Adventures in Servia : or, The experiences of a medical free lance among the Bashi-Bazouks, etc

Preface

HEN my esteemed friend Dr. Wright asked me to edit this work and also to write its preface, I agreed to do so, but not without a considerable amount of hesitation and diffidence, for I was loth to run the risk of marring what appeared to be a very excellent book by my own necessarily imperfect workmanship.

The good doctor, however, placed the matter before me in such a light, that I felt constrained to comply with his wishes.

I cannot lay claim to the “pen of a ready writer,” therefore I trust the public will excuse what may appear to them to be a halting style. And now to the real business of my preface.

I have the author's word for it that at least three out of every four of the incidents herein narrated really took place, and that to the fourth only such proportion of romantic dressing and spicery has

VI

PREFACE.

been added as would enable it to harmonize with the rest.

Moreover, I am desired to state that every character depicted in these pages had its living prototype.

Thus Marie, Colonel Bragg, Savrimovitch, Colonel Philipovitch, the ruffian Pauloff, Dr. Ibaum, etc., represent real personages, whose names even, in some cases, have been preserved. The quarrel with Von Tummy, the upsetting of the waggon, the fight for the bed, the pig incident, the occupation of the cottage, the description of the battle, are all fairly accurately described ; and the conversations with Russian officers about India and with the Nihilists are reported almost verbatim.

Facts are stubborn and eloquent things, and I can say nothing stronger in behalf of these pages than that they treat, for the most part, of absolute facts.

My duty to Dr. Wright prohibits me from drawing this preface to a close without making some reference to the painful circumstance that my distinguished friend has as yet received no considerable token of the public favour. As he pathetically puts it, “ Monarchs don’t seek his medical advice, kings consult him not, and sovereigns neither summon him to their sick-bed sides, nor find their way, in another sense, into his coffers.”

rREFACE. vii

The doctor says he occasionally sees a person Clad in prints, but never any one £'en prince,” and he reminds me, moreover, that though Pope lays it down as an axiom, that “ what ever is, is Wright's," yet he gets hardly any of it at all.

Now this, I maintain, emphatically and without fear of contradiction, ought not to be, and I would respectfully intimate to the potentates of Europe, that unless they patronize the illustrious doctor more largely than they have hitherto done, there is some fear of his throwing physic to the dogs, and becoming, if not a Nihilist, at least a desperate Radical.

I state this entirely on my own responsibility. May those whom it directly concerns take it seriously to heart.

ADVENTURES IN SERVIA.

ATE in July 1876, whilst the war between Turkey and Servia was at its height, I, at that time a medical student, resolved to pay a visit to the latter country with the double view of making myself useful, and of gaining experience in the profession I was striving to enter. I mentioned my project to my particular friend and chum, Henry Winter, of whom I shall speak for the future by the sobriquet he had received from the students at our classical hospital — viz., Hiems. Hiems fell in with the idea at once, and agreed to accompany me.

As a preliminary step we wrote letters to several newspapers announcing our intention and our readiness to take charge of stores for the sick and wounded at the seat of the war.

We were soon overwhelmed with packages of pills, jars of extract of beef, bales of cotton-wool, parcels of lint and bandages, and bottles of quinine, etc., etc. These, with a case of surgical instruments, a cutlass and

Chapter I

r revolver apiece, and a somewhat scanty supply of clothing, which included, nevertheless, our volunteer uniforms, each adorned with a Geneva cross on the arm, and our preparations were complete.

The day of our departure arrived. We proudly donned our uniforms, which, though rather the worse for wear, still had the advantage of looking as if they had seen service, and took our places in the train. We intended to travel to Vienna by rail, and from thence to Belgrade by the Danube steamer. Our journey was uneventful, except that our uniforms attracted more attention than was altogether pleasant.

The French mistook us for Germans, and scowled angrily at us, and the Germans took us for Frenchmen, and regarded us with cold hostility. In fact, wherever we went, people seemed to wonder who on earth we were, and what the dickens we wanted.

