them. But the weather was desperate. A blizzard was sweeping
down the steeps. The Turkish forces were indeed able to carry out the
plan, for they obtained the position desired. But by this time they were
worn out, and half starved, and their attack on New Year's Day resulted
in their defeat and retreat. The Ninth corps was utterly wiped out, and
the remainder of the Turkish forces driven off in confusion. Only the
strenuous efforts of the Turkish Eleventh corps prevented a debacle.
After a three days' battle it, too, was broken, and with heavy losses it
retreated toward Erzerum. The snowdrifts and blizzards must have
accounted for not less than 50,000 of the Turkish troops. The result of
the battle made Russia safe in the Caucasus.

But the Germans had another use for the Turkish forces. England was in
control of Egypt and the Suez Canal. The German view of England's
position has been well stated by Dr. Paul Rohrbach:

"As soon as England acquired Egypt it was incumbent upon her to guard
against any menace from Asia. Such a danger apparently arose when
Turkey, weakened by her last war with Russia and by difficult conditions
at home, began to turn to Germany for support. And now war has come, and
England is reaping the crops which she has sown. England, not we,
desired this war. She knows this, despite all her hypocritical talk, and
she fears that, as soon as connection is established along the
Berlin-Vienna-Budapest-Sofia-Constantinople Line, the fate of Egypt
may be decided. Through the Suez Canal goes the route to all the lands
surrounding the Indian Ocean, and by way of Singapore to the western
shores of the Pacific. These two worlds together have about nine hundred
million inhabitants, more than half the population of the universe, and
India lies in a controlling position in their midst. Should England lose
the Suez Canal she will be obliged, unlike the powers in control of that
waterway, to use the long route around the Cape of Good Hope, and depend
on the good will of the South African Boers. The majority among the
latter have not the same views as Botha. However, it is too early to
prophesy, and it is not according to German ideas to imitate our
opponents by singing premature paeans of victory. But anyhow we are well
aware why anxious England already sees us on the road to India."

Following out this view a Turkish force was directed toward the Suez
Canal, while the German intriguers did their best to stir up re