[Staff Correspondence of The Brooklyn Eagle.]
_CONSTANTINOPLE, June 5, (by Courier to Berlin and Wireless to
Sayville, L.I.)_--The forces of the Allies on the Gallipoli Peninsula
at Ari Burnu and Sedd-el-Bahr are in the greatest danger, as a result
of the withdrawal of the bombarding fleets--made necessary by the
activity of German submarines--and the consequent difficulty of
maintaining communications oversea from the Aegean Islands.
The English position is at present desperate.
The inability to land heavy artillery was at first compensated for by
the protection given by the guns of the fleet, but the withdrawal of
the ships from Ari Burnu leaves the shore forces resting almost on the
water's edge without means of meeting attacks.
Heavy Turkish batteries are mounted on the surrounding heights.
These statements are made after a week spent in the Turkish field
under the first personal pass issued to a newspaper correspondent by
Field Marshal Liman von Sanders, the Commander in Chief of the Turkish
Army.
The Turks are fighting confidently, aided by a few German machine gun
squads.
The farthest advance made by the English at Ari Burnu is 1,000 yards
from shore; at Sedd-el-Bahr, about two miles.
Have seen Forts Chanak and Kalid Bahr, and find they are still intact.
The net results of the English attempt to force the Dardanelles are at
present almost nil.
The general impression at Constantinople and Berlin is that the attack
as at present conducted is a failure.
The bombardment of March 18 was ineffectual, owing to the inadequacy
of the landing forces, and the failure of the Entente powers to
embroil Bulgaria against Turkey.
* * * * *
[By The Associated Press.]
_KRITHIA, Dardanelles, June 17, (via London, June 19.)_--The allied
troops who landed at Sedd-el-Bahr, on the Gallipoli Peninsula, hold
about ten square miles of the extreme southern part of the peninsula,
the occupancy of which is maintained with the greatest difficulties.
The ground held by the Allies consists principally of a small plateau
to the north of Sedd-el-Bahr and two adjoining ridges to the
northwest, between which the Turks are pushing advance trenches.
The Associated Press correspondent, who spent two days in the
trenches, found the Turkish troops in excellent condition and spirits,
in spite of the fact that the Allies were using every conceivable
means to carry on the operations, including bombs thrown from
catapults and from aeroplanes.
From the Turkish station of artillery fire control the effect of the
Turkish fire upon the allied trenches could be observed today, and the
shells were reaching the mark. The sanitary and supply services of the
Turks are being carried on efficiently. The number of wounded at the
hospital bases at the front was small, although the fighting during
the night had been fairly severe.
During the daytime both sides are usually inactive, the Turks
preferring night bayonet attacks. Many Turkish batteries are in
position, but the nearness of the opposing trenches makes their work
difficult, and for the most part they are directing their attention to
the reserves of the Allies and to changing shifts which are exposed at
certain points. The Turks, in this, have the support of their heavy
batteries on the Asiatic side, which, since the retirement of the
allied fleet, work without fear of being molested, bombarding chiefly
the allied right wing, composed of French, home, and Colonial troops.
Weber Pasha, the German General commanding the south group, gave the
correspondent every opportunity to visit the Sedd-el-Bahr district,
placing no restrictions whatever upon his movements. The result was a
thorough inspection of the ground. Weber Pasha made no comment on the
situation himself beyond saying that "the failure of the Allies to
consummate their plan of forcing the Dardanelles is too obvious for
discussion."
Weber Pasha, who is a member of the German military mission which
undertook the improvement of the Ottoman Army organization, is fully
confident that the Turks will be able to meet the Gallipoli situation,
and that the Allies will never advance against the Dardanelles forts.
It has been ascertained that only a few German officers are active in
the south group. German privates are employed in special lines.
Krithia, once a thriving village of about 4,000 inhabitants, is
probably the most ruined place in all Europe. The Allies left no house
standing during their bombardment.