At Salzburg we were accosted by a stately and elegantly-attired lady of middle age, who informed us that she was the Princess Woronzoff, and saying that she was delighted to see Englishmen espousing the Servian cause, requested us to convey the sum of five Napoleons from her to the Servian sufferers by the war.

This we promised to do, and she bade us farewell. We arrived at Vienna late on a Friday evening, and stayed there until Sunday morning, putting up for the time at the Goldenes Lamm Hotel ; and Hiems utilised the time by coaching me up in the broad-sword exercise, at which he was a proficient. He was particularly careful

THE HANGING GUARD POSITION.

ii to teach me the hanging guard position, and I flatter myself that I learnt it thoroughly. It certainly is a very striking attitude, and when my cap was cocked properly on one side, and I had my big boots on, I must have looked very killing.

The next morning we repaired to the steamboat quay, full of eager anticipations of what we considered would be the most interesting and picturesque part of our journey, for Strauss’s favourite waltz had led us to believe that the Danube was both beautiful and blue.

We were, however, grievously sold. From Vienna to Belgrade, there is simply no scenery at all. The banks of the river are flat and dreary-looking, and the water itself is brown and dirty, so we soon turned our attention to our compag?ions de voyage.

In the boat with us were a dozen handsome lads, all clothed alike in dark-grey tourist suits, and who seemed to be under the charge of a tall, military-looking man.

We ascertained that they were some of the King of Bavaria’s pages.

These lads appeared to be greatly impressed by our romantic uniforms and martial appearance, and presently one or two of them, who spoke English fairly well, entered into conversation with us. They were particularly curious to see our cutlasses. We showed them the weapons ; and I believe that I made a profound impression upon them, and convinced them of the invincibility of English seamen by frowning fiercely and trying to show, cutlass in hand, the hanging guard I had so recently acquired. The jealous Hiems endeavoured to dissuade me from flourishing my sword, by the remark that the young Germans would only laugh at me. I did not believe him, and am happy to say that my efforts extorted from one of my audience the acknowledgment that he thought Englishmen were very brave and hardy, and that he attributed their love of adventure to the rough nature of their sports, such as “ the football and the cricket,” and so forth. A corpulent little Hungarian doctor, too, watched our proceedings with great interest, and very politely proffered us each a cigar.

“ Gentlemen,” said he, when we had all three lit up, “is it true that you are going on the Servian side?”

“ Quite true,” responded Hiems, puffing vigorously at his cigar and nodding.

“And you are Englishmen, born in England?” interrogated our new friend.

“ We are Englishmen, but not born in England,” responded Hiems. “ I was born in Ireland.”

“ And I in India,” said I.

“ An Englishman, born in India ! ” replied the Hungarian lifting up his eyes and hands with astonishment ; “ and yet you are going on the Servian side ! It is amazing ! It is incredible ! Don’t you know that the Russians are the enemies of your country, and that they want to get Constantinople ? ”

“ I know that we fought them and beat them in the Crimea,” replied I.

HUNGARIAN CURIOSITY.

“ Yes, and England did very well ; she did right then. And what are you going on the Servian side now for? Don’t you know they are the same as the Russians, and that the Russians have got up this war ? Why are you not on the Turkish side ? ”

Hiems replied that we went as medical men, and not as combatants.

“That’s worse,” answered our little friend; “for as fast as the Turks knock a man over, you set him on his legs again ! ”

“ Then again,’’ said I, “ the Servians are short of medical men.”

“So much the better,” said this bloodthirsty little Magyar, “the war will be over all the sooner then. No, no ; you take my advice, and go over to the Turks ! ” His Russo-phobism did not prevent him from chatting very pleasantly with us afterwards, and he proved a most agreeable and interesting companion.

Dinner was served in the saloon at seven o’clock. Our Hungarian friend and a large party, however, did not dine then, but stationed themselves at the other end of the saloon, where I heard him telling the others that we were Englishmen.

