"IF YOU WANT US HOME, GET _THEM_ OUT"
Through the summer months of 1917 Dr. Inglis had been working to get the
Serbian division to which her Unit was attached out of Russia. They were
in an unenviable position. The disorganization of the Russian Army made
the authorities anxious to keep the Serbian division there "to stiffen
the Russians." The Serb Command realized, on the other hand, that no
effective stand at that time would be made by the Russians, and that to
send the Serbs into action would be to expose them to another disaster
such as had overtaken them in the Dobrudja. In the battle of the
Dobrudja the Serb division had gone into the fight 14,000 strong; they
were in the centre, with the Roumanians on the left and the Russians on
the right. The Roumanians and Russians broke, and the Serbs, who had
fought for twenty-four hours on two fronts, came out with only 4,000
men. Further slaughter such as this would have been the fate of the
Serbian division if left in Russia.
"The men want to fight," said General Zivkovitch to Dr. Inglis; "they
are not cowards, but it goes to my heart to send them to their death
like this."
In July there had seemed to be a hope of the division being liberated
and sent via Archangel to another front; however, later the decision of
the Russian Headquarters was definitely stated. The Serbs were to be
kept on the Roumanian front. "The Serb Staff were powerless in the
matter, and entirely dependent on the good offices of the British
Government for effecting their release."
Into this difficult situation Dr. Inglis descended, and brought to bear
on it all the force of which she was capable. The whole story of her
achievement is told in _A History of the Scottish Women's Hospitals_, in
those chapters that are written by Miss Edith Palliser. Here we can
only refer to the message Dr. Inglis sent to the Foreign Office through
Sir George Buchanan, British Ambassador at Petrograd, giving her own
clear views on the position and affirming that "In any event the
Scottish Women's Hospitals will stand by the Serbian division, and will
accompany them if they go to Roumania."
At the end of the month of August the Unit, leaving Reni, rejoined the
Serb division at Hadji-Abdul, a little village midway between Reni and
Belgrade.
Dr. Inglis described it as a
"lovely place ... and we have a perfectly lovely camping-ground
among the trees. The division is hidden away wonderfully under the
trees, and at first they were very loath to let us pitch our big
tents, that could not be so thoroughly hidden; but I was quite bent
on letting them see what a nice hospital you had sent out, so I
managed to get it pitched, and they are so pleased with us. They
bring everybody--Russian Generals, Roumanian Military Attachés and
Ministers--to see it, and they are quite content because our
painted canvas looks like the roofs of ordinary houses."
"There was a constant rumour of a 'grand offensive' to be undertaken on
the Roumanian front, which Dr. Inglis, though extremely sceptical of any
offensive on a large scale, made every preparation to meet.
"The London Committee had cabled to Dr. Inglis in the month of August
advising the withdrawal of the Unit, but leaving the decision in her
hands, to which she replied:
"'I am grateful to you for leaving decision in my hands. I will
come with the division.'
"Following upon this cable came a letter, in which she emphasized her
reasons for remaining:
"'If there were a disaster we should none of us ever forgive
ourselves if we had left. We _must_ stand by. If you want us home,
get _them_ out.'"
Orders and counter-orders for the release of the division were
incessant, and on their release depended, as we have seen, the
home-coming of the Unit.
"The London Units Committee had feared greatly for the fate of the Unit
if, as seemed probable, the Serb division was not able to leave Russia,
and on November 9 approached the Hon. H. Nicholson at the War Department
of the Foreign Office, who assured them that the Unit would be quite
safe with the Serbs, who were well disciplined and devoted to Dr.
Inglis. At that moment he thought it would be most unsafe for the Unit
to leave the Serbs and to try to come home overland.
"Mr. Nicholson expressed the opinion that the Committee would never
persuade Dr. Inglis to leave her Serbs, and added: 'I cannot express to
you our admiration here for Dr. Inglis and the work your Units have
done.'"[21]
At last the release of the division was effected, and on November 14 a
cable was received by the Committee from Dr. Inglis from Archangel
announcing her departure:
"On our way home. Everything satisfactory, and all well except me."
This was the first intimation the London Committee had received that Dr.
Inglis was ill.
She arrived at Newcastle on Friday, November 23, bringing her Unit and
the Serbian division with her. A great gale was blowing in the river,
and they were unable to land until Sunday. Dr. Inglis had been very ill
during the whole voyage, but on the Sunday afternoon she came on deck,
and stood for half an hour whilst the officers of the Serbian division
took leave of her.
"It was a wonderful example of her courage and fortitude. She stood
unsupported--a splendid figure of quiet dignity, her face ashen and
drawn like a mask, dressed in her worn uniform coat, with the faded
ribbons, that had seen such good service. As the officers kissed her
hand, she said to each of them a few words, accompanied with her
wonderful smile."
She had stood through the summer months in Russia, an indomitable little
figure, refusing to leave, until she had got ships for the remnant of
the Serbian division, and then, with her Serbs and her Unit around her,
she landed on the shores of England, to die.
FOOTNOTE:
[21] _A History of The Scottish Women's Hospitals._