; I I - Sixteen Transports are Supposed to llavs Landed Soldiers at . ^ ^ Bulgarian Port. .. The London D^lly <Jhfonlcle re- poijs tbe capture of Varna, Bul garia’s chief seaport, by the Russians. It says the bombatdfcient of the Rus sians silenced : the Bulgarian guns and laid the tqwn in ruins, the garri son suffering heavily. The Russians then, according to the report, landed infantry and artil lery without loss and In sufficient force to hold the town against Bul garian attack. . j The arrival of the expedition off the Bulgarian coast was reported earlier in the day by the Athens cor respondent of the Exchange Tele graph company. His dispatch said; ‘‘A Russian cruiser and two de stroyers which are convoying sixteen transports-filled with troops have ar rived off the Bulgarian coast and are bomabrdlng Varna vigorously." The Bulgarian port of Varna Is on the Black sea a few miles south of the Rumanian border. It Is a rail road terminus. This city and Bur gas, fifty miles further south, are the principal Bulgarian Black Sea ports. ENGLAND INCREASES HER ARMY BY ONE MILLION Cove. ' From these points, particularly from the latter, the way to the Ger man base at Maidos is through com paratively open country. Just Inland from Suvla or Little Anafarta Hay is the Salt Lake lying low in a sea level plain. There are several roads, none of them fartlcularly good, tra versing the plain, all of which, direct ly or indirectly, connect with the main road from Buluir t* Maidos It was apparently the object of the British to advance along ope of three roads and rut the Turkish line of communications This is indicated by the landing at Anzac Cove, from which there is an absolutely flat pas sage to the strait, the distance to be traversed not being more than five the Anglo-French forces, received for- and a half miles. The valley tbrougirf mal notice to this effect Friday, ihe said to have dated froiq ghout April bM «. capacity almost It not equal to 1. although InTnor Torces of marines had been landed at Camber Beach and along the shore of Morto Bay about a month before. The function of the army was in its elements exceedingly simple, though the task was most difficult. It was to take Kilid Bahr by land, '-with the assistance of the gnns of the fleet, turn the strength of this fort against the fort on the Asiatic side, and so clear the Nar rows. Just as in the original naval opera tions, the land forces were at first successful. In a comparatively short time an advance was made from the point of the peninsula, of about four miles to their position south of Krith ia. Their line, with very small vari ations of a few hundred yards here and there, exten v ded i from the Dar danelles at the mouth of Chomak Dere, across a plateau about 300 feet high, south-<.0 the town of Krithia, and thence to the Aegean shore at the point near Kurkha Bluff. . And here they were held for months, unable in spite of the most heroic efforts on the part of the Aus tralian colonial and the French troops, which had been landed from lienmos and Tenedos. The losses suf fered in these attacks were great. Great Britain alone Has reported over 100,000 in killed, wounded, and miss ing. , The reasons for the failure df the allied land forces to make any ma terial impression on the Turkish de fense are Arwo. The first was that, warned by the bombardment of the forts at the gateway of the strait, the Turks had prepared their positions with a thoroughness characteristic > of the German officers who commanded them. The bombardment. It will be remembered, began on February 25, and It was the middle of April before the army really went into action. The Turks therefore had it least six weeks in which to prepare. The second is the topographical nature of the country Itself, which ipwatly augmented the defensive strength of the Turks’ position. Gal lipoli is a confused tangle of hills riaing at numerous points to snm- urtu urmnn luuTa mieet. though along on* stretch, on the Gulf of Tarot, there Is a continuous height of over 1,000 feet. This is the rea eon why a landing could not be ef fected further north. by which the advance would have to be made, however, is flanked by hills. Either side would, of course, have to be cleared before the line could be extended across this part of the peninsula. Every indication was that the eye of the British was on the connecting Gabs Tepe with Khelia Bay. But the Anafarta line was no more successful in its progress than that at Krithia. Both were, and for some time had been, absolutely at a standstill when the Teeton-Bslgar drive on Serbia was inaugurated. The true reason for this move by the Germans does not concern us here. The apparent reason was the approaching exhaustion of the Turk ish supply of ammunltlon—^Whether such a shortage existed or not, no one knows. There is some doubt of is an enormous ammunition factory is anenormous ammunition factory just outside of Constantinople, which the demands of such a short defensive line as that held by tbe Turks. At any rate, it had become evident that unless such a shortage did exist, there was practically no hope of the Brit ish overcoming the Turkish resist ance. Nish, the Serbian junction of the Oriental