Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-02-09
PEOPLE OF POLAND STILL ARE
IMMERSED IN HORRORS OF WAR
Story of Bitter and Regrettable ConAic1
Which Followed Invasion of Silesian
Territory by Czech Armed Forces.

| part IN occupying the district are un =
| founded Czech troops alone are en-
| gagged in it. 1t further appears that
| the allied officers whose names are
| signed to the proclamation and who
| call themselves on interallied COM
mission came from Prague. Their
| counenancinE the Czech occupation.
| rs shown by the proclamation was the
! basis of the claim that allied troops
! had been sent to occupy Silesian sec
/ tons.
About noon on January % the above
! named officers called at the Polish
/ military headquarters IN Teschen and
! gave orders that all Polish troops
/ should withdraw and evacuate all Of
| the Stiesian district to permit the
carrying out of the plan outlined in
| the proclamation. Col I.atink. COM
handing the Tooth Polish Regiment,
! in charge of the Polish army affairs
in Teschen, asked time to communi-
cate with the government in War
saw. Ilme was granted, but there is
dlHerence in the claims as to the
! length or the period allowed Latink
claims that two hours were allowed,
and one Czech officer claims that it
was one hour and half According
10 me official Polish version, while
Latink and others We're trying to
communicate with Warsaw and he
fore even an hour had passed czech
troops without warning OCCUPIED the
CITY OF Oderberg. This city, to which
l went to get the Czech side of the
situation. contains the largest freight
tor,s f ana Yards IN the entire terri
Iory formerly comprising the Austro-
! hungarian empire. Czech soldiers now
hold these yards
Czech Officers Admission.
Both sides agree that the first blood
sneu ana the first death in conflict
2Weuurreo IN ~oderberg. Lieut.. Charles
! \ ii
interviewed in the Oderberg railroad
, station, admitted that the first two
hliled were Poles. who were shot nv
czech soldiers. ~
=, According to Polish official reports
the Czechs, fired upon an a,Itomnh;, ,a
containing Polish army envoVs ~
nyIhs white flag, sought to parIey
win the Czech forces The chauffnnr
was Killed outright and another occn-
pant, VINO held the flag, was wounded
.adisias hroil, whose home is in
lrzeoinia. was among those at Os-
"lzecim who told me what occurred
betore o'clock in the afternoon
was AT Oderberg. | was emnIovad in
N .he railroad station. At the office of
INC fdiiroad commander and military
aose mere appeared a Czech major.
accompanied by an officer in French
UNIFORM We thought the iatter
Iehchman, but he talked in Bohemian
win a czech officer, who proved tn he
MaJ. Sykors. When Polish officials. re-
aponuihs TO orders, gathered to learn
Mnat the visit meant Maj. Sykors pro-
GGuceo document supposed to be in
french and began to read Lieut. Nan
man OF the Polish army asked what II
was all about and the explanation
given was that by the order of the
ehtehte the Czechs We're to take ST.
.ssa "lthout delay and the Polish
troops were to get out Our COM
mander asked for time to communi
cate with headquarters in Teschep
before any reply came and while the
discussion was still proceeding b.
hem1an soldiers rushed in from va
rious sides and took charge.
The Polish army officers had gone tn
various places to notify their com
manders and when they returned
headed by Lieut.. Nauman, they were
tod by Maj. Sykors that they could
Withdraw to Teschen or elsewhere
who seized the city were some wear
ing uniforms of the French Legion
and some had French steel helmets.
Whlle this was going on the Czechs
rushed upon the railroad employees
and disarmed the railroad guard of
tWenty:one men, beating, kicking and
otherwise mistreating them Two
Polish soldiers were killed outright,
while another was killed later
making the list of known dead in the
first few hours three. while twenty
were wounded. IF the Poles had not
believed that allies were not in the
detachment doubtless there would
have been resistance and some Czechs
would have been killed"
Polish Soldier Tells of Attack.
Henry Pachonski, living in cracow,
a petty officer in the Polish forces, was
wounded in the hand. / saw him here
when he came from the front.
Il have just come from Laki about
FIVE kilometers (three miles, from
Teschen," he said. I'VE were sent to
our position on January 81. In the
night time our post was attacked by
forces emerging from the woods with
rifles and field guns Lieut.. Suski was
wounded and we retreated. The forces
of appearing in civilian clothing and
pretending to be people from the
neighborhood. When they came near
enough they opened fire. The Czech
military forces forbade the election on
Sunday of Silesian delegates to the
Polish constitutional convention. Capt.
Haller, a brother of Gen. Halter, COM
handing the Poles in France, who led
the defense of women and children
near Dzisloszice, was killed. The
Czechs had heavy cannon"
Gen. Marcinowski, in charge of the
medical staff, which received wound
ed soldiers and also sick people from
the hospitals in Silesia, which are be-
ing evacuated in fear of the Czechs,
was interviewed by me in this city.
He said:
"Sick men, women and children from
the hospitals in Dzisioszice and other
places were brought here because the
Bohemian soldiers are without mercy"
From the Czech Viewpoint.
All communication between Oswie-
elm and Oderberg having been broken
off, it was necessary for me to go
through the territory held by the Ger
mans via Kattowitze to reach Oder
berg, so as to get the Czech story. /
met Lieut.. Kraucher of the Bohemian
:-*+5+****+ i 4 = I +ss++*
4 " I