The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1914-10-29

Country Was Entirely Unprepared for
Such Enormous Losses - Arrival of
Refugees Compncates the Situation
in Vienna
ROME, Oct. %, despatch to The
London Standard )-mformation from
Austria reveals unimagined serious
| ness.
The military losses not only have
been great, but disease is spreading
while the populace is apathetic. Enor-
nous, almost inconceivabIe. is the loss
OF life suffered by the Austrian army.
An evil spirit seems to have rem
dered the Austrian army impotent
from the very commencement Of hos.
tilties. The first Austrian advance
into Russian Poland, resulted in ; hor
rlhie catastrophe for the invaders. In
one battalion l. officers and 562 men
were lost in one day.
Only SIX weeks after the declaration
OF war Vienna alone took under its
auspices no fewer than 10000 wound
ed, and it was calculated that in those
six weeks the Austrian army had lost
100000 men in killed and wounded,
From then onward not a single dav
has elapsed without bringing news Of
a sanguinary skirmish.
In one encounter of minor import-
anee at the end of September the
Austrian army emerged with the colos-
sal total of 10000 fallen This was
due to tragic error. The Austrians,
lett without ammunition and stationed
IN an open position, hoisted white
iia9s. The Russians did not see them
and continued to dccimate the Aus
TRANS with their mitrailleuses for sew
eral hours
Austria was entirely unprepared for
such gigantic losses. Thus today not
one Of the towns situated on the mill
tafY road is able to give refuge to
wounded soldiers. and Vienna has con.
sequently had to be converted into Il
gigantic hospital. All the public and
private hospitals, barracks and schools
became overtilled, but this did not suf-
fee. and theatres and offices were oe-
cupied for this purpose. 1t was still
inadequate, Then were invaded the
Museum, the great Rotunde of the
worldrenowned Prater park. where
elegant spectacular ballets were per
formed, the gay palaces of the great
NIennese exhibitions, and all other
available accommodations.
The life of the city is nearly alto
gether crushed by this painful mass Of
mutilated humanity. There is no free
breathing space. There are no more
beds in the Rotunde. The wounded
lie on the floor on simple sacks and
straw.
The hospitals are beginning to 90
short of ehloroform, and as result
many operations are performed with
out anaestheticS.
Soldiers Beg in the Streets.
But there is something still more af
tlicting. Gonvalescent soldiers wander
like vagabonds through the streets.
clothed in uniforms and still bandaged.
begging aims. They are hungry. they
ask for food, warm apparel. under
clothing, and walking sticks.
All the stocks have been exhausted.
There Is no more leather for boots.
There is 4 shortage of shirts and lack
cts. One sees reservists on sentry du.
ty with ropes around their waists in
stead Of leather belts.
Together with the wounded arrive
long professions of cholera and dysen.
terry invalids, all from the Galician
frontier. The cholera is of the benign
form, but the dysentery is fatal. The
medical figures for Vienna Indicate
100 dead daily from this malicious ep-
idemic.
This evil is spreading with disas-
trous rapidity. The wounded who re-
turned home are injecting the south
OF Austria. Several cases have been
discovered in villages midway between
Vienna and Trieste
In view of this dangerous eontagion
the authorities have decided to build
wooden barracks around the city, with
10000 beds, to serve as military iso-
lation hospitals
The arrival in Vienna of thousands
of refugees from Galicia. mostly Jews.
still further confplicates the life of
the city Multitudes of long bearded.
short, red haired men, wearing boots
and black clerical cl0aks-the typical
Galician fgures-accompanied bv their
wives, children, and goods and chat
tells, are densely massed together in
the yards of public institutions The
authorities of Vienna have decided not
to admit any more Galician fugitives.
There was ferment among the mass
es, who resorted to demonstrations
quickly suppressed-on one occasion
when the war office had not published
bulletins announcing victories for five
days III succession A large crowd of
old men and women assembled on the
Steuben Ring, in front of the war min
lister S palace, and clamored for news.
The police adopted severe measures
The Citizens Indifferent.
Complete Indifference on the part of
the citizens is now developing. There