railroad from Berlin to Con stantinople, fell In a short time after the Serbian invasion began, and both the Danube and the Oriental rail road were thrown open to Teuton traffic. If the Turks’ ammunitioir had got low there was now in sight a full replenishing of the supply. The last British hope oi a real Gallipoli success had vanished. During the Russian disasters of tho late spring and summer the Rus sian press choked hostile criticism of the Allies’ inaction by dilating on the need for Russian development of Constantinople, tbe only feasible sbuthern port, and stHled the mur- murjngs of the people by recounting the great work the British soldiers were doing at the Hellespont. The peoples of the Far East, who a>e in a position to strike England a severe blow through her colonies, were watching the pro gress of the Moslem and wonder ing whether the pistol which Eng land had for years been holding at their heads was not, after all, an empty one. With nothing to oc cupy their army at their own doors what could the Tu-k do against Egypt and Suez, what would hap pen in Mesopotamia and along tbe Bagdad railroad? On the other hand, there were the Balkans, seething, boiling, until it seemed that the explosion must come without delay. Bulgaria already in arms against her; Greece, under the tremendous pressure of Berlin on the Kaiser’s sister, refusing to abide by her treaty wlth Serbia; Rumania, the most. pqwerful of them all, scorning all offers, being openly tempted by Berlin gold and listening to the voice of the tempter. And Great Britain knew, and know* now, that help from Rumania and Greece could only come whan an. was assured; knew that to do otherwise was to court not de feat, but destruction, "uch was toe situation, Md It Is no wonder that the British—preee, public and minis try—were la a state bordering oa House of Commons Debated All Night Tuesday—Changes in Offi- , cers Made. After an all night debate the House of Commons early Wednesday grant ed an increase of one miliion men in the British army,, bringing up its strength on paper to four million. With the increase come changes in higher command, Lieut. Gen. Robert son, chief of the general staff* having been recalled from France to become chief of the Imperial staff in London in place of Lieut. Gen. Murray, who has been appointed to succeed Sir Charles Monroe ao British command- nr al tho. JJasdaaellss, says on offi cial statement issued Wednesday afternoon. Sir Charles Monroe has been ap pointed in command of the First Brit ish army in France in succession to Sir Douglas Haig. *■«. GREECE TO WITHDRAW Saloniki Says Greek Army Will Give Enemies Open Ground. Imndoo reports; Greec* will re frain from all Interference and main tain a policy of the strictest neutral ity if the Allies are attacked on Greek territory, says a Reuter Saloniki dis patch. Gen. Serrail, commander of dispatch says Col. Pallls, official representative of the Greek war office at Saloniki, transmitted the following notice to Gen. Serrail: “In the event that the AlHes are followed by their enemies to Greek soil, the Greek army has orders to retire In order to leave the field clear to tlie belligerents.” It is reported from Athens that flrtece has massed a strong protest V> the allied powers against the fortifi cation of Saloniki by Anglo-French troops. The protest was made fol lowing a visit by the German minis ter to Premier Skouloudis. This min ister is said to have warned the Greek government (hat the central empres would consider themselves bound to take action as the fortifica tion of Saloniki as a base menaced the Teuton position in the Balkans. NOTE GOING TO AUSTRIA —^— Secretary Lansing Announces Dis patch of Our Last Word. Secretary Lansing announced Mon day that the second American note to Austria on the sinking of the Ancona had gone forward Sunday and should reach Vienna Tuesday night. While Mr. Lansing gave no intimation of its nontents, the note is understood to be a virtual Reiteration of the original American demands with the Implica tion that it is the United States’ last word on the subject. Tlie text of the note will be issued for publication in newspapers Wed nesday afternoon, Mr. Lansing said. The note is about six hundred words long and although characterized by those acquainted with its wording, as firm, in tone, is said to be somewhat less sharp than the first note in the teno.r of its demands. It is based squarely, according to these officials, on the Austrian ad miralty’s own version of the Ancona sinking and while reference is made to American. victims and survivors, the reference is said to be more nci- dentdl than direct. . was lost. Then the ministry moved. A council of the allied chiefs was held in Calais; Lord Kitchener was dispatched to the Levantine battle grounds. Whether the latter event was due to the, pressure of the French Is not -knfcwn. But (t is significant that at the time of the Calais meeting it was stated that Joffre demanded that the British concentrate their eastern forces in a drive through the Bal kans, which, by implication, meai^t to cease wasting efforts in an impos sible field, merely for the moral ef fect Involved. Whether or not there was truth in the