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Show I A i&Jf IwWl mSsxBBw milt 4X and the Teuton and the hated Bulgarians began their fierce drives. Later Serbian troops In retreat passed through the little valley, and each brought darker and darker tidings. City after city had fallen. There was no stopping the Invader. It had Beemed Impossible. It was too horrible, horri-ble, but almost the entire fatherland was overrun. over-run. Drag and the other women would hasten day after day to the northern entrance -of the little valley, climb the heights and watch for more fugitives. The fugitives came, not In disorder but In orderly retreat. "Get what food you can and we will go with our men to the pass and hold tho enemy back until they escape," she cried. The women scattered to their homes, gathered gath-ered their children, the few men who were too old to fight, and the old women, and sent them over to the eastern edge of the valley where, In a thick wood In the shadow of the cliffs, they could He hidden from the enemy. Already had they placed supplies of food there for them. On the southern side of the valley none but a goat could climb the heights, and there was no fear of the enemy reaching them In that way. The rttreatliu? Serbians stopped a moment to selzo what food they could from the houses they passed, and as they reached the southern pass the women led "by Draga caught up with their rear guard. "We will stop them," cried Draga to the soldiers, sol-diers, and she pointed to the heights. Vladlko caught her In his arms and kissed her again and the soldiers cheered the brave women. More than once in the previous wars when some neighbor had Invaded their soil the Serbian Ser-bian women had defended tho narrow mountain passes and held armies In check, by rolling huge stones down on them. Tho Turks knew these Serbian women through centuries of warfare war-fare and they feared them. "Devils," the Turks called them. The women hurried with the soldiers through the entrance of the pass where it was narrowest. narrow-est. A half mile further it widened and there were occasional easy slopes where one could gain the summit Here Draga and her band of fourteen other women, strong, sturdy wives and daughters of the mountaineors. left the soldiers sol-diers and mounted to the cliffs above. The soldiers gave a partln cheer Once on the heights Draga and two of the women made their way to a point where they could watch the round bowl of the valley. When they reached this point, all was quiet In the valley. Weeks before thoy had hidden most of their household goods In tho caves over In the eastern cliffs, and by now their goat herds were hidden In other mountain fastnesses. It was but a few minutes, however, before a dozen Austrian soldiers on horseback made their appearance at the upper end of the valley, val-ley, three miles away. Swiftly they rode up to tho first farmhouse, Draga's home, whero a couple of them dismounted and went inside. In a tavr minutes the house burst Into flames. Draga looked on with lmmobllo face and with clenched hands. Then to tho next house the soldiers went, where the same operation was gone through with. In a few minutes every house in the valley was blazing, and in the meontlmo other soldiers on foot entered the valley and began the march toward the southern south-ern pass. There were perhaps 300 or -100 of the Austrian, Aus-trian, about twice the number of the force thoy were pursuing, but the Invaders were well supplied with arms, ammunition and commissary commis-sary supplies, while it was as much the lack of these as the lack of numbers which was compelling the Serbians to retire. The main army of the defenders had been scattered in the separate drives of the Bulgarians and Teutons, Teu-tons, and these small bands, sometimes a mere handful of soldiers, sometimes the remnants of a regiment, were retreating toward the Albanian Al-banian mountains and toward Salonlkl. A few companies woro being sent through the mountainous regions by the invaders to clear tho fastnesses of what troops might take refuge there, but the Invaders wero having a hard time, a constant guerrilla warfare being kept up on them, while they had difficulty traveling trav-eling over the narrow mountainous roads. This waB the condition In the presence instance, he Austrian for two days had followed the little band of Serbian fugitives In the hope of cutting them off somewhere In the mountains. Tho fugitives had but little ammunition left and they did not caxo to stop and give battle. as they had ben ordered to me rendezvous beyond the border The pursuing Austrlans had a couplo of mountain pieces drawn by tout rugged ponies, but these had boen Incumbrances all during tho pursuit through the wild, rugged country, and tho pursuors