A VISIT TO AN HISTORIC ARMY
BRODY, GALICIA,
_July 7, 1915_.
For the next three days I was with the head-quarters and army of
one of the most remarkable fighting organizations that this war has
produced on any Front. I am not supposed to mention its number, but I
dare say the censor will let me say that it is that one which has been
commanded for nearly a year now by General Brussilov. This army, as
the reader who has followed the war with any closeness will remember,
is the one that entered Galicia from the extreme east in the first
week of the war, and that in thirty days of continuous fighting, with
practically no rail transport, turned the Austrian right and forced the
evacuation of Lwow at the end of August. In spite of their losses and
exhaustion this army marched right on the re-inforced Austrian centre
and engaged that force with such ferocity, that when the position of
Rawa Ruska fell the Grodek line collapsed before its attacks. Still
unexhausted and with practically no rest, the same troops, or what
was left of them, plus reinforcements, moved on Przemysl, and by their
fierce assaults laid the foundation for what subsequently became the
siege of the Austrian stronghold. But Brussilov was no man to cool his
heels on siege operations, and when the investment was completed, his
corps swept on past, and began driving the Austrians back toward the
Carpathians.
As the New Year came, and the weeks passed by, the whole world watched
his devoted troops forcing back the Austrians and their newly arrived
German supports back into the passes which had been considered all but
impregnable. He was well through the Dukla and making headway slowly
but surely when the great German blow fell on the Dunajec. Leaving his
successful operations in the Carpathians, he fell back rapidly in time
to connect with the retreating army of the Dunajec and temporarily
brace it up for its temporary stand on the San. The defence of Przemysl
fell to the lot of the General, but as he himself said to me, “There
was nothing but a heap of ruins where had been forts. How could we
defend it?” Still, they did defend it for as many days as it took the
enemy to force the centre, which had not sufficient forces to stem the
advancing tide that was still concentrated against them. Even then,
as I am assured by a Staff officer, they hung on until their right
flank division was uncovered and menaced with envelopment, when once
more they were obliged to withdraw in the direction of the city of Lwow.
[Illustration: After the Russian evacuation of Lwow. The Bug Lancers
retreating in good order.]
In this retreat there is no denying that the devoted army was hammered
heavily, and probably its right flank was somewhat tumbled up in the
confusion. Nevertheless, it was still full of fight when the Grodek
line was reached. By this time, however, the greater strategy had
decided on retiring entirely from Galicia, or very nearly so, to a
point which had already been selected; and the battle on the Grodek
line was a check rather than a final stand, though there is no question
that the Russians would have stopped had the rest of their line been
able to hold its positions. But the shattered army of the Dunajec,
in spite of reinforcements, was too badly shaken up, and short of
everything, to make feasible any permanent new alignment of the
position. The action around Lwow was not a serious one, though it was
a hard fought and costly battle. It was made with no expectation of
saving the town, but only to delay the Germans while other parts of the
line were executing what the Russians call “their manœuvres.”
From Lwow to the position where I found the army, was a rearguard
action and nothing more, and apparently not a very serious one at
that. The best authorities have told me that the Russians withdrew from
Lwow city in a perfectly orderly manner, and that there was neither
excitement nor confusion, a state of affairs in great contrast to that
which existed when the Austrians left in September. The Austrian staff
took wing in such hot haste that the General’s maps, with pencils,
magnifying glasses and notes were found lying on the table just as he
had left them when he hurried from the room. The Russians may also have
panic on occasions, but if they have I certainly have never seen any
indication of it in any of the operations that I have witnessed.
The new line occupied runs from approximately the head of the Zota
Lipa along the Bug in the direction of Krasne, where the Austrians
hold the village and the Russians the railroad station, and thence in
the general direction of Kamioka and slightly west of Sokal where the
army which lies between it and the former army of the Dunajec begins.
In going over this terrain, I was of the opinion that this line was
not designed originally as the permanent stand; but the removal of
German troops from this Front has sufficiently weakened the Austrians,
so it is quite possible that it may become the low water mark of the
retreat. However, it is of very little importance, in my opinion,
whether the army holds on here, or continues to retreat for another 60
or 80 versts, where prepared positions at many points give excellent
defensive opportunities. This army as I found it is in good shape. It
is true that many of its corps have been depleted but these are rapidly
filling up again. There is reason to believe, however, that this army
is no longer the objective of the enemy, and that for the present at
least it will not be the object of any serious attack. Behind it for
many versts there is nothing of sufficient strategic importance the
capture of which would justify the enemy in the expenditure which will
be necessary to dislodge it.
I met General Brussilov several times and dined with him the first
evening after spending almost three-quarters of an hour with him
looking at the maps of the position. I think it would be impossible
for anyone to be a pessimist after an hour with this officer. He
is a thin-faced handsome man of about fifty-five; in every respect
the typical hard-fighting cavalry officer. He is just the man one
would expect to find in command of an army with the record that his
has made. I asked him if he was tired after his year of warfare. He
laughed derisively. “Tired! I should say not. It is my profession. I
shall never be tired.” I cannot of course quote him on any military
utterances, but I left him with the certainty that he at least was
neither depressed nor discouraged. That he was disappointed at having
to retire is certainly true; but it is with him as I have found it
with many others--this set-back has made them only the more ardent for
conditions to be such that they can have another try at it and begin
all over again. All these ranking officers have unlimited faith in the
staying qualities of their men, and little faith in what the Austrians
will do when the Germans go away. If _moral_, as Napoleon says, is
three times the value of physical assets we need have no fear as to the
future where Brussilov is in command of an army.