“ They are Englishmen, Englishmen ! ” said he, with a graceful wave of his handkerchief towards us ; “ and one of them was born in India. They eat a good dinner, you see. They have each had a plate of soup and a beefsteak with eggs, and some sweets, and now they will both have coffee. Ah, no ! One of them, you see, has

H

ADVENTURES IN SERVIA.

tea ” (here he stepped quietly up and looked over

our shoulders), “ and the other has coffee. Englishmen,” he repeated, as he retired on tip-toe to his seat again ; “ Englishmen— one of them born in India — and they have eaten a most excellent dinner ! ”

When the boat stopped at Pesth our eccentric little acquaintance went on shore; we remained some time longer to see our luggage transferred to the Belgrade boat, which lay alongside our own, and met him no more.

“ Five o’clock ! Belgrade in half an hour ! ” such were the sounds which, roared in a stentorian voice by the steward, roused me from a pleasant sleep, the sixth morning after we left Charing Cross. I was wide awake in an instant, and dressing quickly hastened on deck; but a thick mist hung on the river, and Belgrade was still invisible. The sun’s rays soon, however, dissipated the haze, and there, within a few hundred yards of us, lay Belgrade, an imposing array of white-walled, greenroofed buildings and churches with glittering spires, rising terrace on terrace to a considerable height above the water’s edge. It looked so bright and beautiful that Hiems and I were in ecstacies of delight, and congratulated each other again and again on having selected so charming a spot for the basis of our operations. The boat presently drew up alongside the jetty, and a tall Servian official in a smart blue uniform with very broad scarlet stripes down the sides of his pantaloons stepped on board and collected all the passengers’ passports.

THE HUNGARIAN GENTLEMAN TELLS HIS FRIENDS THAT WE /'RE MAKING AN UNCOMMONLY GOOD DINNER.

Tojacep. 14.]

J

BELGRADE.

Then came a number of drowsy-looking porters, who began to overhaul the luggage and solicit patronage for the different hotels. We selected one who seemed more active and was tidier than his fellows, and instructed hin> to convey our things to his hotel, the “ Konigin von Griechenland.” The man instantly summoned four or five assistants, each of whom, in an indolent and casual manner, commenced dragging one or two of our packages after him. We followed their chief up a steep flight of steps, cut in the hill or cliff on which Belgrade stands, and they followed us, droning a dismal and most unmelodious ditty in chorus. These steps were converted by a number of beggars into a kind of rag and deformity bazaar. On one of the lower steps sat a miserable creature, who, from some freak of nature, had been born without any arms; at the other end of the same step sat a blind, toothless old man, who mumbled forth a request for a piastre, and who was clad in such unsavoury garments that we felt almost plaguestricken as we passed ; a little above was a frightful dwarf, a victim apparently of goitre ; above him again was a man whom accident or war had deprived of both legs ; then came a deaf and dumb woman ; and so on right away up to the top of the steps.

The “ Konigin von Griechenland ” was not an imposing-looking edifice; however, it seemed as good as any of the other hotels, and was fairly comfortable. We were shown into a bright, clean-looking room with two beds in it. Here we had a glorious wash and changed i6

ADVENTURES IN SERVIA.

our linen, and then went down into the coffee-room, where some dozen persons were smoking cigarettes, drinking coffee, and playing billiards. For breakfast they brought us excellent coffee, fresh eggs, and white bread-and-butter.

Seated at the next table was a portly old priest with flowing locks and a rosy — a suspiciously rosy — face. For some time this reverend gentleman surveyed us minutely, carefully, and critically. Nothing from the top of our caps to the soles of our boots, and from our black crossbelts to the little red Geneva crosses embroidered on our arms, escaped his scrutiny. At length he rose with slow and dignified gravity, and bowed, and saying some words in a language which neither of us understood, seated himself opposite to us at our table. As he was a priest, we rose and returned his salute, and then shook our heads to betoken our ignorance of his language.

Nodding to us again, the new-comer beckoned solemnly to one of the waiters, and gave him some instructions in an undertone. Then turning to us with a smile and another nod, he said, interrogatively, “Ingleski?” (English.) Hiems said “Ja” and I said “ Oui ” in our best German and French. The priestly face beamed with smiles, and then the waiter brought in three large glass flagons of foaming ale. The priest pushed one of these to Hiems, another to me, and taking the third himself, he motioned to us to drink. As we raised the glasses from the table he clinked his against ours with much cordiality and

LINGUISTIC EFFORTS.

another series of smiles and nods. Then leaning back on his seat and folding his hands on his lap, he surveyed us again. At last it occurred to Hiems to try him with German ; so pulling himself together and pronouncing his words as carefully as possible, he said, — “Sprechen Sie Deutsch, mein Herr?”

