Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1915-01-13
Gasoline War Is Not Pos
sible in Gal
icia.
DOES NOT LAST LONG
Three Weeks of Army Life
Kills Average Horse
i'll the Army,
by WILLIAM G. SHEPHERD
Omitted Press Correspondent)

by WILLIAM G. SHEPHERD
Omitted Press Correspondcnt)
BuDA PESTH, Dec. 1.-CBy Mail
to New York)-Its not gasoline
power war in Austria, but horse
power war, and the tragedy Of the
horse IS seen at every turn. The
great roads IN Galicia, leading
through the Carpathians, were liter
ally jammed for miles, with wagon
trains, in October and early Novem-
ber and the steam from the backs
OF the thousands Of faithful toiing
animals ascended like clouds in the
cold wintry air
These wagon trains on the narrow
roads are like endless chains. They
can't be delayed. And woe to the
horse that falls! lie is coaXed to his
feet again and again Every last
ounce Of strength in his tired body
Is urged out OF him and he gives his
last pull with .bulging eyes and then
topples over.
Put that isn't the last that the
Austrians expect from him. At the
beginning OF the war the orders were
that any horse which fell must be
shot Immediately However. horse
first six weeks of fighting, and the
armies on the Russian frontier were
helpless without the hundreds Of
thousands of tons of supplies which
must be carried to them over the
mountain roads in the odd willow
bodies basket wagons Of the Galician
farmers. So new order was issued
that no horse was TO be shot unless
one of his limbs were broken.
The result of this order was that
when an animal fell from exhaustion
and had given to his masters even
the strength that was necessary to
keep him or his feet, he was dragged
aside, preferably into a field where
there was grass, and left TO work out
his own fate. Usually he died un-
cared for but now and then a horse
survived and became strong again,
whereupon he would be seized by
some passing soldier and put back
into the daily grind.
This Horse Come Back.
I watched a horse come back
this way, in field near Przemysl
He has fallen in the middle Of a
steep hill, a hill which has caused
the death Of many an exhausted
horse. He was lying with scores Of
other horses in q field alongside the
hill road. Evidently he had an ounce
or two moro Of vitality than they
for he was stretched out. with his
legs curled under him while they
were lying on their sides with their
heads on the ground. His head was
raised and ! fancied that he was
watching, with a horses interest, the
never-ending train OF wagons. that
was passing him. ! was sorry for
him, Xva1l np1y ,,,aa Tnt
more horrors for him. When ] re
turned that way in the evening he
was still lying down, but there was a
circle Of nibbled grass about his
head, The next morning he was
weakly standing up, with his legs
stretched wide apart, and he had
gone away from the other dead and
dying horses, to a lonely corner OF
the field. Incidentally, noticed
time and again that there is nothing
that frightens a horse so much as
the body of n dead horse, and | sup
pose that it was sheer terror that
got this fellow to his feet and helped
him to struggle away TO more cheer
full surroundings. He was nibblinR
Eingerly at the dry grass and now
and then he raised his head and
seemed to look at the mighty tide
of horses and wagons and men that
filled the road.
There's a horse that WIN he all
right within a couple OF weeks" said
the Austrian officer who was with
me. He's a Siberian horse. They're
wonderful animals They're the only
horses i'm the world that will make
two pulls at an immovable object
You can hitch one of them to an OBJ
ject, a tree or a house that cannot
possibly be moved and he will put
his last ounce OF strength into IT, An
ordinary horse would. stop at that
and would refuse the next pull, but
not a Siberian pony He's all sand
and he'll make his second try just as
hravely as he did his first Yes. in
deed, that little fellow will be back
in the wagon trains again within a
couple of weeks
And | suppose he was. for by.
evening he had nibbled a huge circle
of grass In his private corner Of the
field and when went by that way
two days later he was gone.
Even I'm the midst Of war the horse
sldnners were at work. saw them
I'm field near Przemysl. four grue
men, covered with
blood taking the hides from the skel-
eton-lke bodies of the horses who
had given their lives in war.
Three weeks Of steady work In
Galicia and In the Carpathians killed
the average horse. The fields were
dotted with their bodies. The Aus
irians told me that hundreds OF
horses died daily In the Carpathians
passes from broken lungs, broken
courage or broken hearts.