Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1918-05-16

that the Serbs We're Well informed as
to the strength of the forces they had
to check mate. No matter what the
Austrian commander might do, ne
would find thai the Serbs had antici-
pated him. If he made an attempt to
cross the river to the e of Mitrovic.
the Serbs We're sure to be there en-
masse. Several attempts to cross the
Sava opposite Sabacs We're frustrated
in a like manner
1t was plain that spies were at work.
This was no startling discovery, by
the way. Many of the Slavonians sym
pathized with the Serbs. Jugo-Slavism
had ripened TO that extent. anyway.
Many arrests were mad among the
inhabitants of Mitrovic and the viii
lagos up n dow the river.
But thai did not seem to improve
matters,-as General Potiorek found out
on several occasions. The river bank
was carefully patroled. No BOAT was
ever seer to cross the SaVa n no.
body seemed to fish for bottles watch
might have contained the information.
No trace of Telegraph. semaphores,
wire, signal lanterns and the like was
ever found. The case seemed hopeless.
But one day an Austrian officer. IA
little shrewder than the rest. noticed
that there We're ducks on the river
near the western outskirts of Mitrovic.
There was a shallow place in the water
nearby, n to this the birds had been
in the habit OF going in search for
food.
1t would have been IL simple matter
TO order the ducks off the river. But
the AuStrians had lost SO much time
by now that a few days did not matter.
1t seemed more important to find out
whether the ducks served any partic-
ular purpose aside from their usual
one
They did" said the base COM
mander Of Mitrovic, az we discussed
the ducks. and soon learned what he
was about. The first thing we noticed
a that he never let the birds go on
the water at II same time Of day.
That was unusual. Generally ducks
! are left to roam as they will. They
go u on the water at daybreak, IL
not restrained. and return to their pen
late in the afternoons
But these ducks made for their
feeding ground always on the hour.
Sometimes that would be 2 In the
morning, h 1t might be >. or again
they might not appear until 2 in the
afternoon. We learned shAt the man
kept them in the yard when he didn't
want to have them on the river. and
that usually he did not allow all of
the birds their freedom. We also ascsr-
tained that he bought more ducks
all OF them white.
One day we arrested the man and
I before We hanged him We got his
code. 1t was a most elaborate schcn,e
consisting of W. so combinations.
When; the birds ON the feeding, place
We're all white 1t meant that az many
OF our battalions AZ there were birds
mad gone through Mitrovic in a west
erly direction: when there was one
colored bird among them it meant
nat 30 many lattalions had gone east;
battaltons going north were indicated
by two cotored birds. and SO on. In
ali cases the white ducks indicated the
number OF departing and arriving bat
talions. while the colored birds indi-
Gated the route direction.
"A Serbian officer stationed on the
rool OF the custom house in Mitrovica
understood. We had seen the man
there many a time. but thought him
ordinary observation officer"