MODERN BANDITS OF THE BALKANS

Evening Post, Volume CXXIII, Issue CXXIII, 10 April 1937, Page 27

MODERN BANDITS OF THE BALKANS

Despite the sweeping changes which the World War .has brought'-.about'';in the Balkan lands, that picturesque figure of the Middle .Ages, 'the; Balkan bandit,^persists throughout: Yugoslavia, Bulgaria,' and Albania/ H. D. Harrison from Belgrade-.tb the "New York Times." He has been forced, to change his tactics and his arms, but-in' the main he is ■' still- something .of a Robin Hood in his; way.' iHe usually claims some sort of political or social excuse for being against tlie Government. -, :, ; ■-~-",';..

, During the jive, hundred years .that the Turks dominated the Balkan-lands, it was,the custom every spring for.-the young men-^of Bulgar,- Serb," arid Greek families.-,, to take ari^is and "(.munitions and go to the woods. All. summer they lived as outlaws, killing off Turkish b],Jpressors, especially the tax collectors, whenever^ they found them in-isolated places. And though : they.. did this' in the name of Christianity arid nationality, they emptied' the pockets of their victims none the less thoroughly.

When after the Worid War the last vestiges of Turkish domination were wiped out, and Yugoslavia, Greece, Albania, and Bulgaria began to organise their own national life, thousands of men who had for years been held jn high esteem as nationalist bandits found to their surprise that, whereas formerly it;had been considered patriotic and' honourable to kill police^ men and rob tax-collectors, it was now considered a:c6minon.crime. Many oi them had quietly pursued their profeo■siohiri .the forested'mountains -'throughout the" whole "of .the World War, robbing stray soldiers and -even enemy supply columns, and giving the Austrian army of in Serbia a difficult.:time. It was some years before well-armed squads succeeded in breaking up these gangs. •

Even to this day, especially in the forested mountains of East Serbia, the

highlands of South. .Serbia, the. .wild country, of-the Bosnian Sandjak, and .theblack heights of-Montenegro, bandits ;exist in considerable ■-. numbers. Many still' pretend -to- be. political rebels. Most of them" have bands'of well-organised accomplices, 'who "feed and shelter them and,give them'information of the "movements of rich merchants and the sale o£ estates or stock. "When they have money they scatter it around among' the- poor "jataks" (accomplices)- and -spend r, liberally for wine, food,' fine"'clothing, new guns, and'entertainment; " ■;'■:■' ■■■ ■;

These outlaws;: with prices of •■from £2 to £250 on their heads,' are famous for their endurance and their courage; Two bandits surrounded hundreds of armed police hear Belgrade'kept the enemy at bay for*two days before' they finally broke and ran. One of them ran five -hundred ,-ya.rds. under heavy fire and died, riddled with bullets. Two bandits held .up the manager of a gold mine in.East'Serbia in his house, ■not a- hundred yards';frqm. a police station where six armed gendarme;; were sitting. They..made, the manager's wife serve them with dinner, but..: treated her,: her daughter, and the manager himself with, every courtesy. When they;left with all his savings they informed him .that, the other officials would, be visited^in turn, . . ..'• , . _ ' Awanderirig Englishman who waiks3 over the mountains of Montenegro a few years: ago tells" a'tale of strange ,m,en who. spoke good "American," looked, at his papers; gave-him contraband tobacco on'exchange for matches'and cigarette papers, swapped-yarns with him, but would not touch his money, ;Jlthough they had killed two men a few days before and had robbed a motorcoach. ■ They were -"political .bandits," "hajduks," followers of:the:.dead; King Nicholas of- .'Montenegro, -and Vthey killed, and robbed in the name-of-"lib-erty for Montenegro."'. ...,-■ .. -.