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| I i i , • [ • . t . " : • s • " 1 ,| I- GENERAL NEWS NOTES OF THE DAY. "Greece is not to be forced or cajoled out of her . neutrality." and will demobilize her armies rather J than take sides in the Enroiiean war. King Constan-tine declared in an interview with an Associated Press correspondent. "I am especially glad to talk for America, for America will understand Jreeces position. We are both neutral and are together de- termined. if it is humanly possible, not to court I destruction by permitting ourselves to be drawn into the frightful vortex of the present Eurojiean con- i flict. Both are trying by every honorable means to guard our sovereignty, protect our own people , and stand up for our national interests without sacrificing that neutrality which we recognize as our only salvation. America at present is pro- ] tec ted by the distance which separates her from the battle field. We. too. thought that once. But the battle field shifted, and may shift again. What is happening in Greece today may happen in America. Holland or any other neutral country tomorrow, if the precedent now sought to be established in the case of Greece is once fixed. The fundamental cause of the entire threatening atti- . tude of the entente powers toward Greece today and of the painful situation of my country." continued the king, "is the ententes own assumption, without the slightest reason therefor, that Greece is ready to lietrav the entente to Germany at the first favorable opportunity. Is it reasonable to snp-lMse such a thing? From the very outset of hostilities in the near oast Greeces neutrality lias been stretched to the utmost to accommodate the entente ixiwers. for whom we always have felt the keenest sympathy and the deepest gratitude. The Dardan-eles operations were directed from Greek islands occupied by allied troops. When Serbia was endangered by the combined Anstro-Ge-rinan and Bulgarian attack the allied troops lauded unopposed on Greek soil, from which, with the second ci*y of Greece as a base, tliey prosecuted, not only unmolested, but aided, in every way consistent with any sort of neutrality, their fruitless and too long delayed campaign to rescue their ally. Finally 1 myself have given my personal word that Greek troops will never lie used to attack the Franco-British forces in Macedonia, merely to allay unjustified suspicions. Yet. despite all these evidences of the good faith of Greece, the entente powers now demand, in a form which is virtually an ultimatum, that the Greek troops be withdrawn from Saloniki — and that means all Macedonia — leaving our popiiIatiHi unprotected against raids by Bulgarian comitadjis or all the horrors of war which lay Belgium waste, should the allies be driven back within our frontiers. If the entente will assure me , that when they are driven back into Greek territory they will consider the Balkan game ended, re-embark, and leave Greece, I will guarantee with ! my whole army to protect their retreat against the , Germans. Bulgarians, or anybody else, and give , them time to embark without being endangered." An Athens dispatch of yesterday says: Saloniki dispatches estimate.l that 120.0HO Serbian tnxips * have retreated across the Albanian frontier. Scattered forces are fighting in Montenegro, and a few-Serbs remain in the extreme southwest corner of f the country. Arrival of fresh Anglo-French contingents at the allied fruit was reported. Fierce . fighting in northeastern Montenegro and a sudden i assault by the Bulgarians against the right wing I of the French army marked the renewal of important actions in the Balkans today. The city of Ipck, largest in eastern Montenegro, is about to fall to the Austrians. according to advices received here. After holding the enemy in check for forty-eight hours by valiant resistance the Serbs and 1 Montenegrins are reported in retreat, assailed on i their right Hank by bands of Albanians. Whether the Bulgarian onslaughts against the French mark the lieginning of an effort to throw the allies hack I to Saloniki, it is too early to determine. Lack of f definite Information regarding the position of Field 1 Marshal Mackeiisens main army adds to the anxiety felt in some quarters