“Ne — nein,” replied the priest, shaking his head once more.

“ I’m afraid it’s no go,” said Hiems, with a sigh y “ and it’s a pity, too, for he seems an uncommonly nice old fellow. I wish we could have expressed our appreciation of his kindness better than by grinning and nodding at him.”

“ So do I,” said I ; “ but I don’t see how we’re to do it, •except by getting him to drink with us.”

Hiems reflected for a moment, then suddenly brightening up, said to me, “You know you used to be a swell at Latin at school, old chap. Try if you can’t polish up some of it now. I have heard that all foreign priests talk Latin.”

“ That’s not at all a bad idea of yours, Hiems,” said I, not without a little pride. “ What shall I say to him?”

“ Say — why say, ‘ How do you do ? ’ to him, and ask him to have another drink.”

“ Confound it, Hiems, ask me to say something sensible. How the dickens do you expect me to translate sentences like that?”

“ What ! can’t you translate them? ” asked Hiems.

ADVENTURES IN SERV1A s

“ No, of course not,” replied I. “ The Romans never said things of that sort to one another.”

“What dummies they must have been, then,” replied my friend in disgust.

For a few seconds we were silent. All at once Hiems brightened up again.

“ What is the Latin for ‘ This ’ ? ” said he.

“ What ? ” said I, not knowing what he was alluding to.

“ This,” said he again with considerable emphasis.

“ Which ? ” said I, quite puzzled.

“ What a fellow you are ! Why This, the article, noun, adjective, pronoun, or whatever you like to call it. —This”

“ Oh ah ! Now I see,” said I, perceiving that he meant the word this. The Latin for this is Hie.”

“ Why could not you have said so before then ? ” replied he, tartly ; “ and what is the Latin for is ? ”

“ Est,” rejoined I, without a moment’s hesitation.

“ And for ‘ beautiful ’ ? ”

“ Pulcher.”

“Now we are getting on,” said Hiems; “and for ‘beer’?”

“ I don’t know. Call it wine, vinum.”

“ All right ; that will do, I suppose.” Then to the priest, “ Hie est pulcher vinum.”

For a moment our companion was puzzled. Then his face beamed with a smile of intelligence. He nodded, grasped Hiems by the hand, and said, —

A FUNERAL CORTEGE.

“ Bibamus alterum poculum.”

Then he began to speak Latin so fast and fluently that I could not catch a single word. But before the waiter could be called I was relieved from my embarrassment by the sound of martial music in the street. Every one — priest, billiard players, and ourselves — hastened to the window and looked out. A long and solemn procession was approaching — the funeral cortege of an officer who had been mortally wounded in the recent fighting. At the head of the column inarched a military band play ing the Servian Dead March, then twelve priests with banners and flags, a regiment with arms reversed, and last of all the coffin borne on the shoulders of eight men. The lid of the coffin, as is the custom in Servia, was removed, so that the pale face of the dead man was visible. His breast was covered with flowers ; two soldiers marched behind, one bearing his sword and the other his cap. The procession slowly filed past, and when we looked round — lo ! our jolly friend the priest had disappeared.

Chapter II

EFT to ourselves, we held a consultation as to what our next step should be. We both fancied that Servia was a very small country, and imagined that we were but a moderate distance from the front.

This illusion was quickly dispelled by the maitre d hotel. From him we learned that the scene of action was at least one hundred miles away, also that an English officer, Colonel Bragg, who commanded a newly-raised squadron of cavalry, was then in Belgrade.

This was indeed acceptable news. His camp, we were told, was only about two miles away, at a place called Topchidere, on the other side of the town, and we determined to offer our services at once.

