Browning chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1941-1953, 1943-06-18
Guerrilla Girl
In Serbia
By Ruth Mitchell
(WNU Feature-Through special arrangement
with The American Magazine.)

OT2 yeas III lilG Ddl-
kans, I came to know that part of
the world as no American woman
has before.
The Italian occupation of Albania
drove me out of that country into
Jugoslavia. There l met the Serbs.
l liked their way of living and their
principles. And because I found
them most perfectly expressed in
Serbian organization of guerrilla
fighters called the Chetniks, eventu-
ally Joined them and became, my
self, a Chetnik.
But not at once. There were many
months of adventurous travel, dur
ing which I was often bounded by
Axis agents and accused of being a
spy. l witnessed the growing men,
ace of domination by greedy, swag-
gering, War-mad Nazis and Fascists.
became involved in the struggle of
the Serbs to maintain their freedom.
Joins Chetniks.
So it was that I found myself one
day in the presence of that old Chef
mix leader, Voivoida Perchanatz. 1t
was March 3, 1941, in Belgrade,
where l had been living for nearly
year. I had come to join the Chef
niks.
Some months before, my name
had been entered in the big, we'll
worn book of candidates, sponsored
by noted member of the organiza-
ton. had been trained in the code
of Chetnik fighting and taught how to
use dagger and revolver. Now I
was ready. I stood before the VEN
cradle leader, with my right hand
on the crossed dagger and pistol,
repeating after him the oath:
"Do Smrti "a srbiju-tako mi bog
pomogao." 1t means, "Till death
for Serbia, by the help of God"
Name Crossed Out When Joining.
That was all. Then Perchanatz
took the big, old book and solemnly
drew line through my name. "Your
life," he said, sis no longer your
own. 1t is given to Serbia
This is the only organization in
the world, think, in which your
name is not put down, but crossed
out when you join. You must regard
yourself as good as dead. How
proud I was that day! There are
many women Chetniks, but I was
the only woman of foreign birth and
nationality ever to be admitted.
was Chetnik! And through my
mind went the great marching song
of Serbia: Ready, now ready,
Chetnik brothers, mighty the COM
ing battle, and on our glorious VIC
tory will rise the sun of LIBERTY"
Since l was to do intelligence
work, my joining was to be kept
secret at that time. Many of the
leading men of Serbia-politician
judges, professors - are Chetniks.
their membership a dead secret. I
was given the customary poison,
which 1 scwed in the collar of my
coat, where it could be chewed if
my hands were bound.
Serbs Were Stunned.
Soon after I became a Chetnik,
events in the Balkans moved to a
swift climax. Bulgaria joined the
Nazis, and on the morning of March
25 the news was flashed: "Jugo-
slavia has signed the Axis pact"
The Serbs were stunned at the in
credible sell-out of their government.
In Belgrade there was death-like
calm for two days. No Serb showed
his face on the streets, but behind
closed doors a momentous determi-
nation was gathering.
1t broke on March 81. On that
fateful day, for the first time small
Germany before it was itself at
tackled. Little Serbia had decided
to battle the monster. And from
that day onward, and because of
that decision, everything went wrong
for Germany.
1t was the Serbs, whom Germany
expected to brush off like trouble
some mosquito, who spoiled her aim,
destroyed her timing. believe their
courageous action saved the British
empire and yes - America, from
slavery to Europe, as once before.
in 1889, the Serbs heroic stand
saved Europe from slavery to Asia.
The Nazis had intended to attack
Russia in March-my information
told me March 16. Hitler had en-
pected to have Jugoslavia in hand
and thoroughly 'co-ordinated" by
then. Instead, he had to fight.
He had to detach an army intend
ed for Russia and send it down into
the Balkans to secure his rear-an
army of not less than half million
troops. 1t took him three months to
do what he had expected would be
done by routine penetration and ter
rerization, in no time at all.
There can be no question that if
Germany had had those three spring
months in which to concentrate her
full force on Russia, she would have
taken Moscow and that life stream
of the Soviet, the Volga, and Russia
would have been out of the war-a
serious situation for the Allies.