NEWS OF THE WEEK.
THE impenetrable nature of the veil which shrouds the operations at Adrianople, at the Tchatalja lines, and in the Gallipoli peninsula makes it impossible for us to give any accurate or, indeed, intelligible account of what is happening. All we know is that behind that veil men are battling, and that the fate of the Turkish Empire is being decided. That in these days and within so comparatively short a distance of such a capital as Vienna half a million men, counting both sides, are in action without any news of their doings leaking out seems almost incredible, but such is the fact. In all probability, however, a portion of the veil will be lifted in a day or two, perhaps almost as soon as these pages are in our readers' hands, for on Friday a Bulgarian semi-official telegram was published which described the Turks as having attempted sorties from Adrianople on Monday and Tuesday which failed with the loss of over a thousand men. The Bulgarian head- quarters staff has also issued a statement that on February 8th six divisions of Turkish troops at Gallipoli attacked an entrenched position, but were completely defeated by the Bulgarians, who, making a counter-attack with the bayonet, drove their assailants back in confusion. According to the same account the losses of the Turks in the battle were " almost _incredible." " Over six thousand Turkish corpses were heaped in front of the Bulgarian positions." No doubt this story lacks confirmation, but there is a general feeling amongst well-informed people that the Turks' power of resistance is rapidly being exhausted, and they will soon be obliged to make peace on worse terms than those they rejected a fortnight ago.
