Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1918-03-24

ward to tho edge OF tho snowy grave
OF their comrades. but they would VEN
ture no farther. and the Italians and
French easily pushed back the enemy
forces from the positions they had won
earlier In the day.
Tho Incident made q great impress
sion on the Austrian troops. more so
than on the Germans. and from that
day onward there wcro numerous
assertions in the Austrian army, be-
cause the men seemed TO regard tho
lnciccnt as warning that divine
favor was not theirs.
IIIGIiI.ANDERS ON THE ALERT
AS BATTLE BEGIN3 TO RAGE
Fighting along the P!avc has been
almost continuous of late. though none
OF the Nights has assumed very scri,
Gus proportions That the attacks
have not done so In entirely due to tho
fine work Of the Highland and other
British troops. who arc now in the
line at the point where the danger OF
an enemy break through is greatest.
The other day. while visiting a
dressing station. | was afforded a sight
OF an enemy attack. The first intima-
ton OF 1t was the appearance Of n
number Of Little figures on the high
ground. which slopes down TO the
waters edge from the opposite sh0rc.
The IIighlanders were on the alert at
once. a sharp rattle of muskctry ran
along The whole line. and the chorus
was taken UP by the machine guns.
Some OF tho moving figures fell and
others came to halt, hcsitated. and
then started to go bnck. a number
Of them pressed on. and reached the
water edge. There they halted for
little while, and appeared 10 be re-
turning tho fire of our rinemen.
In a few minutes time the forem ost
figures rose. ran to the water with
pontoons, which they flung in. and on
them the first men spranS, guiding
the pontoons out into the stream. Up
10 then our guns had been silent. but
now they barkcd out an ominous mes
sage both for the German and AUS
TRAN.
The pontoons and their human
freight were swept away. Two OF the
pontoons driftcd out into mids,ream
TO be carried down the river under our
fire all the time. AT point where
our lines CROSS the river bend some of
our men got close to the drifting en-
gineers. one OF tho Highlanders told
me that he had never seen men more
terrified than were those poor chaps.
And they had every need 10 be terri
fed, for the ordeal they had been
through was enough To tcrrify any
one. with great difficulty our men
stopped the drifting Of the pontoons.
and the Austr!ans were brought in
safely, but more dead than alive.
PRISONERS REVELATIONS
SHOW HORRIBLE CONDITIONS
IF ono IS to believe the stories OF the
prisoners. the plight of the Austrians
is terrible In the extreme. One rather
Intelligent Magyar. with whom talked
when he was brought in. told me that
The conditions in the great towns. and
even in the rural districts, were going
from bad to worse.
He said that since the war began
food supplies had run SO short that the
average consumption per head was now
about half what II had been beI"ie the
war, and that. in spite OF the fact
that everybody was wording harder
and required more food.
For our people life Is one long
drawn-out agony" he added. What
food supplies there are the Germans
have taken for themselves, regardless
OF what II means to us.
"Discortent is growing stronger
daily, and the Socialists are ready for
peace. They have the working classes
behind them, and they have been in
communication with the German So
c!alists. The latter are afraid OF the
Kaiser, and have tried TO keep out of
peace controversies. but our trad
union would like peace on any terms
aud viii most probably force il sooner
later