rumor. Kitchener, whose mission was. kept silent, went to Gallipoli, transmitted the orders of his government to the officer in command, and returned, and the cur tain waa drawn over one^of the moat spectacular efforti the rreat war ha* produced. Haary Ford Leaves Europe. . On aeconnt of lllnees Henry Ford left the peace perty In Europe, although- before leering he left a te sever ail eapeaeae of the IN BRITISH EVACUATION iBEPinfl Constantinople Bays Attack Was Too Violent to be Withstood-—"Three Wounded,*’ Says London. Berlin reports by wireless: JDnor- moua quantities of ammunition? can non, and tents were taken by the Turks on the withdrawal of the Brit ish from the positions evacuated on the Gallipoli peninsula, it- was offi cially announced In the Turkish quar ters rep-rt dated December 20, re ceived from CoitsCantin pie. The re port states that tbe withdrawal of the British from the Anzkc and Suvla bdy districts of the Gallipoli peninsula came as the result of a violent offen sive on the part of the Turks who in flicted heavy losses on the Britiah and drqve them to th j sea. The state ment follows: "Turkish troops during the nights of December 18-19, after heavy artil lery preparation, began an attack against the gnemy’s position near Anafarta and Ari Burnu. The enemy in order to check this attack made a general attack along the whole Sed dul Bahr front which completely fail ed with enormous looses. ' ‘Tn view of the certainty of Turk ish success in advances toward the north the enemy during the night of Decern tier 19-20 hastily withdrew part of his troops. The enemy was unable to impede the pursuit by the Turkish troops, so that no .enemy troops now remain at Anafarta or Ari Burnu. “Enormous quantities of ammuni tion, cannon and tents were taken. “An pnemy hydroplane was shot down and"'the occupants taken pris oner.’’ I/ondon reports: When the British forces jvithdrew from the positions at Suvla Bay and Anzac on the west ern shore of tho Gallipoli peninsula, their total casualties were three men wounded, according to an official an nouncement. Six guns which were left when the British withdrew from the Suvla position, it was added. RECORD BREAKING ANSWER DEPARTMENT NOTE ALREADY SENT SETTLEMENT PROPOSED Lusitania Incident Kept Open Dismissal of Attaches. by Full settlement of the Lusitania case, including reparation for the lives of the American victims, which it became known Tuesday recently was near, has beert postponed by the dismissal of the German naval and military attaches and the American demands on Austria-Hungary as a result of the sinking of the Ancona. Consideration of the state of pub lic opiniea in Germany because of- these two acts of the American gov ernment. according to reliable infor mation received in Washington, b*s caused officials in Berlin to decide that such settlement as might be sat isfactory to the'United States would not now meet with popular approval in Germany. An agreement, it was said, practi cally was reached soon after the American note to Great Britain pro testing against interference with neu tral trade had been published in Ger many. The note, it is said, created a remarkable pro-American sentiment throughout Germany. At that time, it is said, public opinion would bavg. approved receding a bit, ipaklng sr settlement of the controversy pos^ sible. Negotiations between Secre tary lousing and Count Bernstorff, the German ambassador, were pro gressing when the United States de manded the withdrawal of Capt. Boy- Ed and Capt. von Papen. This act, according tb advices in Washington, caused Germatnoplnion to swlQg back to resentment of the actiotf of tbe United States. THE BALKAN SITUATION Germany Taking Advantage of the Allied Withdrawal. The Teutonic powers are repre sented as taking full advantage of th emoral effect produced by the withdrawal of British forqes from Gallipoli peninsula and to be attempt ing once more to swing Greece and Rumania to their side in the Balkan operations. If the news of the bombardment of Varna is correct, Russia is losing no time in an attempt to forestall these efforts. From several sources, all un official, London 1 has heard of , the bombardment of the Bulgarian port. Various dispatches state that the Rus sian warships are accompanied by a fleet of transports which, according to the. morning papers, already has landed a sufficient force to hold the town. Although the Greek elections have given a large majority to Former Premier Gounaris, a powerful mem ber of the present cabinet who is over-friendly to the Entente powers, it is not belieyed here, the change will have much of an. effect on the attitude of Greece, which Is much more agitated by the possibility that Bulgarians will cross the frontier than by the formation of a new gov ernment. CONSPIRATORS ARRESTED Officials Suspect Huge ( Plot'in -New a York Discoveries. vSTIth' the arraignment at New York Saturday of Paul Koenig, said to be the head of the German secret ser vice in this country:, and Richard Emil Leyendecker, a New York art goods dealer, on a charge of conspir ing to blow up the 'Welland canal, federal officials asserted they had in their -hands the clues to a country wide conspiracy to blow up munition felants, which has already resulted In Alta lorn of maar' Hves-aml degmic- Uoh of millions of dollars’ worth of property. * ^ ^ Looks for Austria's Reply. Department officials at Washing ton ar« looking for Austria’s reply to the Ancona note some time this etarv s ha/fit President Wilson and Secretary Lan sing Write Reply to Austria Satur day and it is Immediately Dispatch ed—Leaves no Doubt as to Ameri can Position. The request of the imperial govern ment of Austria for a bill of particu lars in the Ancona case provoked a reply from the United States In record breaking time.