Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1914-09-16
SAFELY At HOME
FROM GERMANY
Miss Cora 0smundson Returned
From Her Trip Abroad
Saturday Night.

Miss Cora Osmundson arrived at homo
at Willmar last Saturday from Berlin,
Germany, where she went to study mus
ic year ago. The breaking out of the
war made an exciting finish for her trip
abroad. She left Berlin for Rotterdam,
and from there to London. Before she
LETT Berlin she saw wounded soldiers
brought back from the French frontier.
On Sept. l she left Southampton on
the S. s. "Lapland." British warships
escorted the ship for a day and two
nights, and several warships were sight
ed on the trip to New York, where tho
ship arrived Sept. ..
The following is an interview with
Miss Osmundson which appeared in the
Sunday Minneapolis Tribune, with
some corrections authorized by her:
French ,aeroplanes were flying over
Berlin less than a week after war was
declared, said Miss Cora Osmundson of
Willmar. who arrived yesterday from
Berlin, where she left Aug q. Miss
were brought down by the Germans and
that she saw one Of them fall after It
was hit.
The German aeroplanes were not al
lowed to 60 up until Aug. 20, Miss o.
mundson said. and on that day the kais-
er announced that there was to be no
more firing on the planes. Before. when
ever an airship appeared over the city
all guns were trained on it.
Saw Aeroplano Crash Down.
''One afternoon. think it was Aug.
16, when I was walking down the street
heard a sudden shout and looked up.
An aeroplane at least a mile in the air
had been struck and was dropping. 1t
was revolving so fast that it looked a.
most like ball. Both machine and
driver crashed to the ground about two
miles from where I stood. Although
that was the only one I saw brought
down I was told there were several
more. There was hardly day but what
one or more ships few over the city and
all were said to be French monoplanes.
During the three weeks was in
Berlin after war started I saw dozens
Of Russian spies arrested. Some of
| them wore German army uniforms, 9TH
ers wersain civilian clothes. while some
! were even dressed a woman They
| were taken of to be shot.
| In Berlin there is a mems furnish
ing store run by a German, but named
| old England The day after England
declared war mob Of Germans started
to stone the store They finally got the
proprietor and made him get a paint
brush and change the name. German
streets with English names were
changed.
"On July 30, the day war was de-
clared, I saw the crown prince and the
minister of war 60 down the principal
streets and order mobilization. The
Germans simply went Wild Men yelled
and laughed while the women cried.
The next day the mobilization was COM
pleted and the following day the troops
were on their way to the battlefield.
strssts Al Quiet.
after that Berlin was quiet. The
streets were practically deserted, ex-
cept in front of the newspaper ofaces
where they waited for extras. When
ever any one went out he first looked
up to see If there was a French aero
plane over the CITY,"
Miss Osmundson was in Berlin study
ing music when war broke out and had
been there a year. Until July 1 she
stayed with Mr.. and Mrs. James A
Bliss, 40 South Eighth street, who were
in Berlin. They left at the same time
I'm Berlin there was the greatest re-
spect for an American. A person wear
ing an American flag was safe, but they
requested you to speak German or keeI
STILL" she said