The New York Times/1920/6/21/Armenia prepared for a hard fight

ARMENIA PREPARED

FOR A HARD FIGHT

Maintains Forces Under General

Dro Able to Make a Strong

Defense Against Bolsheviki

TIFLIS, Transcaucasia, July 17 (Associated Press). - Armenia temporarily is in no danger of going Bolshevist unless the Moscow Government sends a great Russian force against it, in the opinion of observers who have just returned from Shusha, Erivan and Nakhitchevan, after a careful study in the field of the military situation.

Both the Georgians and Armenians, say these observers, had a terrible object lesson of what espousal of Bolshevism may mean in the frightful way the Tartars of Azerbaijan were slaughtered by the Russians when they resented Bolshevist domination. The observers point out that the Bolsheviki must actually fight their way into Armenia through the mountain forces of General Dro, an experienced Russian Armenian leader, who has barely 10,00 mountain tribesmen in Nakhitchevan, waging a ruthless war on Tartars who cross the Armenian boundaries.

General Dro threw a bomb at the tyrannical Governor of Baku in 1904. He fought with the Russians in the early part of the European war, and when he visited the hospital at Tiflis, where Dro was recovering from wounds. He is a magnetic, small man of about 40, wears no uniform, and his soldiers call him merely Dro.

The General does not disguise his hatred for the Bolsheviki. He operates independently of the main Armenian Army, and is generally respected and feared by the rough bands which blindly follow him. These bands wage guerrilla warfare mercilessly. They lack ammunitition, and consequently use the bayonet freely.