over the position of the Anglo-French forces. Mac ke-nsen. it is believed, may be preparing to hammer the exi»editioiiary forces back I across the Greek border in one miguty smash. The I Bulgarian attack was preceded by violent lKunbaid-ment of the French poslttaM Bear Valamlovi. The infantry onslaughts were launched Sunday night. The result of the fighting is in doubt. No official explanation has been received here today of Rou-uianias reasons for commandeering foreign shipping. President Wilson in his annual address to congress yesterday laid down the administration plans fo " national defense- and tedd his hearers it was neees- sary for the new and broad doctrine of Pan-America. With sharp words he- arrainged American citizens who I by their sympathy for the foreign belligerents had endangeroel the neutrality of the United States. "America never witnessed anything like this be- fore," declared the president with deep feeling. The presidents outline of the plans for national j defense and the need for them was received in i silence by the senators and representatives, but t with rapt attention. His declaration of a new Pan-American dCtrine was received with the deeiiest interest. "We insist on security in prosecuting our self-chosen lines of national development " he said. "We do more than that. We demand it also for others. We do not confine our r. enthusiasm for individual lilierty and free national J development to the incidents and movements of j affairs which affect only ourselves. We feel it 1 wherever there is a people that tries to walk in 1 these? difficult paths of independence and right. • From the first we have made- common cause with ! all partisans of liberty on this side of the se-a. and 1 have le-e-me-el it as important that our neighbors ! should be- free from all outside- domination as tli.it 1 we- ourselves should be; have set America aside as ! a whole f ir the uses of independent nations and 1 political fre-eclom." Tlu- official status of Henry Fords expedition so far as Gre-ai Britain goe-s was made clear in the house of commons, when Lord Robert Cecil in reply to Sir E. Cornwall explained that paaeBertS for | the party were- valid only in pe-utral countries. The ! British authorities intend to rest -nly ujioii the ,it- tituelc- of tiie- American govi-rnnient in re-fusing to , vise- passports fe r a stop in England. If. after get- . ting through with their work in De-nmark anel Hol-lanel. any of the- peace party tr«- to cum- te F.ngland i the autlioritie-s will fee] obliged to elecline to allow " them to ceime in. All they will have to elo is to point to the- fact that the passports fail tee poi-nit i e-ntry inte F.nglanel. Anierie-ans in London we-r-spe-e-ulating ye-ste-rday over the possibility of the-Oscar II. be-ing hehl up by the autheiritie-s in British waters for inquiry into he-r e-ar •■. Should the- Ose-ar i II. e-arry contraband in her liolel the authorities - e-au run her into a Barker and lmld he-r for a prize-f urt. In that evi-nt Mr. Feirel anel his e-emfrere-s • will be detained at some English port until the geeve-lum.-nt here- elei-ieleel what to with them. Germany is making great pure-hase-s of copper, e-otton. weieel. lanl. wheat, farm machine-ry anil other r products in the- markets eif the luiteel Siate-s. The J products are being lxmght subje-ct tei eb-live-ry in Germany "sixty elays after the war ends." or "on n order." With the e-xe-i-ptiem of purchases of wheat, all proelue-ts are being ware-liouse-,1 in close proximity v to Atlanti-- Parte, in whie-h se-ene-s of interne;! German merchantmen are- swinging at ane-he r. In farm „ niachine-ry circles the-re is an unauthentical re-port I that an order of small tractor engines, built let J farm work, hael bee-n eleliveie-.l aenially em ship beiard at Newport News anel is now in the hohl of I f the boat awaiting transmission. Purchases have-been carries em with utn.eist etcftei ley age-nts eif , the* imperial government. Negotiations have been ., carried on uneler various guises. Mue-h eif the pro-duets has been bought on margin, which would involve ,; big banking loans. A dispatch of yesterday freun Berlin says: The e request ree-e-ive-.l acre freun the- luite-d States for r the- recall of Cant. Iraaa von Papea and "apt. Karl 1 Boy Eel. militaiy and naval attache* respectively eif f tin- Ce-rmau embassy at Washington, will imeloubl eellv be- e-.implie-el with ill aeiolelanie with elipl- mati - usage-, it is stated. However. Ge-rnuinv prob i ably will ask lirst M be- infornie-el of the- grounds aa i Which the- 1 "tiili-d Slate-s i/ovel lime lit bases the- iimle- ■ sirability eif the attaches. News of tin- it-, i .1 — t fe.r the Meal! has not yet been published by the e German press. Count Okutna. the Japanese premier, addressing K the diet yesterday, dwelt ot» the universal spirit o or a li I ■ p C | 1 . j j . •. 