Prose under fire

An American World War I veteran named Ernest Hemingway revolutionized English prose by writing short, declarative sentences in a coolly detached tone that belied the emotional depth of his stories. Reading Ladislav Krizek's World War I journals, published for the first time in The Wartime Experiences of a Cleveland Czechoslovak Legionnaire, one wonders if Hemingway didn't cut his stylistic teeth in a wartime journal of his own.

Krizek had emigrated from Votice, a town in south Bohemia, to Cleveland, Ohio, when war broke out in Europe in 1914. A passionate Czech patriot, Krizek helped organize many Czechs in Cleveland to join the war effort with the French Legionnaires, and soon left the United States to train and serve on the French front lines.

Krizek's journal details his experiences departing from his adopted home, training and fighting in France, and victoriously visiting Czechoslovakia, where he traveled throughout the country organizing patriotic speeches. Krizek wrote in his journal nearly every day. What his entries lack in detail and emotion, they more than make up for in subtext.

Here is Krizek's first contact with artillery, while undergoing basic training in Cognac, France:

Tuesday, Dec. 4, 1917

Drilled from 8-10 a.m., 1-3 p.m. throwing grenades. Interesting.

Other entries serve to illustrate Krizek's adeptness at describing in terse language conditions that are almost beyond belief:

Sunday, Oct. 13, 1918

Laon is dead - 6,600 civilians have been killed. We are happy because we left in time. Horrific discoveries in the woods and surrounding area. Thousands of dead, disfigured Bosh bodies. There wasn't any time to take them away. There is a head, leg, hand, etc. An ugly scene. The Americans are advancing. There are hundreds of cannons, airplanes, telecommunications and telegraph equipment, supplies of ammunitions, food, etc., as far as you can see. ? Their comrades are buried in a hurry. Our boys equipped themselves with all the supplies. Hundreds of horses left to us. What a winner. Quiet day. Advanced further.

Wartime Experiences may not be stunning prose, but it is a fascinating personal account of World War I that will be of interest to Czech and American readers alike. Editor Stephen J. Sebesta, himself a Czech descendant active in the Cleveland Czech community, tells The Prague Post how this historical document came to be published in English.

"A couple years ago, I was in České Budějovice presenting a paper on the history of the Czech community in Cleveland," he recalls. "I received a package from Lad Krizek's daughter, which contained the journal and other material, which I decided to put together and publish.

"It is a short read but a fascinating story, and a great insight into the unique role of the Czechoslovak Legionnaires in the French Army and their contribution to the establishment of the Republic of Czechoslovakia, as well as their role in defending the country after Oct. 28, 1918."

Along with Krizek's journals, the book contains photographs of the military activity of the Czech Legionnaires. Sebesta has also written an introduction and afterword that provide crucial background information on Krizek and his Legionnaire comrades.

For anyone interested in World War I history, Wartime Experiences fills an essential gap, offering the unvarnished daily experiences of a Czech patriot in a war of unimaginable carnage and grueling conditions. One hopes such history won't be repeated. The publication of books like this may help ensure that it won't.

Stephan Delbos can be reached at
sdelbos@praguepost.com