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WITH THE RUSSIANS.

.... ——* : • A NEW PHASE OF WAR/ A .special correspond cm* of the London "Daily Telegraph," who is .with the Russian army, wrote to that journal, at the end of October: — Recently a new organisation has appeared iii the Russian army, its creation -being due to the new phase upon which the war in Russia Has now entered. The enemy'3 army is spreading! itself over the vast plains of tho great Empire; it is far from its victualling and supply bases, and cannot find others in a country from which all the workers have fled, before its approach, and whore tho Cossacks have not loft a factory, or a mill, or the least trace of ordinary comfort in tho little villages. 1 have passed .through country houses a month ago whose.. capture seemed to be imminent; all the furniture had been burned, and in. the empty rooms the invader would not have found a handful of straw or a. fragment of copper. But this is not ali.° Tn Volhynia, through a great part of which I have travelled, the enemy is m occupation of ground which, even before the war, offered .very little attraction. either for tho inhabitants or .for visitors. One can traverse these districts for whole days without aeeinc; anything but woods and marshes. Beech and birch trees cover the immense spaces that are cut by infrequent roads, which are among the worst in the world. There are, in fact, no proper roads- what pass for such are simply wide bands taken from the fields, irregular in form, nothing but mud when the weather is wet, and terrible dust'when it is dry. After rain those undulating tracks arc covered with water, in which vehicles sink to the axles, and after a thaw it is impossible to traverse them, as the molting snow forms great lakes, which, are verv slowly absorbed by the soil. In summer the deep marshes are covered with a carpet of moss and grass; they resemble an innocent meadow strewn, with flowers. How many times have i we been deceived! I remember, the evening of the capture of Tchartorusk. I was accompanied across .tho positions by a young officer who, in the morning, had charged at the head of his troops and had crumpled up the regiment of the Crown Prince's Grenadiers. He had.been promised the Cross of St George and was as gay as a lark. Suddenly our horses' feet sank into the ground. We gave them the spur, but soon perceived that despite their desperate efforts they were losing their foothold At first they tried to Set out by raising their feet high ; then they endeavoured to jump, but only sank deeper into the mud. Finally they lost courage: they felt nothing under their feet and remained with their bellies resting on lumps of turf. When we succeeded in extricating thorn from the bog their legs were covered with thick, black mud There was nothing, I may add, in the aspect of the country .to lead us to suspect the presence of ground of this kind. PERILS OF THE MARSHES.

On two previous occasions I had had a similar surprise—once at the edge of a forest, on a path the grassy surface •of',which could easily,, support the weight of a man on foot,.and the: second time in the depth of the forest itself. It is easy fo imagine the state of these marshes after several weeks of rain. It can also easily be understood that in such conditions as these the enemy only occupies a part of tho country, and that the means of communication at his disposal are very limited. After n few experiences with guns which sink into the ground for ever, or with vehicles which take.hours to get over a Volhynian "road," the enemy will prefer to keep to the main •.highways, which, however, are both rare, as anyone can see by taking a glance at the* map, and abominable. All transport is effected by means of carts drawn by two, three or four horses. Motor lorries ye impossible; they .would sink into the sand in summer or, stick in tho mud in spring and autumn. . The enemy feels depressed in these deserts where everything flees before him; he experiences alt the rigoursot a.campaign in a condition of isolation where it is impossible for his soul to rest for a moment amidst surroundings which might recall tho more hospitable countries which he has left, and which, a daily increasing melancholy causes liihi to think of with regret. That, at any rate, is tho state of mind which I discover among all the prisoners. Lot the convoy which is bringing the enemy his food arrive only half a day late, and he will immediately feel a sense of privation. Now suppose that a band' of determined men should steal across his lines and people the forests he must leave behind him during his Let these bands hold themselves in the marshes which the enemy fears, and hido in the extensive woods which he only partially occupies; they will be able to threaten, his lines of. communication and harass him at every opportune moment, follow him when he advances, despatch him when ho retreats .and surround him with perpetual dangers. These troops must operate separ-ately,-but must join hand's when occasion requires; They will work apart from any baee, isolated like brigands, inspired by the grimmest determination and the coolest disdain for death. Having been advised that a bland was about to leave with the intention of piercing the enemy's lines and beginning their '"terrible and dangerous work, I went one morning at the beginning of October to a large square where the ceremony of departure was to take place. On the left were cavalry, on the right Cossacks—an equal .number of each. The cavalry, I notice, are all young men, most of them wearing the Cross of St. . George. Among" the Cossacks all ages are represented. The reason of this is that Russia- has not yet called up her reserves for the cavalry, whereas the Cossacks are all called' up, the young as well as the older, ana one can see that men of all ages have answered tho call for volunteers for the dangerous work that is in hand. I watch the. men attentively. Alt have resolute faces, and some of them are almost boys. I observe every possible type among the Cossacks—those of tho I>on and the Ural, and some who have come from the neighbourhood of the Chinese frontier. SOLEMN DEDICATION.