The General at once agreed to let me visit some observation point
where I could have a glimpse of his positions and the general nature
of the terrain. On his large scale map we found a point that towered
more than 200 metres above the surrounding country, and he advised
me to go there. So on the following day we motored to a certain army
head-quarters, where the General in command gave us one of his staff,
who spoke English, and an extra motor, and sent us on our way to
a division then holding one of the front line trenches. Here by a
circuitous route, to avoid shell fire, we proceeded to the observation
point in question. It was one of the most beautifully arranged that I
have ever visited, with approaches cut in through the back, and into
trenches and bomb-proofs on the outside of the hill where were erected
the hyperscopes for the artillery officers to study the terrain.
I could clearly see the back of our own trenches with the soldiers
moving about in them. In the near foreground almost at our feet was
one of our own batteries carefully tucked away in a little dip in
the ground, and beautifully masked from the observing eye of the
aeroplanist. To the south lay the line of the Austrian trenches, and
behind that a bit of wood in which, according to the General who
accompanied us, the Austrians had a light battery hidden away. Still
further off behind some buildings was the position of the Austrian
big guns, and the artillery officer in command of the brigade, whose
observation point was here, told me that there were two 12-inch guns at
this point, though they had not yet come into action.
Directly east of us lay the valley of the Bug, as flat as a board,
with the whole floor covered with areas of growing crops, some more
advanced in ripeness than others, giving the appearance from our
elevation of a gigantic chessboard. Away off to the west some big guns
were firing occasionally, the sound of their reports and the bursting
shells drifting back lazily to us. At one point on the horizon a
village was burning, great clouds of dense smoke rolling up against
the skyline. Otherwise the afternoon sunshine beat down on a valley
that looked like a veritable farmer’s paradise, steeped in serenity
and peace. For an hour we remained in this lovely spot, studying every
detail of the landscape, and wondering when if ever it would be turned
into a small hell of fury by the troops that now lay hidden under our
very eyes. We left shortly before six and motored back in the setting
sunlight to our head-quarters. Early the next morning I again went to
see General Brussilov and almost the first thing he told me was that
there had been a stiff fight the night before. The reader may imagine
my disappointment to learn that within two hours of my departure the
Austrians had launched an attack on the very chessboard that I had
been admiring so much during the afternoon in the observation station.
From this point, in comparative safety, I could have watched the whole
enterprise from start to finish with the maximum of clearness and the
minimum of risk. I have never seen a more ideal spot from which to see
a fight, and probably will never again have such an opportunity as the
one I missed last night.
I heard here, as I have been hearing now for a week, that there was
a tendency for the Germans to disappear from this Front, and it was
believed that all the troops that could be safely withdrawn were being
sent in the direction of Cholm-Lublin, where it was generally supposed
the next German drive against the Russians would take place. At the
moment this point on the Russian Front represented the serious sector
of their line, and so we determined not to waste more time here but to
head directly for Cholm and from there proceed to the army defending
that position, the reformed army of the Dunajec. Leaving that afternoon
we motored back into Russia, where the roads are good, and headed for
Cholm. On the way up I called at the head-quarters of the army lying
between Brussilov and the army of the Dunajec (as I shall still call
it for identification), where I lunched with the General in command
and talked with him about the situation. He freely offered me every
facility to visit his lines, but as they were far distant and the
only communications were over execrable roads which were practically
impossible for a motor, and as his Front was not then active, it did
not seem worth while to linger when there was prospect of a more
serious Front just beyond. As I am now approaching the zone which
promises to be of interest in the near future, it is necessary for
me to speak of positions and armies with some ambiguity if I am to
remain in the good graces of the censor. Suffice to say that the army I
skipped holds a line running from the general direction of Sokal, along
the Bug to the vicinity of Grubeschow, where it bends to the west,
hitting into a rough and rolling country, with its flank near a certain
point not too far south-east of Cholm.
I cannot speak authoritatively of this army as I did not visit the
positions, though I know of them from the maps. I believe from the
organizations attached to it, some of which I know of from past
performances, that this army is perfectly capable of holding its own
position as it now stands, providing strategy in which it is not
personally involved does not necessitate its shifting front. If its
neighbour on the west should be able to advance, I dare say that this
army also might make some sort of a move forward.
It is futile at this time to make any further speculation. Even at best
my judgments in view of the length of front and shortness of time at
my disposal must be made on extremely hurried and somewhat superficial
observation. It may be better, however, to get a somewhat vague idea
of the whole front than to get exact and accurate information from one
army, which in the final analysis may prove to be an inactive one in
which no one is interested.
THE NEW ARMY OF THE FORMER DUNAJEC LINE