The Basis of Future Operations
supplies. The army largely starved, as did German Austria, and especially Vienna.
Although agriculture was very primitive, the situation in Bulgaria was better, but the system of government was rotten. Arrangements on the L. of C. were bad, and the supply system was managed on antiquated lines. The army often ran short of food. There was ground for hope, however, that Bulgaria would be self-supporting in the long run.
The Turkish supply system was rotten through and through. Her agriculture was the most primitive imaginable, even iron ploughs being unknown. Our Minister of Agriculture, Baron von Schorlemer, had made efforts to improve Turkish agriculture, but the Turkish Government displayed not the least understanding or perception in the matter. They asked for motor ploughs to bring more land under cultivation, but never dreamt of really tackling the whole problem and taking definite steps to increase production. Turkey, especially Constantinople, was thus in urgent need of help.
In the autumn of 1916 the idea was mooted of establishing a Central Supply Office for the Quadruple Alliance, under German control. It was a specious suggestion, but the food situation in the four countries depended on circumstances that were fundamentally different. Equality could never have been established. In the end, they would all have lived on Germany. The idea was abandoned, quite rightly.
V
The great importance of Rumania, or more correctly of Wai-lachia, has already been noticed in various connections. We had now the task of exploiting this country for what we needed, and of transporting it to the consumers. Rumania and the Dobrudja were put under one administration. Having regard to the predominant part which we Germans had taken in the conquest of the country, I endeavoured to have this administration put iu German hands. In view of the peculiarities of our
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