A solemn silence prevails. The priest, who is about to conduct the ceremony, causes his assistant to place a small table in front of the troops, and we wait for the arrival of the general who lias organised this eorps. As soon as he is, announced the men group themselves in a semi-circle in front of the priest. Placing himself in the centre the general cries in a loud voice: "Good day, partisans!" and the reply comes in a long thund'erous roll, "Good day, general,r' One hears a clinking of steel as tho men return their swords to the scabbards. Then the service begins. The semi-circle Of bared heads listens in deep silence. The priest intones a solemn chant, and the voice of his assistant rises now and again «in a more coloured phrase, The troops continually cross themselves, bending their heads almost to their horses' manos. At the conclusion of the earemiony. tlio priest wishes the men a safe return, thb extremely moving hymn, "God Save the Czar," is sung, and the general calls for cheers for liis Majesty, to which the men reply with a tenfold "Hxirrahl"-..

• "It is" "a*■•moving"scene." 'All these young men, in the flower of their ago. have only one thought—to start out for adventures, and perhaps for death —but their last burst of enthusiasm is for their Emperor. It is a species of ecstasy which surges like a wave through their hearts; they may die, but the Emperor and Holy Russia will live. I chat with the officers, who are wearing picturesque uniforms, recalling those of" Napoleonic times. One ol them will certainly remain fixed in my memory—a tall, graceful youth with a girlish: face, under an onormous cap: of grey fur, but with such a resolute look m his eyes; I say "An revoir" to the officers; "and to some of the men; as well, but one of the latter 'replies, "Wo shall not come back." And there is a look of approval in the eyes of the others. Is it only the love of adventure which animates these men, or have their souls already experienced something of tho sweetness of sacrifice for a great cause? Are they leaving without any hope or any desire beyond-that of dying.while clasping the corpse of a- well hated enemy, or do ■they st'll cherish at the back of their minds a slight expectation of survival? The enemy will treat them with greatharshness, for they themselves cannot take prisoners. They aTe leaving without food, for they must be as light as birds, and, like the birds, must seek their food amidst the fields, or, perhaps, in the knapsack of a. slain foe. They go without tents; they will sleep .in the woods whether it is wet or fine. When they are wounded no gentle hand will soothe their pain. A short command rings over the square, and marching past the general, who salutes, the men turn to the right and disappear—in .the direction of the enemy. They are the descendants of the " guerillas," who harassed' the rearguard of the Cfrande Arnica, but how much more dangerous is their task now! In 1813 they fought amongst their own people; now, approaching the enemy, they cut off all chance of escape. They will creep forwards the marshes, and harass _ the I'enemy wherever they can. They will be free, and will fight as they wish, alone or in groups. The last of the Cossacks 'pass before me. They are as proud as kings. One has a harmonica under his •arm, and his comrade carries two .lances. The crowd is silent, and' for a long time we follow with our eyes these figures, who seem already to bo shadows" floating towards death.

Permanent link to this item

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/LT19160128.2.8

Bibliographic details

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXVII, Issue 17077, 28 January 1916, Page 4

Word Count
1,714

WITH THE RUSSIANS. Lyttelton Times, Volume CXVII, Issue 17077, 28 January 1916, Page 4

WITH THE RUSSIANS. Lyttelton Times, Volume CXVII, Issue 17077, 28 January 1916, Page 4

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