Page:Albert Beaumont - Heroic Story of the Czecho-Slovak Legions - 1919.djvu/15

 it among ourselves, and we recalled the disparaging remarks often made by the Austrians about Russia. Our idea at that time was that Russia was a gigantic empire of inexhaustible strength and resources. We were proud to be Slavs, and proud to think that the future of our little Slav country would surely be well protected by our great Slav brethren, the Russians.

At this point Captain “S.“ desired to tell me his story up to the moment of his surrender. It is necessary to tell it at once, because it differed entirely from that of Captain “N.“, and show how Czechs, even when incorporated with Austrian regiments and left alone to themselves, never missed an opportunity of deserting the Austrian ranks.

With me it was fight, fight, for seven months. There were weeks when I was in some battle or skirmish every day! I was not incorporated in a Czech regiment, like my friend, Captain N, but was with an Austrian regiment, the 9th. I was only a sub-lieutenant at first, then a lieutenant, but always in command of a company, and several times of a battalion. I had Austrians above me, below me, and all round me. Every move of mine for eight months, day and night, was under their vigilant eye. I had no choice. But I made the beggars fight. I entered each battle as my last. My life was up. Each time I was fully prepared to leave my skin. But the men in my company had to leave theirs, too. I don’t know how many times my companies were wiped out. Four or five times I returned with only half a dozen men. My companies were filled up, and then off we were to be killed like those before. I wonder I am still alive. Twice I was taken prisoner, and twice the Austrians had the luck to fetch me back. But the third time I got away for good.

I left a dear young wife at Prague with a baby of three months. I also left my mother. I did not have time even to make a will; I had to hurry off the first day. The regiment’s depôt was at Stryj, between Przemysl and Stanislavov, in Galicia. An Austrian company in peace formation consisted of eighty men. When I got to the depôt it numbered 240 men. I was put in command of a company at once. There were not sufficient officers. We drilled at Stryj for six days, and then were sent off in a hurry to Przemysl. I was hoping the Russians would soon get there. The Austrians were already in a terrible fright. It was only in the month of August, but the Russians had begun to enter Galicia.

We left Przemysl on Aug. 12 for Jaroslav Senyava. We marched for fourteen days without a stop, covering about twenty to thirty kilometres a day, followed by all our military train the cavalry in fron and the artillery behind. On Aug. 26 we had our first engagement.