News of great deeds soon came from Serbia, where the Austrians were
supposed to be already in the heart of the country. No lie was ever too
big for the Austrian papers, and the jubilation throughout the country
over the imaginary successes in Serbia knew no bounds....
The fields had become very empty and sad: instead of the crowds of
jolly handsome young peasant lads, singing their beautiful Slovak
songs as they worked, there were now only a few old men and women, and
gipsies who would follow one any distance begging all the time for "a
Kreutzer for the love of God, Mistress."
The men-servants who had gone to their Kaders soon began to return.
First came the Man of Art. We had all been sitting outside on the
terrace when we heard that this first of the heroes had returned, and
he was at once summoned to give his report. His heart was bad, so bad
that the doctor feared that the exertion of even a few days' military
service might kill him, therefore--with many shakes of his head--he
would never fight for his country.
"Where did they tell you that?" I asked.
"In Agram, Fräulein," very mournfully.
"They didn't expect you to believe it, I hope?"
But the Princess interrupted. "Don't ask these awkward questions,
Jerry. We're much too glad to have him back again to go very deeply
into the details of his terrible illness. And now, Herr Gärtner, give
us all your news of the war."
He did, and how they wished he didn't!
"The Herrschaft all thought Russia would take six weeks to
mobilise--well, the Russians are in Galicia now. Our armies there were
far too small and badly prepared, and they have been cut to pieces.
The great body of troops is being withdrawn from Serbia up to Galicia,
and we have had very serious reverses in Serbia too. It's our officers
that are no good. I travelled with a Bulgarian who had come from Moscow
to Agram through Roumania, and he says the Russian mobilisation is
complete, and that he didn't think there were so many men on earth
as he saw pouring through Moscow as the Siberian troops came up. The
Herrschaft cannot hear those things, as they sit in the gardens here
away from it all, but I know for a fact that the Russians are in
Galicia and Lemberg is about to fall."
"And yet the newspapers speak only of the success of our offensive
against Serbia," said Claire, in tears.
"Our newspapers are the most lying on earth, Highness, and I tell you
that Austria will lose, and lose badly in this war."
Consternation of all! An Englishwoman to hear all this!
"That will do," said the Prince, shortly, "and I should advise you
not to repeat in the village what you've just said, else you'll get
yourself into trouble." The Princess then hurried the offender off to
the gardens before more could be said.
In a few days the gamekeeper arrived back, to the annoyance of his
wife, who had hoped that the war would end her beatings for some time.
His uncle was an army doctor, and no reasonable being could expect the
gamekeeper to be strong and well in such circumstances--heart disease
again, of the most incurable kind. The butler and the first footman
returned from Bohemia--the one with varicose veins, and the other with
heart disease.
The newspapers were silent about the Russian front, but became more and
more triumphant about events in Serbia, where Conrad von Hötzendorf
expected the whole Serbian army to be surrounded in a few days by the
Austrians under General Potiorek, who, in his capacity of Military
Governor of Bosnia, when the Archduke and his wife were shot, had been
sent to punish the Serbs.
I soon began to receive and to send English letters through Rome, and
during the rest of the time I was in Hungary I had no trouble with my
mails, despite the fact that foreign correspondence was forbidden to
enemy aliens. It was very difficult for me to realise that I was an
enemy alien, for my liberties were hindered in no way....