It was now about half-past ten o’clock, and intensely hot. There was not a cloud in the bright blue sky, and the sun’s rays beat down with fierce and dazzling power on the white and dusty streets. We, therefore, fortified our muffin-shaped forage caps with puggarees, after the Indian fashion. Amongst other things I had brought out with me were a pair of india-rubber half Wellington boots, very loose about the uppers, and shiny like goloshes. I was rather proud of these, and being

CQLONEL BRAGG.

anxious to make a favourable impression on my distinguished fellow-countryman, I determined, in spite of Hiems’ protest that they were “ ridiculous,” to wear them.

After a dusty walk we arrived at Topchidere. The cavalry camp, which contained only a score or two of tents, was in a large field. We had no difficulty in finding Colonel Bragg’s quarters, being directed thither by a good-natured little doctor, who introduced himself to us as Dr. Ibaum, and offered us each a pinch of snuff. Our reception by the colonel was not encouraging. He was talking to a tall, good-looking young fellow, who turned out to be the special artist of an English illustrated paper, and as he approached we heard him say,—

“ Who the are these beggars, and what the

do they want here, I wonder? ”

The artist looked towards us, and burst out laughing. Nothing daunted, however, we walked up to the tent, and Hiems, saluting politely, said, —

“ Colonel Bragg, I believe ? ”

“ Hulloh ! ” said the colonel to his friend, “ they’re English!” ( Then to ?«.) “Yes, Bragg’s my name. What can I do for you ? ”

“ We are medical students, just arrived from England, and hearing that you were organising a body of cavalry, we have come to offer you our services,” said Hiems.

“ D d good of you,” said the colonel, “ but I

don’t think we want any surgeons. What stores have you got with you?”

ADVENTURES IN SERVIA.

We replied that we had a good supply of quinine, Ipecacuanha, Condy’s fluid, opium, strapping, bandages, cotton -wool, prepared oakum, lint, etc.

“ Hum — well, you can send them over here, if you like, and I’ll just think the matter over ; but — you were never going to the front in those idiotical boots, were you, sir?” said he to me.

“ Indeed I was, sir,” said I, rather angrily, for his contemptuous tone and manner of speaking nettled me.

“ More fool you, then,” said the colonel.

I was so incensed at his rudeness that I turned .on my heel and would have left him there and then, had he not sung out in a kinder tone, —

“ Come, come, my lad, don’t be riled. I’m a blunt soldier, and always speak my mind. Shake hands ; there ! ” and he held out his hand with a rough goodnature that almost made amends.

“ By the way, though, my lad,” said he, “ if you can’t take a joke in good part, you’ll hardly do for a campaigner ; blows are harder to bear than jokes.”

“Not when you can return them, sir,” replied I, haughtily.

“Well spoken,” said the colonel. “So you are really anxious to go to the front ? ”

“Yes,” we both replied in a breath, “and we don’t mind if we get a little fighting as well as doctoring,” added Hiems.

“Well,” said the colonel, with a fierce twirl of his moustache, “ I guess you’ll get a good chance of both

DR. I BAUM.

if you come with me. I shall not forget you, only bear in mind that it will probably be two or three weeks before we shall leave for the front, for my men beat creation for stupidity at drill, and will want a lot of licking into shape before they’ll be fit to face the Turks. What’s your hotel ? ”

We told him.

“ Very well, then ; you’ll hear from me before we leave. Good morning ; ” and lighting another cigarette, the colonel turned away from us and resumed his conversation with the artist.

We left the camp, not over well pleased with our reception, and were walking moodily homewards, when we were hailed by a loud “ Yai ! Gospodina ! ” and, looking back, we beheld a soldier running after us, with a piece of paper in his hand. On taking the paper we found the following words written on it, “ Dr. Ibaum make to the English gentlemen his esteem, and will say to them a few words.” The soldier pointed to our right, and there was the doctor, snuff-box in one hand and hat in the other, beaming on us with the kindliest of smiles.

“Eh ! ” said he, “my dear friend, you have seen the Inglis camp, eh ? And how love you Kol-o-nel Bragg, eh?”

We replied that we thought Colonel Bragg a first-rate soldier, but that we were disappointed to learn that he was not going to the front for two or three weeks, as we were anxious to get to work immediately.

