Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1917-09-10
Under Heel Of Cruel
Invaders, Being Devastat-
ed and Life Of Nation Be
ing Utterly Wiped Out
News Of the Terrible Suf-
ferings but: Slowly Come
Known to World.
BY Milton Bronner.

BY Milton Bronner.
Washington, D. c., Sept. 10.-"Bel-
GUM and northern France may be
starved and strangled by the Germans.
but Serbia is being crucified by the
Austrians and the Bulgars. The two
nations vie with each other in their
.cruelties. They are not deferred In
part by public opinion as are the
Germans. News g come Sor
Belgium, but very little comes out of
Serbia"
The speaker was v. M. Yovanovitch,
former professor in the University OF
Belgrade, for nearly two years official
government eyewitness" with the
Serbian armies, and now in this city
attached to the Serbian legation. For
some time before coming here one OF
his principal duties In charge Of the
Serbian press bureau at Corfu, was to
60 through Bulgarian, Austrian and
Hungarian newspapers for Jews OF
what was happening to Serbia.
when the Austrians and the Bull
CARS get through, there may be no
Serbian nation" he said. add to the
losses In fighting, the deaths from sup
pressions Of Serb rebellions, the
deaths from disease and hunger, the
deaths from wholesale executions for
oftenses never before punished so
drastically, and you get ar enormous
figure.
1.-The Austrians. have one-third of
my country, the BulgarsS hold the rest.
Before the war the population was
4,660,000 Serbia's general loss in
population: amounts to 1,16o,000. From
this we may have to deduct 100000 in
the Sarhfar n a 1~v11 af So10niko IN N00
wr.snded and reserves at Corfu and in
ind Tunis, $4,000 prisoners
aoHeountries. 10000 civilians in
ne and 5000 refugees. The
asSf. 10 prisoners $or interned are FOL
fe 4f.sreater part doomed to perish OF
became permanently incapacitated
So the Serbian losses are roughly al
ready 100000 souls-more than one
fifth Of the entire population.
And the end is not yet. We know
that 10000 Serbs persisted when they
revolted at Nish and Prokuplie against
Bulgar cruelties. According to a state.
ment in the Austrian parliament by
Otokar Ribar, the Bulgars have de-
ported over 10000 Serbs to Asia
Minor, and about 5000 Serbian girls
between the ages Of 10 and IA, have
been sent to the harems Of Constan.
tinople. They have also deported en-
masse all business men, officials
teachers and priests.
Serbian is no longer allowed In
schools-Bulgarians teach the Bulga,
language. In the churches Bulgarian
priests preside. Serbian books which
swere not burned have been cenvertaf
into pulp for making new paper
Children are sent by the wholesale
into Austria. In one Hungarian pa.
per I saw that 500 were interned a,
Brunau, and Hungarian teachers hat
been supplied. The object. of course
is to denationalize them and to utilize
their labor.
I'm the part OF Serbia under contro
OF h Austrian Archduke Frederick
we learn from the 'Beogradske Nov
ine,' official organ Of the Austrians
that death on the gallows is provided
FOR persons. me or women, in who's,
possession are found arms or ex
plpsives. for those who assist prison
ers to escape. for having more food i,
the house than is permitted by tn,
military, for retaining copper utensil
after orders to give them UP, for cor
veytng letters other than one's own,
Not long ago Sibin Yelechitch
wealthy merchant Of Brus, was hange,
for refusing to reveal where privat
property Of the Serbian crown prime,
had been deposited.
"In the retreat Of the Serb arr,ias
the me buried arms and m,nitinn
lon farms. When the Austrians An,
farmers, utterly ignorant of ~
whereabouts Of these ~irnnlemsnta :
war. Z
"PeopIe have been hanged baca,,s
they either could not Of would No
reveal where Serbian Archives va