THE FLIGHT FROM BELGRADE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 16348, 3 April 1915, Page 6

THE FLIGHT FROM BELGRADE.

"When the Austrians began to evacuate the town they took not their own people, but the -wounded whom they transported into Hungary to swell the numbers of their prisoners of war. Several hundred natives of Belgrade—the number cannot yet be stated with exactitude—were led into Austria-Hungary captive. A few of these were males, and included a boy of nine years of ago and an old man, deaf and dumb; the rest were women and girls. A contribution de guerra. was demanded from the city, but the idea had 1 to be abandoned in view of the impossibility of collecting it. Otherwise it may bo said that the population which remained suffered from little save hunger and theft. It was on the morning of December 14- that the real preparations for departure commenced. A staff officer visited Dr Ryan, of the American Red Cross, and requested him to take charge of the Austrian wounded, who must needs be abandoned, and thenceforth there went a constant procession of wagons across the Save and along the road to Semlin. As the day wore on and the news from Torlak became more and more serious the movement developed into a wild rush for tho other shore, and the pontoons were choked with transport. Cannon, it is stated on very good authority, were unlimberod and thrown into tho river, and troops fought among themselves for precedence. All through tho eight the panic-stricken retreat continued until, on the early morning of the 15th, the Serbian gunners shot away several of the _ pontoons. At that time the stream of fugitives stretched from the bridge away down the road towards Obrenovatz. In tho streets of Belgrade the Anstrians left five cannon, eight ammunition wagons, 1000 horses, and 440 transport wagons—many of tho latter filled with loot from tho city. In the officers'. mess lay the evening meal of the 14th—the soup half consumed, the wine half drunk. The order camc suddenly to quit, .and tho Herrcn left with empty stomachs. Thus ignominously ended the third Austrian invasion of Serbia. Of the army of 300,000 men who crosscd the Drine River certainly not more than 200,000 returned. In tho last 13 days of combat tho Sorbs captured 41,538 prisoners (including 523 officers) and an enormous booty, including 130 cannon, 71 machine guns. 29 guncarriages, 386 ammunition wagons, 45 portable ovens, 3350 transport wagons, . 2243 horses, and 10?8 oxen."