New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-09-07
By \. ENRICH.
Especial Correspondent OF The New i0'N
rribune AND London Standard.

Especial Correspondent OF y NC -,
Tribune and London standard
Nish. Servia. Aug. 81 Delayed
After the butcheries and atrocities
which I witnessed during preceding
battles I thought | would get aecus..
toned and inscnsible 10 these scenes Oh
blood, but from my last visit to the
slaughterhouse have brought sueh
visions OF horror that their very
thought makes ne shudder.
Tho sole object of the Austrian army
seems 70 have been complete devasta,
ton. But before describing the aetual
sufferings Of the victims IN whose
blood the Austro- Hungarian hordes
AVE drowned their Unsuitable fury of
battle I want 70 describe what terrible
becetombs these wretches paid for the
fidpous atrOcity Of their crimes.
The fierce battle which the Servians
gaye them necessarily for more than
week NAV be divided into two conflicts
II equal intensity, which ragged along
the ridge of the heights Of Tser Each
81 the two slopes, descending one to
the Save and the town of Shabatz and
tho other TO the Drina, rs now nothing
else but q charnel mouse. l could not
saw which Of these two conflicts was
the more murderous, but this admir-
rblv fertile region, with its countless
fruit trees. is now sheltering the last
remains Of hundreds Of butchercd men,
Women and children. COrpses can be
seen everywhere.
When. after three days and three
nights Of truccless fighting, the Ser
vans succeeded IN surprising the
enemy i'm the middle Of the night at
Tser, tho toll of dead was so colossal
that the Serviau troops we're con
strained for the time being to abandon
lurying corpscs. Heaps Of killed were
so dense that II was absolutely impos-
sible TO pass.
Everywhere the fighting was OF the
Gercest conceivable nature, for TO re-
sist the invaders was TO the Servians
q question of life or death. At several
yoints they fought right up TO the
last man, succumbing, but never
falling back.
The volunteer corps of Captain
Tankositch. a famous leader, whose
head Austria is so anxious TO get, was
charged to defend Kroupage, situated
south of the battle front between Los
nitza and LionbOvia. Large Austrian
forces attempted to advance, with
view to driving the captain back.
For two days and three nights Tan
kositeh aud $50 volunteers held their
position. Az last three whole Aus
trian regiments surrounded them, but,
rather than yield 10 the enemy, Tanko-
stitch and his gallant miniature army
resolved to fight to the last.
In the dead Of night the captain sent
out a small group TO meet the Aus
TRANS This group. consisting Of a
mere handful Of soldiers, hurled a
shower of bombs at the enemy, cut
ting up his ranks, and secured free
massage At the first break Of day,
when Tankositch counted his men,
only eorty-six answered the call, aud
the latter surrounded more than 100
prisoners
II will be realized that in the course
of such sharp fighting the Servian
losses must have been considerable,
although much smaller than those OF
the enemy.
Most pitiable and heartrending are
the scenes presented by long process
siops of Servian survivors from neigh
boring villages. consisting Of old men,
Yomen and children, bringing in a
heavy toll Of mutilated human beings. |
Al NaIevo. the nearest town to the |
6eld of battle. large masses Of Ser
Wan and Austrian wounded keep pour !