y left in Serbian territory.

Early on August 21, 1914, the attack began, and the Austrians here
fought stoutly. Indeed, all that day they held the Serbians off from
behind their intrenchments. On August 22, 1914, the Serbians made a
general assault. Fortunately they found a weakness in the fortifications
on the western side of the town. To create a diversion, the Austrians
delivered a counterattack along the road toward Varna.

By the morning of August 24, 1914, the Serbians had brought up a number
of heavy siege guns. But when the general bombardment had already
commenced, it was found that the Austrians had evacuated the town during
the night, and retreated across the river. And so the first Austrian
invasion of Serbia came to its disastrous end.

PART V--THE AUSTRO-SERBIAN CAMPAIGN

CHAPTER LI

RESULTS OF FIRST BATTLES

Though described as a punitive expedition in the Vienna press, this
campaign cost the Austrians very dear, not only in material and in
lives, but in prestige. Just what the Austrian casualties were cannot be
definitely stated at this time, but at least 6,000 were killed outright
on the field of battle, while at least 35,000 were wounded. And another
4,000 fell into the hands of the Serbians as prisoners. In material the
Serbians report that they captured 46 cannon, 30 machine guns, 140
ammunition wagons, and a great mass of rifles, hospital paraphernalia,
ammunition, stores, and other incidentals.

The Serbian losses were heavy: 3,000 dead and 15,000 wounded. That they
were so much less is not extraordinary, for not only were they on the
defensive, but an army in flight, as were the Austrian, always loses
heavily.

The first onslaught of the Austrians in August, 1914, had been driven
back. A disorganized mob, the soldiers of Franz Josef had fled back
across the Drina and the Save, leaving thousands of dead and prisoners
behind. And for over a week the little Serbian army lay panting.

Military science says that a victory should always be followed up
closely, for a beaten army is almost as helpless as a herd of cattle.
But military science must also take into account the limitations of
human muscles and nerves. The Serbian reserve forces had been moving
back and forth along the fighting front, strengthening a defense here,
supporting an attack there, and some of them had covered from fifty to
sixty miles a day. There were no fresh troops to pursue the Austrians.
The Serbians n