The Goldfield news and weekly tribune. [volume] (Goldfield, Nev.) 1911-1947, 1915-10-09
GERMANY HARD ON
WAR PRISONERS

PETROGRAD, Sept. 15.-British
Red Cross Commissioner Hart, in q
report to Prince Gutenberg. patron
of all sanitary work in Russia. con-
trasts the good appearance and gen
eral healthfulness of German pris-
oners of war with the distressful
condition of Russian war prisoners
returning from Germany at the time
of their exchange at Torueo.
Hart visited Torneo at the special
request of Prince Gutenberg TO wit
ness the transfer. towards the end
of August. His report follows:
In the large new school house at
Torneo / found 247 invalid or dis
abled men. Austrian and German,
most excellently accommodated the
W.T.. de being large, airy AMI clean,
tnc beds very comfortable with a,n
pie room between each and the food
consisting of n~ourishing soup with
meat, another dish Of meat and
bread in good quantity.
l spoke to several prisoners who
were grateful for the treatment they
had received both on the journey
from Petrograd and at the hospital
They were clearly aid physically in
as good condition as the injuries
they had received in battle permit
ted. That is to say they were well
nourished. Where their own cloth
ing was deficient or worn out they
had received fresh clothing includ-
ing an overcoat. cap and boots.
L saw these men sent away across
the border the same evening n
the arrangements for removing them
by ago stretchers and boats fur
nished with necessary conveniences
and protected from the weather left
nothing to be desired on the score
of humanity. l also crossed into
Haparanda and inspected the ar
rangements of the Swedish Red
Cross under Dr.. Nauchkoff, who
spoke very highly of the complete
ness and humanity of the treatment
of the prisoners of war by the Rus
sian authorities 1t was very clear
that the Swedish authorities did not
hold the same favorable opinion OF
the treatment of Russian prisoners
by the Germans, and I was Informed
that they were sent out of Germany
in a painfully dirty and neglected
condition. often half naked and half
starved.
l had the opportunity of verifying
these reports the next morning wheh
about $50 Russian prisoners arriv-
ed from Germany. Several of the
men we're wearing the same cotton
clothing given out to them in the
hospital with wornout list slippers
on their feet and no socks, and they
had travelled in this condition from
Koenigsberg through Sweden and
into Russian territory at Torneo.
Many Of the men were like scrace
crows so ragged and filthy vas their
condition and one was clothed in the
uniform of a dead French prisoner
of war. They were thin and weak
and said that they had been half
starved during their imprisonment.
They produced samples of the bread
that was given them, it being eX-
tremely hard and mouldy and mix
ed with potatoes and even with par
ticles of straw. They said little or
no meat was given them in the thin
soup served out to them daily. In
addition they had been subjected to
severe punishment for alleged
breaches of discipline despite their
manned and disabled condition, the
punishment including their being
compelled to stand on barrels for
hours at a time or being tied to
posts with their arms above their
heads. They were also frequently
struck by their German guards with
the butts of their rifles or the flat
cf their swords.
One of the worst features of the
condition OF the returning Rus
sian prisoners was the number OF
cases of tuberculosis There num-
bered some 60 out of $50 men re-
turned and l was told that the us
ual mum Der was about 20 per cent.
The cases of tuberculosis among
German and Austrian prisoners. on
the other ha1d, were only about five
per cent out of the total of 1850 IL
Aready exchanged.
Pioneer Buried