First Story of the Rout of Sultan's Forces Told by Lieut. Wegener.

New York Times 100 years ago today, November 2, 1912:
TURKISH LINE CRUMPLED
From Lule-Burgas to Bunarhissar the Moslem Forces Were Driven Headlong.
TURKS RUSH UP RESERVES
For a Time They Held Back the Foe, but Troops from Adrianople Turned the Tide.
ARMY SEES TRIUMPH AHEAD
Soldiers Cannot Be Restrained from Hurling Themselves Fiercely on the Foe.
TURKS CLAIM VICTORIES
Nazim Pasha's Reports Cheer Constantinople, but London Is Very Skeptical.
By LIEUT. WEGENER.
The Only Correspondent at the Front on the Bulgarian Side.
Special Cable to The New York Times by arrangement with the Vienna Reichspost.
    HEADQUARTERS OF THE BULGARIAN ARMY, Thursday, Oct. 31, 7:30 P.M.— I have just returned to headquarters with a train of wounded, after spending three days at the front.
    For three days and nights I have not been out of my clothes, and my poor horse could not move another step for sheer exhaustion.
    The great final battle, the objective, dispositions and probable outcome of which I announced in my dispatches of last week, entered on the decisive phase Thursday morning, when the left wing of Bulgarians at Bunarhissar took the offensive with a mighty impetus.
    The prelude to the final clash of arms was a murderous opening engagement, which on Monday resulted very favorably for the Bulgarians, especially on the right wing at Lule-Burgas.
    On the left wing, where the Bulgarian offensive started, the Turks, by taking the offensive from Serai by way of Viza, had attempted to meet the danger threatening their line of retreat, owing to the Bulgarian advance by way of Sarai to Tchatalja. The Turks had already succeeded in driving back the advance body of the Bulgarians beyond Karagaederesi and Bunarhissar.
    Tuesday morning, when the mighty counter attack of the Bulgarians was delivered against their right wing from the line running from Uskub to Hadjifakli and the heights of Monastirdagh, the front ranks of the Turks were simply run down by a startling assault, executed with unparalleled elan. Yet they succeeded in keeping up the fight by continually bringing up their reserves.
    Here on this ground bitter forest fighting raged throughout the day. In the course of the fighting the Turkish main body degenerated into senseless masses without consistency or power of fighting.

Bulgarian Right Victorious.
    At the same time the Bulgarian right wing attacked the Turkish positions at Lule-Burgas from Baba-Eski to the west and Yenikeui to the southeast and drove the Turks from their fortified positions on Telan Dere, Ajaali Dere, and the Ergene River, back on Lule-Burgas.
    The Bulgarian infantry were splendidly supported by their artillery, which, at critical moments, succeeded in holding down the Turks by an annihilating fire.
    With the help of the guns most of the Turkish positions were taken by assault with the bayonet, yet some of the Turkish positions were stormed and taken by the Bulgarian infantry without any preliminary action or support from their artillery.
    The elan of the Bulgarian infantry is, as I have already said, unparalleled, and, like the tactical achievements resulting therefrom, it surpasses all that one could have believed possible. In this respect the Bulgarian infantry, without the least concession to the scruples of modern tactics, applies its battle cry of "Na Nos,"' (Now for the knife,) to the conditions of reality, that is to say, to its tactics.

Thirst to Reach Enemy.
    Four hundred paces, and still further from the enemy's lines, whole regiments rose like one man and hurled themselves in one solid, charging en masse on the enemy without halting, still firing and despising all cover.
    Every man of the Bulgarian infantry literally thirsts to get at the Turk with his knife or bayonet, and the officers are powerless against this burning frenzy.
    All attempts to hold the troops in leash were fruitless.
    One regiment that had not yet been ordered up to the firing line, but was held in line formation as reserves, hurled itself on the enemy solely on the order of a Sergeant which rose above the cries of battle. The men heeded not a whit the officers' order to halt and lie down.
    The same spirit fills the breasts of the newly formed reserves of the third line, who go into battle in civilian clothes, with cartridge belts girded about them and armed with Mannlicher rifles and bayonets.
    The mountain districts particularly furnish regiments, the men of which are of all ages and unequaled for toughness, reliability, and soldierly enthusiasm.
    The Bulgarian Army and the regimental leaders are supported by able officers. That corps of organized excellence have adapted themselves with a wide measure of understanding to this spirit of the men. They do not feel compelled to damp the ardor of the Bulgarian common soldier by exaggeratedly methodical leadership. They have only sought to give it suitable, and, in general, collective direction.