were about ready to turn back and rejoin the main command forty miles away. "If we but had guns," murmured Draga to her companion, as they gazed far down on their burning homes. The other woman nodded eagerly. "See, they are coming this way," she cried-"They cried-"They will not search the other parts of th valley. The others are safe," and sho nodded toward the eastern cliffs where tho old men and women and children wore concealed. Draga, crouched behind a clump of bushes, smiled grimly when she saw them pause as they neared the mouth of the pass. There was a brief consultation and they sazed upwards at the cliffs on either side of the pass. "If you have the legs of a goat and a strong goat you might be able to climb those heights," smiled Draga to herself. Then cautiously she worked her way back toward the other women, and took her station mW . ' vuXLm i Iwfflf Mil h Jifi Is ' ' -l ' Ik-' w tholr hands on the bowlders, others crouehlnfj 1 besides piles of smaller stones, while there were jH several hugo stones weighting hundreds of S pounds, lying Just back of the edge, ready to bo V moved with levers. The defense bad been plan- rS ncd long before. B Far below the horseman lay quiet and still, J and his companions did not dare venture fur- B thcr In. They looked upwards at the heights, jH but they saw nothing. Tho women were jB crouching behind tho stones, out of sight of ,Hj those below. jjH After a few moments of Indecision tho other iH horsemen retreated hurriedly Into the valley. M A few momenta later, however, when she had M gone back to hor station, the advance guard of M horsemen ngaln entered 'the pass, this time In ifl a mad gallop over the rocky road. H A stone hurled by Draga got ono of them SH three more went down before they had run the H gauntlet of tho women warriors, and the others 'M again retreated. flfl There was another long wait while the enemy jH made a careful survey of tho cliffs and heights H at tho Bides of the entrance to the pass. H "Thoy are coming again! screamed the look-out, as she dashed madly toward the women. "They are all coming," and sho burst Hl into a wild, frenzied song, a folk-song of tho 1 Serbians, in which their hatred of all enemies was voiced. Tho other women Joined in with ,M hor, and far below the Invaders heard the voices H rising in a pacn of defiance M "Here, I will send down the king of all," H cried Draga. Part of the women had gathered !ft about her while tho others waited further down 'M the pass. H Sho seized a stout oaken staff and, aided by jH the others, moved the largest bowlder of all H to tho very edgo of tho cliff, where she stood jjH waiting ready to givo it the final shovo which jjH would send It hurtling- down Into the pass. jjH Again there camo tho rush of tho horsemen, H and closo behind them the remainder of the 1 1 enemy force. H Thcro were no orders Issued to the women I now. Each knew her work and they knew H that tho decisive moment had arrived. I If but ono or two of tho enemy succeeded I In getting through the pass they could climb I the slppes further down and drive the women B "jom their stronghold. .m Draga gently worked the lever she held In H her strong hands and the hugo bowlder shot m down Into a mass of men below. At the same M rnomont the other women began hurling stones 'M as large as they could pick up and throw. ; H v Thcro woro yells, screams and curses from ' tho pass below and wild crios of triumph from tho women abovo. Tho first hugo bowlder, hurled m by Drasa, had done tho work. Where It landed H there was a mass of struggling men and horsos R which choked up the norrow pass so that no im ono else could ponctrate. And meantime the H women continued to hurl down showers of 1 stones and bowlders. ; H A few shots were fired. J3ut there was noth- Hi Lng to fire at. Thero was no one to be seen K H A isbbW? I Serbian Girl I Marshals Band I of Women to I Heights and I Hurls Huge I Stones on In- I vaders While I Retreating Hus- I bands, Sweet- I hearts Escape. S1 AIX)NIKI Many thrilling stories of the heroism of Serbian women In the war have reached hero with the arrival of refugees who escaped from that hapless country before the terrific drive of Ub enemies, a drive which depleted the country of rM its own army and the email force Hl sent there by the allies too late Hj to bo of any use. H In tho heart of the Serb is Implanted a deep H love for his country, a patriotism which sur- H vlved through the hundreds of years of Turkish H tyranny and which, In the century of Its free- H dom, has burned brighter than ever. Kowhero H Is thlB love of country stronger than In tho M mountains where, high up In sheltered valleys, H the mountaineer tends his flocks and raises his H little crops on every available foot of earth. H The Serbians have