^ The reply is under stood to be on Its way, l^ut officials refuse to confirm the statement. Tbe prompt decision of the Ameri can government in complying with the Austrian request, and at the same time repeating its demand for a prop er explanation of the violation of in- Jernational law. Is deemed highly.aig- nifleant In Washington. It indicates to both the diplomatic and official mind the determination of this government to proceed with out loss of time to roni|K‘l a proper respect for Its rights on the part 'of tlie Austro-Hungarian government. The note containing such specifica tions, in support of the contention of the United States that Austria has disregarded its rights, was prepared by President Wilson and Secretary^ Lansing early after the officials digested the Cbrnmunfchtlon sent the Austrian government in ana to the first protest of the UnlH States. The Austrian note was much mild er than the officials of this govern ment had been led to expect by the forecast telegraphed from Vienna. In the Austrian reply the state ments were maq&Jiy the Austrian ad miralty regarding the circumstances of the loss of the Ancona are pre sented as sufficient justification for the demand made by this government fora prompt disavowal of the acts of tbe submarine commander. Immediately after tbe Anchna was. attacked, the Austrian admiralty an nounced that shs had been torpedoed while passengers and crew wers still aboard, because it was the fear of the submarine commander that he warn about to be attacked by an approach ing vessel. It was on these facts that the * American demands were based’, and which underlie its repetition of that demand. The note dsDrii hy the president and secretary of state Hat unlay after noon establishes the conviction of the American government that the Aus trian submarine commander had no justification for his acts, as described by the Austrian admiralty, in its statement published immediately after the vessel had been sent to the bottom. It is pointed out in the American note that the Austrian admiralty did not even contend that the Ancona was attempting to escape when sha was torpedoed, but that, on the con trary. the admiralty admitted that the vessel had halted in response to a shot across her bows. The American note also contains a terse recital of the undisputed facts regarding the destruction of the ship, and then makes it plain that the United States no longer can consent to debate these facts, unless they should be repudiated by the Austrian government. # TUere is gixxl reason to justify the statement, that while the tone of the refdy sent to Austria is quite as firm as that of the original demand, a way is left for formal discussion, until ‘ facts presented by both shies !u been established beyond dispute. The note also will say that, from the facts, of which the American gov ernment does not entertain the slight est question, there remains nothing to settle except the responsiblliy of the Austrian government for having rio- lated the law, and its decision wheth er it shall.offer proper reparation or contest the right of the United States to demand one. The American note renews the sen timents expressed in Its note of December 6, indicating its desire to maintain friendly reletions with Aus tria. But the communication is couch ed In such language as to permit no doubt of the i>art of Austria that, in order to perpetuate such .relations, "he immediately must disavow ’ the act of the submarine commander as inhuman, punish him for his viola tion of international right, and make reparation for the loss of Americans. It will be clearly revealed that there can be no other basis on which the two governments can preserve amicable relations. ' „ Officials of tlie state department do not expect a reply to the new note for at least a week. Also, they are unwilling to conjecture as to the eventualities If Austria continues to evade the demand contained in the requests made of it. - - - ORDERED TO RETURN FIRE A American Troops _ Were Instructed •- Wednesday to Retaliate. . > , American troops at El Paso, The war department announced Wednes day, have been g'ven orders to r^, turn vigOrottsly any further dellberatf^. firing ’ from the Mexican side of border. Gen. Pershing, In command at El Paso, has reported that the firing resulted . lats-Taeeder-tn- th*— death of an American car Inspector, was the deliberate act of a squad of Mexicans who appeared half a mil* east of the international bridge. ' American trooptMhe report added were covering .oe whole river front Daring the rioting in Juarez’ the ro- port said, there had been little firing towards the ’ *