The Russians have followed up their brilliant victory at Erzeroum a number of successes at various points along what is oom-prehensively termed the Caucasian front, which in reality stretches southwards through Trans-Caucassia, Turkish Armenia, Kurdistan and Persia, bulging westwards round the southern coast of the Black Sea. Since the capture of Erzeroum the most outstanding achievement thas been the capture of Kermanshah, capital of a small province in Persian Kurdistan, 270 miles west-southwest of Teheran. Situated on the main caravan route between Bagdad and Teheran, and almost equidistant from the latter and from Ispshan and Tabriz, Kermanshah commands roads to each of those places, and is therefore invested with considerable commercial and strategic importance. Moreover, Kermanshah is only about 120 miles, as the crow flies, northeastward of Bagdad, the objective of the British Expeditionary Force in Mesopotaima, which is now at Kut-el-Amara, 65 miles southeast of Bagdad, awaiting reinforcements who are well on their way. Thus it will be seen that the Allies may reasonably expect shortly to have complete control of a line from the Persian Gulf to the Black Sea, thus terminating completely.aay further dreams of an expedition either to India or Egypt. Any attempt to move troops through Syria would be fraught with the greatest danger, in fact Constantinople must already be extremely anxious for the troops now in this territory and the Sinai Peninsula, inasmuch as the Russian armies southwestward of Erzeroum may soon be in a position to send cavalry to interrupt their communications, although the country to be traversed is most difficult and events may show such action to be unneces-In addition to the foregoing considerations the capture of Kermanshah must again relieve the pressure of the enemy in Mesopotamia, while it finally confirma the failure of German intrigues in Persia, It will be remembered that the Turks and Germans first entered the young Sultan's territory and that it was only by a bold stroke on the part of Russia that the German plots did not succeed. Russian troops entered Persia in order to protect that country from falling a victim to Germany and at the same time to safeguard the interests of the Allies, both of which objects have been achieved.
Feb. 28.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.