Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-01-06
Tales of the Cossacks That Have Reached Switzerland
Special Correspondence of The Star.
LAUSANNE, Switzerland,

December 81, 1917.
~ EFORE the war, 'Cossacks" SEEM
IU ed almost synonymous with de
UD) mons" Now. they appear almost
g. as good angels, if a trifie woozy.
promising to save Russia from herself.
have met an American woman who
had them in her house two months
tn-force-during their period of tri-
umph. She is full of personal friend
ship for the Cossacks. although by mar
rage sine belongs to the other side.
1t happened at SZiget. in Hungary,
during the Russian drive of 1918, that
this American woman. married to
Hungarian noble and spending the first
happy summer following after the
honeymoon. you might almost say, on
one of his estates was caught at Szi-
get just in the week when she had
given birth to her first child. II Is
pity that her personality may not be
divulged. but there are grave reasons
against it, at present.
while the entire population fied-and
her husband, an officer. had been torn
away by imperious duty-the American
wife could not move, but lay with her
babe in the family chateau, around
which Sziget clusters
When the Cossacks made their entry,
they galloped through the streets, sing
ing hymns yelling and shooting into
the air. to show their joy. 1t was this
racket that completed the panic and
caused 1900 refugees to fee, afoot. des-
titu-e, leaving all behind them. Yet
none who stayed in the town was mo-
Tested.
The countess, in bed1wfth her babe. had
caused the servants to bring all her
Jewels and. in particular. a precious
collection of ringing watches and BIZ
jou clocks Of the eighteenth and nine
tsenth centuries. which her husband
kept always in repair. She hid them
under the pillows. under the covers
and under the bed itself
Then heavy steps and noise gf
spurs were heard on the stairs she
tells THE door opened and a gigantic
Cossack pushed his lance into the bed
chamber. Almost fainting, my faithful
servants mGrmured the prayers for the
dead. The intruder carefully stood his
lance in a corner and, griuning like an
ogre. approached the bed"
He seemed surprised at the sight of a
woman and her baby. All the same, IL
was the little baby that pleased the
giart He held out his hands toward
il when a strange thing happened.
'.ii being just noon at the moment,
continues our fellow coutrywoman.
1.-THE twenty-nine clocks hidden under
the bed began, one after another. to
strike T. In divers tones Of tinkling sill
yer, sweet brass and sonorous bronze.
The Cossack. stupefied, cooked his big
heao TO one side and stepped back. At
a
church outside began lis chimes of noon.
The Cossach signed himself with the
cross, kuelt and munbled his prayer l
brea thed again. The man could not be
bad
The Cossack, when he got UP from
l his Knees, indicated by joyful gestures
thar he desired to bless the baby. Into
his great hands ] put my little son.
Balancing the child above his head. he
sang in terrific voice a quantity of
prayers and benedictions. Then he
kissed ii. handed it back to me and
solemnly deposited thirty-two copper
copecks. piece by piece. on the bed
spread"
In time the uncouth giant became the
tender nursemaid of the baby by his
own pleading. his lieutenant's permits
sion and the complete confidence of
the mother. During their entire stay
at Sziget he and sixty-four others were
bilieted on the chateau.
Much will be said about the Cossacks.
My American informant, who had
them in her house two months in the
: time of their power and glory, wishes
TO say 4 word in favor of them. This
is one reason why her name must be
withheld. They are simple, ignorant.
honest and even good, she says. their
fearsome reputation being due to their
disreputable whiskers, through which