Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1892-07-30

W ZSM CplOuel TeCcIVeu ICS
~ marching orders, the
wife of the lieutenant colonel, Count X. +,
and myself obtained, not without a good
deal of trouble, permission to follow the
regiment to the field of war. We argued
that, protected by the Red Cross badge
of the Convention de Geneva" we
would really run no danger, and that as
far as privatious were concerned we did
not mind that one bit. This extraordinary
declaration, coming from two spoiled
children like ourselves, who had been
brought up in the very lap of luxury,
and who had not the faintest idea of
what privations really meant, caused
our friends to smile at our simplicity.
But as, after all, we were in perfect
health and firmly resolved to gain our
point, we finally succeeded.
Our first week of campaigning" were
devoted 10 nursing the sick and tending
the wounded. In spite of all that may
be said to the contrary by idealists, it is
not q pleasant task, aud many time
have cried very bitter tears at the sight
of some strong young soldier crippled for
life by the bullets of the enemy. Habit,
however, is the great master. and with
time | became so welt used to life in
camp ambulances that really considered
myself as cool and collected in the &C
complishment of my self imposed duties
as any hardened army surgeon among us.
No country on the face of our unfor-
tunate planet has been oftener ravaged,
no land ofteneT soaked with the blood
of its inhabitants than the portion of the
Balkan Peninsula which our troops were
occupying. Everything around us had
been desoated by fire and bloodshed as
severely as during the first invasions of
the barbarians, hundreds of years before.
Very grand, but very dreary and sad,
was the landscape with its wonderful de ..
files. its high mountains enclosing rush
ing streams. The sandstone rocks, worn
by erosion into fantastic forms worthy of
Gustave Dore, took in the twilight the
shapes of huge dragons, lions or other
equally terrific looking objects. Then
came great deserted plains with here aud
there cottages built of clay on a founda-
ton of dry stones and covered with
pieces of wood, from which the inhab-
itants had fed in terror. 1t was difficult
to procure food for the army. The Gull
ture is always poor in this wild land, and
now everything had been pillaged.
For the first time in my life l knew
what hunger meant. In after years an
experience of that kind makes one feel
very charitably inclined toward the un.
fortunates who claim ones mercy on the
plea of starvation. Strange as it may
appear, had never felt better in my
life than during these months of priva-
tion and fatigue. Many a time after
being a whole day in the saddle | slept
on the bare ground with nothing to pro-
tect me from the sharp night air but a
rough military cloak or horse blanket,
and slept far better than under the vel
vet and lace canopy of my soft bed at
home.
Just in the same manner did relish a
crust of soldiers hard bread and mess
of more than questionable soup eaten be-
side the bivouac fires with a ravenous
hunger as appetizer. Everybody was SO
courteous and eonsiderate. These un-
educated men of our regiment, har iened
by the adventurous life of soldiers in
active service, were always ready to give
up their own scant comforts in order to
add to mine, had been disposed to al
low them to do so. AS it was, | had
many hard fight with my patients IN
the ambulance, so anxious were they to
share with me the thin beef-tea, or sip
of wine which it was 80 difficult to pro-
cure for them. But enough of this, or
my "reminiscences will carry me so far
that l shall never come to the adventure
which / am about to relate.
1t happened shortly after the defeat of
the Bosnians by our forces, between
Zepce and MagIai. Our brigade was
camping at the foot of some high and
precipitous cliffs some miles from Zepce,
our regiment being separated from the
army corps by superb deile of steep
rocks. 1t was the most romantic site
imaginable, plentifully wooded with
oaks, beeches and Gins; but the very
narrow road winding between the cliffs
was gruesome in the extreme in its lone.
illness and awe-inspiring grandeur.
One afternoon had ridden over from
our camp, a distance of ten miles or so,
to the other side of the de6le, where
Countess X, was visiting her uncle, the
general in command of the brigade. II
was getting toward dusk when ordered
my horse with view to riding back to
our camp before night. l refused the
escort which the general most kindly
pressed me to accept, for knew that ]
would be far safer alone than when &C.
companied by soldiers wearing the hated
uniform of the army of occupation. Be-
sides, this, as | have said before, was
very romantic in those days, and l pre-
ferred not to expose any fellow creatures
to the bullets and yatagans of the dreaded
Montenegrins, who were known 10 be
always in ambush in the mountain passes.
After having succeeded in persuadlng
the general of my perfect safety,
mounted my black charger, "Dare Devil, u
and was about to start off at a brisk
canter, when tho dear old gentlemen,
putting his hand on tie pommel of my
saddle and coming close to me, wbis
pered, "Take care, my child. 1t would
never do for you to be caught carrying
dispatches. l laughed gayly to reas-
sure him, but nevertheless | knew full
well how true his words were, for, in
deed, it would very likely mean death to
me. The fact was, that seeing me de-
termined to ride back to camp alone, the
general. who felt certain that a woman
protected by the "brassard" of the Red
Cross stood a better chance of passing
unframed through the deile than any
member OF his staff, had intrus ted to me
dispatch OF the utmost Importance. II
was written in cipher on tiny scrap Of