burst in the trenches the
Austrians retreated, and the Russians, taking advantage of the
confusion, stormed the fortifications in the neighborhood and took them,
capturing 5 officers, 500 men, and all the Maxims.

An Austrian column which had descended the north slope of the
Carpathians in the direction of Narvoda, where it had intrenched itself,
was attacked and driven back. This operation, being removed by more
than one hundred miles from the nearest point to the great struggle,
indicated that the Austrians, confident of victory, sent forces across
the Carpathians to catch the Russians in the rear when the proper moment
came.

This moment, it seems, failed to arrive, and the Russians, having the
support of the native inhabitants, had little difficulty in dealing
successfully with successive isolated attempts of the considerable
Hungarian reserve bodies sent across the Carpathians at various points.

There was some activity about this time before Przemysl, which several
times had been reported, incorrectly, as having been taken by the
Russians. An attempt was made by the garrison at a sortie. The Russians
allowed it to proceed until they could cut in behind, when the force was
surrounded. When it found it was impossible to cut a way through either
forward or backward, it surrendered. The Russians took about 2,000
prisoners.

On the Austrian retiring line from Kielce to Sandomierz the Russians
succeeded on November 5, 1914, in breaking down the defenses of the
enemy, and in stimulating a more or less orderly retreat into a hasty
flight. Sandomierz, itself, an exceedingly important strategic point,
which had played a vital part since the early days of the war, fell into
the hands of the Russians. In fighting with the Austrian rear guard
southward of Kielce the Russians took within a week 200 officers and
15,000 men prisoners, with scores of guns and Maxims.

CHAPTER LXX

AUSTRIAN RETREAT BEGINS

At this time the Russians were strongly established on the six-mile
front of the left bank of the San River, between Nizko and Rudnik. The
Austrian opposition there had been long and determined, but was finally
broken early in November, 1914. The Austrians began a retreat along this
front.

This retreat was such as to indicate less a general defeat than a
general obedience to orders to withdraw. It is true that the Russians
had been pressing with great energy upon the upper Vistula and San
fronts, especially s