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Show ; yj:4dL- v: -At: Jv TlONTmLGEJN S0LDILR5 A T THE hamlet of Virpazar, i surmounted by ruins of mlnla-ture mlnla-ture castles on frowning crags Tlx. y the side of the lake, we went aboard a little steamer and presently were gliding slowly out through the reedy channel on the way to Cettinje, a barge of flour lashed alongside, much hampering our progress. There were on board l number of peasant girls, a quartet of Serb officers on a mission and some ill kempt soldiers, writes a Cettinje lorrespondent of the Chicago Daily News. One of these last presently moved over to where we were sitting on our baggage and addressed us to our surprise In good racy United States: "American? Thought so! Well now ain't this fine! Mighty glad to Bee you! What you boys doing away flown here?" He was a Dalmatian Slav, still foung, a glass worker, who. at the beginning of the war, being single, had thrown up his Job, sold his bit of property In Portland, Ore., and staked almost the whole of his twelve pears' American savings in hastening back to draw bead at least once on the Turkish foe before the fun should be over. Too Dull for Him. "But these fellers ain't done much lince I came," he complained. "Tbey got all they wanted in the plain outside out-side of Scutari over a month ago, and now they're lying low. You say the Greeks are really having some fighting fight-ing down Janina way? Blamed if I 3on't believe I'll go down there! I'm a volunteer, you know, so they will let me do as I please. No, I flon't talk much Greek, but I know a little. Learned it off of some fellers I used to work with. Guess I could ;et along all right." Scutari proved to be an odd and decidedly an Interesting variety of mountain lake. Despite its great length, it is hardly more than three D3iles wide in the broadest parts "Say, did you fever see such a rock pile In your life?" It was our friend, the volunteer, who had seated him-lelf him-lelf on the deck besire us. "It certainly cer-tainly beats all. .I've been pretty much all over the United States, and I reckon I've seen some pretty rough mountains, but these fellers here have got more solid rock in their dinky little country than all the rest put together." We passed an Island off to the right sn which stood a quaint old castle, said to date from Roman times. Then we came upon two women rowing a irescent shaped canoe laden with lay. They stood one at each end and sach with an oar. "Say!" exclaimed our friend. "Ixok it that! Ain't that primitive, though? But for that matter, this here old tub we're aboard of ain't moving much faster than they are. Say, how'd you .Ike to have a nice little motorboat m this lake, now? Wouldn't it make ;helr eyes stick out? I've been in America too long to be able to stand much of this kind of life. When I start out to go somewhere I want to get there. I like speed!" Pairs of snowy cranes began to fly ip among the shores of the channel, ind the soldiers amused themselves oy firing at them until the pilot made them stop, saying shooting on the lake was forbidden. Presently we found we could get Turkish cotTee on ooard. We ordered three cups. "Say, don't you fellers order none f that for me," protested the volunteer. volun-teer. "I'm only a common soldier, pou know. These other guys wouldn't know what to think If they'd see me sitting here drinking with you. You boys er, I mean, you gentlemen inderstand, same as I do, that clothes 'thI all that don't make no difference in I that one man's Just as good as another. But these guys ain't up to that yet." However, we overcame the scruples of this good American, and toward 4 p. m. had the satisfaction of seeing the scattering houses of Plovnitza Just ahead of us, in a valley that narrowed nar-rowed until it was a mere ravina. This was the end of the lake. In the road at the back of the pier there were about a dozen three horse carriages car-riages waiting to relay travelers on to Cettinje. Despite his protests that he would just as soon walk, we packed the volunteer Into one of them with us and soon were rattling over the smooth macadam through Plovnitza, Plovnit-za, which did not take many seconds, and then up the precipitous cliffs into the mountains. Splendid Mountain Road. This well built road entitles Montenegro Monte-negro to claim to be the most advanced ad-vanced nation of the Balkans. In all our trip we had seen nothing to-com- pare with it. It rivals the finest mountain roads of Italy, France and England. Though the ascent is continuous con-tinuous all the way to the national capital, which lies on a plateau In the very lap of the peaks, we were drawn by the wiry little horses at trot a good part of the way. It was twilight now. The 6tars came out bright and sharp. The sounds from the village houses far below rose faint and peaceful to our ears the barking of a dog, the rattle of wheels, the glad cry of a child. Suddenly rounding the broad curve of a precipice, we were startled by the glaring searchlight of an automobile descending upon us at sharp speed. It slowed at sight of us, edging up close against the cliff, so that as H passed I could plainly make out the bluff and grizzled features of the elderly man who sat with two others in the rear seat. He was King Nicholas. Looking back, we saw the carriage in which four Serb officers had been following us, draw to a stop. The automobile stopped also. The officers got out and were presented to his majesty, there in the road in the clear night. We could even watch them deliver to him the dispatches of which they had been the bearers. Their mission was ended. The automobile sped on, and the carriage turned back. That night, as we afterward learned, the Turks made a sortie from the Scutari trenches, but thr Montenegrins had been forewarned. Instead of finding the besiegers unprepared, the Turks were received by a terrible fire which left many dead or groaning on the plain ere they could regain the shelter shel-ter of their fortification. King Nicholas, as the foregoing In cident Indicates, keeps a close watch upon the status of his army. The story is told of a visit he made shortly short-ly after the beginning of the war to one of the villages In the rocks near Cettinje. On returning to the capital, he sent a message to the local administration ad-ministration of that village, saying while to the Bouth we could see clear to the mighty mountain,, Tarabosch, at whose eastern base the beleaguered beleaguer-ed city lies, to the north the waters wind blindly through the rocks like a river, seeming at every turn te end abruptly, but proving, as we glided gently along, to extend always rn one more secret rearch to the right, and then In another to the left, and In another and another, till we thought we should never come to the end. all. Say, ain't these kings th blamedeBt foolishness? If I was these guys I'd kick 'em all out, and elect a president; let him serve his four years and then tell him to run along now and give some other fellow a show. But, gosh! I don't dare talk like that around here. They'd taka me out and shoot tne for treason, like enough!" |