Crumpled Turks' Line.
    Tuesday's fierce engagements had resulted successfully for the Bulgarians, both at Bunarhissar and Lule-Burgas, yet they had struck no decisive blow, for the Turks had brought up the whole of their reserves to hold the Bulgarian advance in check.
    Early Wednesday morning strong Bulgarian forces had been brought up by forced marches from the troops investing Adrianople.
    The Bulgarians then advanced to make an attempt to break through the centre of the enemy's position. The Bulgarian attack fell partly on the Turkish troops drawn up in the forest region south of the road from Kirk-Kilisseh to Visa and partly on the Turks' entrenched positions northwest of Lule-Burgas.
    After heavy forest fighting and continually repeated murderous bayonet assaults, the Bulgarians succeeded by midday in breaking through the Turkish position, and in co-operation with an attack, delivered simultaneously at Lule-Burgas, in rolling up the whole of the Turkish wing.
    Here in the early hours of the afternoon began a general retreat on the line from Lule-Burgas to Bedirequi, along the railway and in the direction of Tchorlu. The Bulgarians immediately took up the pursuit in this quarter. They continued to press the enemy with extraordinary energy throughout the night.
    The result was the Turkish retreat degenerated into a wild flight.
    The Turkish troops on this wing were totally dispersed. At the same time, on their own left wing, southeast of Bunarhissar, the Bulgarians had completely enveloped the Turks from the northeast.
    When dawn broke to-day a decisive attack upon the right flank of the Turks was delivered from the line of Urunbeiliviza. Heavily shaken by the fighting which had gone before, the Turkish troops could not withstand the overwhelming flank attack of the Bulgarians.
    Abandoning their line of retreat by way of Sarai, the almost totally disbanded masses of Turks retired in disorderly way of Changara and Topcikoci or directly south on Tchorlu.
    Here also the Bulgarians took up the pursuit immediately with energy by a parallel movement and a continual outflanking movement along the Turkish main line of communications by way of Sarai, Tatarkeui and Tcherkesskeui. They sought to cut off the enemy's retreat to the Tchatalja lines before Constantinople.

Enormous Turkish Losses.
    The Turkish losses have been enormous. Their line of retreat can be traced by a long trail of discarded weapons and objects of equipment and, sad to say, also by burning villages and the bodies of massacred Christians.
    The Bulgarians captured numerous guns, many thousand rifles, quantities of ammunition, and two railway trains.
    As conditions are to-day probably only fractions of the Turkish Army will get behind the Tchatalja lines. Thus the plan of the Bulgarian Army Commander to destroy the Turkish Eastern Army may be regarded as having been completely successful, despite the counter measures with which Nazim Pasha sought to frustrate it.
    Jubilation prevails at the headquarters of the army. Already it sees itself at the gates of Constantinople, and it will get there.

Bombarding Adrianople.
    The fighting in front of Adrianople, despite the Bulgarians' decision to abandon assault tactics, has lost none of its former severity. On Wednesday morning the Bulgarian siege batteries, posted at Kaduikeui and on the heights, began a bombardment of the Turkish works of Scheitantabja, Karagoeztabja and Hadirliktabja, belonging to the Tchatalja group on the northwest front of Adrianople.
    These works are among the strongest of the entire fortress. They are of modern construction and relatively well armed. They have bomb-proof cement shelters, and some of them are reported to possess also steel roofs.
    What Tarabozed is for Scutari the Tchatalja group is for Adrianople — the key of the fortress. Their capture would bring about the fall of Adrianople, providing the fortress was not starved out.
    The bombardment lasted for eight hours. Then it was resumed after an hour's interval and by every Bulgarian gun. The reply of the Turkish guns was ineffective.
    Meanwhile the Bulgarian infantry advanced in the direction of Marash to attack. At the same time a strong detachment from Duidzaras and Chorekeui went forward against Karagach.
    In this region, dominated by the Turkish works, every tree had been stripped bare of leaves and branches.
    The Turkish garrison, the strength of which is estimated at about 40,000 men, makes numerous sorties on this front.
    Since last night a fearful battle has been raging with varying success at the bridge over the River Maritza at Marash. The Turks displayed extraordinary stubbornness. They continually brought up fresh forces and hurled them into the fight.
    This is the most sanguinary battle in which the Bulgarians have been engaged before Adrianople. In this battle the Bulgarian troops also displayed admirable contempt of death.
    This was especially so in the case of the reserves of the Tenth and Eleventh Corps. In their new uniforms they had been brought up to replace the troops of the line sent to the eastern army, and are now for the first time under fire,
    In the days preceding the decisive action, all the troops that could be spared from before Adrianople were sent to the main army. Continuous files of fresh troops with artillery have also passed through Mustapha Pass, proceeding toward Adrianople.
    Now that the Turkish main army is as good as destroyed, it is probable the investment corps before Adrianople will be strengthened again and the assault on the fortress continued with increased energy.
    News has just been received that Demotika has been occupied by the Bulgarians. By this move the Turkish forces there and at Uzunkopri are isolated, and communication between the country lying on either side of the lower Maritza is interrupted.