ADVENTURES IN SEE VIA.

“ You will to work now, aha ! Then I will say what I will do,” said the little doctor, puckering up his face into a look of the most unfathomable profundity. “ The Minister of the Health here, Dr. Savar Petrovitch, is great friend to me.” Here he drew himself up and looked very important. “ I will speak to him for you, and he shall make you some work very soon — quick — aha — eh ? ”

We made an effort to thank him, but he stopped us at once.

“For what,” said he, “will you thank me? All Inglismen my friend ; I love him. But you, you will to work for my country ; why will you then to thank me ? No, no, I thank you! I will now,” continued he, “to walk with you some way. Will you let — eh, my Inglis friend ? ”

We were only too glad of his company, and the kind-hearted little man was good enough to walk back with us as far as our hotel, and when he left us, it was with a promise to call for us the next morning, and accompany us to the offices of Dr. Savar Petrovitch, the Minister of Health.

Chapter III

RUE to his promise, Dr. Ibaum called for us at ten o’clock the next morning, and accompanied us to the War Office, where we were introduced to Dr. Petrovitch.

Dr. Petrovitch received us kindly. He was a small, slightly made, but good-looking man, with dark eyes, whiskers, and moustache, and spoke French very fluently.

We informed him that we were anxious to go to the front, but he replied with a smile that they had plenty of medical men there, but were greatly in want of them at Semendria and Belgrade.

“ You can choose between the two places,” he said. “ Belgrade is the more agreeable ; there is more society there, and you won’t be so dull. On the other hand, Dr. Ibaum works at Semendria, and will look after you if you go there. I have promised Baron Von Tummey, our inspector of hospitals, not to send any more surgeons to Deligrad, but to keep them for our hospitals at Semendria and Belgrade.”

This was terribly disappointing, and we should probably have declined the offer, in the hope of getting to Deligrad with Colonel Bragg, but for Dr. Ibaum.

ADVENTURES IN SEE VIA.

“ Come you with me,” he said, coaxingly. “ You shall be glad all the tay long. You shall eat — ah ! very much and good — and you shall drink — oh ! you shall drink wine and beer and cafe ; you shall have horse and you shall have dog ; you shall have money, — oh ! much money, — and you shall not work.”

“That won’t do for us,” said I. “We want to work. We have come here for the sake of working.”

“ Aha ! ” said the little man, his eyes gleaming with satisfaction ; “ you will to work, you shall work then — plenty work — as much as you will to do, and you shall have money. How much money will you to have ? ”

We replied that we would be content with £2 per week and board and lodging.

“Yes, yes ; you will to have two pound Inglis per the 1 week — yes, that is vier ducaten ” (four ducats). “ Yes, I will speak with Dr. Petrovitch. Will you so good to wait one minute ? Aha ! I come quick back.” And, taking Dr. Petrovitch by the arm, he left the room with him for a moment.

When they returned, Ibaum bore in his hand a couple of papers.

“ Gentlemen,” said Dr. Petrovitch, in French, “ we are quite willing to engage you as assistant surgeons at a salary of four ducats a week ; we will provide you, moreover, with board and lodging. I cannot promise that you shall go to the front, but you shall not be forgotten should an opportunity offer. Will you allow me to see your passports and certificates ? ”

THE CONTRA C 7 SIGNED.

We complied with his wish, and finding the documents satisfactory, the papers before mentioned were handed to us to sign, and we were informed that our engagement was completed.

No one perhaps was better able to revive drooping spirits than cheerful, chatty, little Dr. Ibaum. After the arrangements were made, out came the inevitable snuff-box. He insisted on our taking a pinch, then linked his arms in ours, and led us out of the room.

“Now, my dear friends,” said he, looking from one to the other of us, and giving us both a gentle pat on the back, “ we shall be no more grievous. If you will be sad, I will, too, to be sad, but we will not be grievous. After our work we have done, we will sing Inglis song and Servian song, and we will dance ; ” and suiting his actions to his words, he adopted a dancing step and broke out into a merry tra-la-la !