been warriors for ccn- H turies, and In tho wars it has been engaged In H since It gained Its Independence this fighting H spirit has been apparent. In the very shadow M of the frown of Austria, that country which H has always coveted Serbia, and with Us ancient H enemy, Turkey, on tho watch to selzo It, tho H Serbian has been ready always to fight. Serbia H Is the Switzerland of the Balkans, surrounded H on all sides by powerful neighbors, who sought H by diplomacy to gain its favor and who feared H for years to attempt to seize it by force of H arms. B It will be remembered that after the first few H weeks of the European war, when the Aus- B Brians had-bombardxd Bthjrade and King Peter. y had fled with his court to Xlsh, in the interior, the enemy waited more than a year before daring to penetrate Into the Interior, into those mountain fastnesses, deemed almost Impregnable. Im-pregnable. And It was not until there were vast armies, with their great guns and their commissaries complete, that the real invasion of the country began. The world is familiar with tho drives of the Teutonic and Bulgarian armies which opened tho way for the central powers to Turkey and which drove the king and army from the country, coun-try, at least that part of tho army which escaped es-caped capture. But up there in the mountain fastnesses there are still bravo women who are tendins; the lands and the flocks and awaiting the return re-turn of their men. Among them Is Draga Karagjorgje, whose family boasted that the blood of the Black Karagjorgje, a national horo, flowed In tholr vclns, and that through this they were related distantly to King Peter, who also Is of the same blood. Draga Is waiting there for Vladlko Strossmayer, who was ono of the last 8erblan soldiers to leavo tho soil of his native country. Where Is he? Perhaps in some Austrian prison, perhaps his body lies unburied In some lonely pass of the Albanian mountains: but, at any rate. Draga is awaiting him and the end of the war In the mountains along tho Ibor River close to the border. She had saved the money for her dowry, and while the wedding date had not been set, it was known they were to be married soon. And then the war came and Vladlko hastened to Belgrade to help defend his fatherland. It was many weary months before he was able to return to his mountain home for a. few days, and ho and Draga decided it would be better to wait until tho war was over before they married. Her father was In the army, her two older sisters were married, and with a younger sister and her mother, Draga lived on the little farm in a peaceful valley about three mllc3 long and a mile Avldc, surrounded on all sides by lnountalns. There were other farms near oy, one of which belonged to Vladlko, and while tho men were away the women tended the land and the flocks, Draga looking after her lover's little farm as well as her father's. It was hard work and weary waiting. And then, after more than a year, came the rumors that tho fatherland father-land was Burroundcd by armies which would sweep it from ono end to the other. "But no," Vladlko assured Draga, "the French and the English will send huge armies to cut them to pieces." And then he returned to tho front. But the huge rescuing armies of the French and English did not materialize. liKW I at the first pile of bowlders. Briefly she directed one of the others to take her station on the cliff overlooking the valley, and act as a lookout. look-out. Then cautioning the others not to show themselves unless it was necessary, she lay down and leaned over the cliff. Her station was on the heights above tho point where the pass straightened out Just back of tho entrance. An army could be held In chock hero and Draga knew It. Suddenly a horseman appeared around tho corner of the pass far below and Draga gently pushed over tho edge of tho cliff a hugo bowlder. It was timed too quickly, for It fell sheer, then rolled and bounded Into tho narrow roadway b. dozen feet in front of the Eoldlor. His horse reared up and fell back on Its haunches so suddenly that his rider was thrown off. Before ho could rise, Draga had hurled another stone, and the other horseman had appeared ap-peared at the turn of the pass. Eagerly the other women waited. Some with except now and then some Amazonian flguni : B as It leaned for a moment over tho brow of Ml ofestonV0 SOnd dWa a dcath-dcaUn? message K . ?u?n C lh Cnomr who wer t caught i V In that first shower of stones, seeing they couid ' ' K not get beyond th0 mass of broken horses ard i : K men. retreated back to the mouth of Z ' "? K pursued by the cries of defiance frl ?. ' GE heights above. anco rrom the ;K sr jss rer- '- L--" - I i dare show themselves. Tt, rl v - id not I K fcad becn.nred by the enemy" " ShlS I 1p |
