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Show WOMAN SAW FIRST SHOT OF'THE WAR (Mary Edith Durham In the London Chronicle ) Podgorltza, Montenegro, Oct 9. Already Al-ready on tho Ith I had It from ono of tho generals that, If I meant to seo the first shot fired 1 must hasten to tho front But every behlcle anJ horse had been commandeered by tho government. A seat In a carriage was, however, courteously assigned to me, and I arrived at Podgorltza on Sunday night with five officials, having. hav-ing. Indeed, walked a considerable part of the wa. for the horses were heavily heav-ily ovcrladon. Here at Podgorltza almost every shop was already; closed: troops streaming in; old men (decked with the medals thoy won In the last war) begging to bo accepted as volunteers; boys of 15 vowing they were IS in hopes of belnc enrolled. But no nole. no undue excitement- Rather a calm determination and a' high hoDe that the day was about to dawn when the long rlaverv of the Turks Christian subjects would end. Not to Be Put Into Words. Yesterday morning I was told in confidence that the proclamation war was fixed for the morrow EvontH followed rapidly. The members of the roval family arrived The troop1' were Inspected by Prince Danilo I think everyone knew that we were on tho brink, but no one talked openly of immediate war. In the evening we watched troops file through the town and encamp on tho nlain beyond. Later Lat-er camo artillery. On the open staircase stair-case at the back of the inn I met an old hero of the last war, one of the Volvodas. "Good night.' he said, "we must sleep early if we mean to rest tonight" to-night" "Then wo bocin tomorrow?" "God willing." said the old man sravolv. '"and then God's will be done!" BlecBlnq the Great Banner. j We turned out before dawn In a fine drizzlo. A long line of pack horses and men showed dim under the trees. It was 5am Already the Bishop of Ostroe had hleed tho groat banner. In tho church. The whole atmosphere at-mosphere seemed tense with restrained restrain-ed excitoinent All wn rcadv A few I officer.? were still dashing about with messages, and mutton was being piled pn the pack horsee Then a nerjanlk. one of tho king's guards snld: "Tho king has gone" up to Gorltza." Gorltzn Is the little hill above I lie town. The rain was ceasing and the sun came out as 1 scrambled over roct-and roct-and v.'Pl rrnss toward the summi' whore asnlnft ttm skv wis stand in? conspicuous, th stalwart fit'.-rc of the old klnn. surrounded by his suite while the perlanlkfl kept guard a little lit-tle below It was clear I had come to the right viewpoint. But cveu then I could not realize that a European war was about to begin, that the stutue quo under which the pcoule had heon suffering suffer-ing so Ion? and so cruelly was about lo be uuset. that the boom- .... . . 1 1. l.4litr tnunucreti a nig gun ironi mr im'6"i: of Gardina and struck accurately In tho Turkish fortified camp at Planl-nitza, Planl-nitza, high on tho mountain side across tho valley. The sun shone brilliantly and Illuminated the white column of smoke that rose The mountain was do6p purple under a sullen rain cloud. The lnllltnry band struck up tho national hymn, "God Holp Montenegro1" Montene-gro1" All uncovered, and. as the hymn died uway. cried aloud, "Zhl-vio, "Zhl-vio, zhivio'" (viva!) Tho church bell rang out from tho little white church below. It was exactly S o'clock a in War had begun. The Turks in Retrent. Shot after shot struck Planinitza. The sun's rays broko through the storm clouds fitfully, now showing tho dnrk ramparts distinctly, now lulling lull-ing tho whole in shadow Then the small guns from the pluln below opened open-ed fire on the fortifications of the low hill Rogani, and, iar in the dis-tanco, dis-tanco, puffs of smoke showed that the Montenegrin artillery of he eta was firing on the fort mentions of Vrane another little bill that rlbes, which the frontier line Is drawn Still the Turks made no reply, ex-Island ex-Island like, from the plain across cept two small shells that fell short. And after two great masses of sraolte, indicating an explosion of ammunition, ammuni-tion, had rolled up from Planinitza, the Turkish soldiers were visible in retreat. The king and suite left Goritza, and wo returned to the town, whore the Turkish standard waa already i hauled down from the Turkish consulate. con-sulate. The fortress of Shlpchanik, that protects tho little border town of Tuzl, and the defenses on the summit sum-mit of Detchlch, the mountain that towers highest on the frontier, gave no signs of life. But we know that there aro 20,000 troops awaiting us not far across the border. War baa bogun. -nn |