The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-11-01
BELGIAN PASSED ASAGERMAN AND
 ESCAPED THE F0E
Forced to Aid in Destruction Of House to Avoid Detec- tion-Lived Six Days on
 Bread and Apples

London, October 31- fsnaoi., Here Is an account of his adventures by Belgian from Weede who es- caped by passing himself off as a Ger
 man. He speaks the German language.
 With his family he got safely to Ant "erp and thence to England.
 Hearing of the German atrocities on all hands and knowing that the Ger | mans were not far off" he said to- oay' T dug pit near my house large enough for me and my wife and chill oren to move about in and stocked if
 with what food we had left. It was very little, for there had been A scar city CT food for days past Three ioaves of stale bread and A sack of apples was all we had. The apples I had picked off my tree in the garden some days before.
 The very first day we occupied our pit German cavalry patrol entered the Village and having taken all thev | couio Iind to drink, departed The next day q whole division arrived. We sought shelter In out pit and the con- tinued presence of the German sol oicry compelled us to remain there for oays. our bread was soon gone and
 we were compelled to live on apples. l For six days We were In this mis- eraple position, and began to feel very III rom weakness and pains brought about through eating the fruit. So bad was l the following day that I decided to give myself up and see what could do Tor my family. rather than watch them die of starvation.
 l With this intention I began to crawl toward the German lines when I was met With the challenge, Hands upi' | was so weak I could hardly do SO, An officer then came forward and be- gan to question me- As I could sneak German fluently I answered him in his own language, and he took me for one or his own countrymen. Following him 10 house. he asked me for my pa pers told him a story that I had lost them while trying to get away Fortunately he appeared to believe me. ANYHOW. instead of arresting and conrining me somewhere he left me alone and I was able to go back and orihs my family home They presented heart-breaking sight, being very m locking and dirty. My younger child was very bad indeed and I was afraid she would tie. The officer have spoken of, st,ll thinking I was Ger man, gave us some bread to eat and we remained in our home wondering what would happen next
 A>oi iohe dltei WdTu some or the Ger- man soldiers broke into our rooms. and seeing us with bread, accused mo of stealing It. One of them was about |, run me through with bayonet. whom shouted out in German that one Of his officers had given it to me. This fellow also thought I was a German and so spared my life. But this was not all. Another half-drunken German sol dier got hold of me and compelled me to go with him. He broke into a house the inhabitants of which had fort,,' nately fled
 Seeing there was no one there thia German soldier began to smash every. thing he could see and ordered me ,o do the same. In fear of losing my ufa at his hands. I was compelled to do so whereupon he gave me a cigar ana laughed, saying: Well done. country man; well done.'
 We next went to a cafe the terrified patron of which was ordered to brinp food and drink. My captor drank ev erything brought to him and he was soon fvQnk. g1hfs enabled me to escan, frof hhs3hande and. carefully avoid ings allyf <ifef9Haf the Germans. who wore now p11ving away, I got back to my fantly. Wa decided to make for MalIHes and Antwerp and after much suffsfing we managed to reach tbs last named place, where kind friends conveyed us to England. In England everyonp has been most kind to us"