OCR Text |
Show CRMS CHEER GREEK LEADER Will Resist Turk Advance Even Should Athens Order Retreat ADRIAN'OPI.E. Oct. 9. (By tho Associated Press. ) General Anasta-slos Anasta-slos LsonardOpbnlOS, new Greek commander com-mander In eastern Thrace, was greeted greet-ed by the populace and soldiery i "the liberator of Adrlanople," upon his arrival here Sunday. The title "liberator" arises from the fact that he was the first Greek to enter Adrlanople after the Bulgarians Bul-garians and Turks were driven from j the city In 1918. He now has re-1 turned in the midst of tife extensive preparations being made to resist the Turkish r-nr. upatlon Although General I.eonardopoulos today Is one of the foremost military leaders in Greece, he traveled from Athens In nn urdlnary railway coach. In spit) Of his effort to aold attention, atten-tion, however, he found delegations awaiting him at virtually every station sta-tion along the route across Thrace, j At this moment It Is evident tht th army has llltle Intention of evacuat-1 tik Thrace without a struggle. What- j i-.-r the orders from Athens may be. and there Is no doubt that many or the officers are looking back for Inspiration In-spiration to the examples of Gnbriel,,; 1 t'AnnunzIo at Flume and GenVrii' 'lgouskl at Yllna. ESvontS march s Iftly in an atmosphere of turmoil such as exists throughout Greece today, to-day, and anything Is possible GRANTS 1M i:it IKW, I Immediately after General Leuil-l Leuil-l ardopouios had passed through the m ring columns of troops In the Rue Karapatch to th new headquarters in i the Greek palace, he received the Aa-j Aa-j soclated Press correspondent, with whom he freely discussed the situation. situa-tion. I In reply to the question whether Thrac was going to fight, he said speaking In French "We arc prepared. The whole army asks nothing better than the opportunity. oppor-tunity. We shall not surrender Thrace. AJiyone who saw the soldiers sol-diers along the Rue Karagatch today knows Instinctively that my words refect re-fect absolutely the spirit of the troops." The general evaded questions re-i re-i gardlng the strength ol his available forces which estimates place at about 45,000 men WARNED BY DICTATOR ATHENS. Oct. 9. (By tTTc Associated Associ-ated Press) Attempts by re&ctktfh-arles re&ctktfh-arles to make capital out of the loss of Thrace will be met, if necessary, by force. It Is declared by Colonel Gonatas who is still the military dictator dic-tator of the new Greek governm nt. He announced before a meeting of tho Commercial association of Athens Ath-ens that the army was ready to take ever measures to protect tho national na-tional safety and nasure permanency1 to the objects of the revolution. ' The rc olutlon was achieved I peacefully," he said, "but the army j Is ready to take grave decisions i against those who seek to exploit th loss of Thrace by discrediting tho revolution which came too late to save Thrace." The Greek members of the chamber cham-ber of deputies of Thrace ha S sent a statement to the British press, declaring de-claring that If the British peop believe be-lieve the re-entry of the Turks Into Europe will assure peace they are' suffering from a lamentable illusion . The Thraclans predict thai before manv months the French mandate, for Palestine. Mesopotamia and, Smyrna will bo challenged the F.gyp-tlSJO F.gyp-tlSJO question reopened and the Galli-poll Galli-poll campaign will have been fought over again. They declare that in avoiding armed conflict today the British are merely postponing the inevitable. in-evitable. n,"v |