1 • ■ I t • , . J I i , ] . lovaltv and patriotism manife-steel by lha Japan-e-se peeper, at the eeceaatJea of taapeaar YeaU- hlto as a basis for further strengthening the solidity anel prosperity of the imperial lnHise anel the empire-. He- emphasized the- state-miiit that the pros- IK-et for naval re-pletion which was ratifieil by the-eeuiiii-il of defense- was the- first neee-ssil.v in the t present situation of the world. "Ned a elay can I o lost in e-arrying emt the plan." he declared. A dispatch to the London Daily Telegraph from Malta savs the- British ste-amer Ime-nta has be-e-n sunk in the Me-dite-rraman. The- elispateh adels that fortv-niiie- surviveiis eif the elisaste-r we-re- lamb .1. but that five eaten ef the reaarJ and forty -seven Lascars are missing. The Imeta was a ste-ann r of ::.:;-j5 tenis act. The last reaert at her was arhea she passe-el IVrira November 2S leounel north. Char Mrhatea has issued a MBerfpt postponing in-ele-finite-lv the opening of the- elutna ami the COBacJI of the e-mpire. This action is take-n on the ground f that the- buelget committees eif those bodies have-tied ye-t rewpartrl preparation ef the budge-t. Re--e-e-nt re-pe rts saiil the duma would re-assemble on Deee-inher S. That boely was prorogued on Sep- • teacher ltt. The- New York Herald says Viiforiatio Ilnirta is . still plotting with German age-nts to start a re-volti- tiem against the- de- facto government eif Mexico, j Theee age-nts have- e-emtraetwl to supply him with emaittoaa to make war em Carrauza. is a state-mont it attribules to an Anuriean who has arrived in I New Yeirk from the border. Another meeting of the gene-ral war ceiuncil of [ the entente allies was held in Paris ye-sterday. . The meeting was attended by represent:! lives of , Franei, Great Britain. Russia. Italy. Bilgiiini anil Se-rbia. and was presiele.l over by General Joffre, , the French commander-in-chief. . The Cologne Gazettes correspondent at Jaffa, writing uneler date of November ; ». IMBBrhJ the opening eif a railway from Jerusalem to Beersheba. fifty miles in length. A military highway also was opened connecting Beesheba with Hatirelandja. fifty j miles southwest. According to a German radiogram, the French sub- • marine Fresnel was destroyed on December 5 by an Austrian warship, says a eoinmunieation issiu-d e yeste-rday at the marine ministry in Paris. Two . officer:; ami twenty-six men were captureel. Unusual pre-e-autiems will be taken te protect , Presielent Wilson when he goes to Columbus. O., , next Friday. Tensiem in the internatieenal situation , is one cause and a direct suggistion from government authoritiis at Ceilumbus is anothi-r. Under-Lieutenant Georges Victor Hugo, grandson e f the famous French neivelist. has been cite-d in the onler of the day anil decorated with the cross of war for bravery under fire in the allieel offensive in Septemlier. The United States cruiser Des Moines has arrived at Canea in the island e f Crete with 344 refugees whee were exjielleil from Syria. This number is maele up of 200 French, sixty-nine Russians and nine Greeks. The Zurie-her Zeitung publishes a dispatch from Serial saying the official birth statistie-s in twenty-fe ur of the principal towns in Germany, from April to July, inclusive, show a decrease of twenty per cent. A dispatch to the Lonilon Daily Express from Geneva savs three Bulgarian students have been execute-d at Sofia feir e-onneeti-m with a plot against the life of King Ferdinand. The Roumanian government has ordered the mobilization of all naturalizeil foreigne-rs and for-e-igne-rs under the protection of the Roumanian laws up to forty years old.
