El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1915-04-08
By A SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT OF
THE LONDON TIMES.


THE LONDON TIMES.
n ERLIN, Germany. april Son the
crest Of a hill overlooking a broad
- valley, Is acres Of flat land have
been enclosed by a wooden fence seven
feet high, surmounted by two lines Of
barbed wire The road on one side is a
main highway. Peasant carts. wagons.
motorcars and pedestrians pass by IN
troubled by the fact that behind these
boards are more than 5000 men Of va
rious races and tongues, prisoners. OF
war It is one or the German prison
camps where English, French Russians
beIslans and Turcos are detained.
The Quarantine Pen.
1 was escorted through the camp by
an OFFICER. This is the quarantine
pen he announced to me, as soon as
We had entered. We keen all newly
arrived prisoners here for a period Of
four weeks. to make sure thar thew
have no diseases There are 500 here
now"
Most Of the prisoners in this pen
were civilians. Belgians. considered
unruly or insubordinate, who had been
removed from Belgium, were interned
promlscuously with the soldiers
noticed that they were all of the arms
bearing age. The pen" itself covered
about an acre and a half Of ground 1t
IS separated from the adjoining pen by
barbed wire about feet high. loosely
strung. and bounded on all sides by a
path eight feet broad.
The camp is divided into 10 Of these
pens" Each contains four long, low
buildings, built Of stained pine boards,
and standing on a brick foundation.
Each building accommodate 250 men
and is heated by 10 coke stoves. lighted
by electricity, and ventilated by win
dows- The sleeping mattresses are Of
unbleached ducking, filled with Eek
celsiOr' or wood shavings two feet
thick, and placed on the floor.
blankets Are Scarce.
The blankets seemed rather scanty.
and most Of the men, was told. used
their great coats as cOverlets. In the
center OF the room are Oblong tables at
which u men can sit comfortably for
meals and games Outbuildings, con-
tanning kitchen. stores, lavatOries, etc,
are also provided. as is a hospital
building for light cases All the build
ings are new and specially constructed
for housing prisoners.
After a cursOry inspection. as the men
were out Of their quarters at the time,
we passed to the adjoining pen In all
respects identical with the first, the
they were full Of prisoners chiefly
French. though with a sprinkling OF
Belgians, and a few black troops
spoke with several OF the men
Many had been here for four or five
months. but they all were in good
spirits and optimistic. They asked me
whether the Russians were in Berlin,
and said they daily expected to hear the
boom OF Friendly guns
Discipline IL Good
All the discipline is maintained by
their own noncommissfoned officers
my guide remarked They have full
charge. also full responsibility. II any
thing goes wrong. a lookout touches a
bell. and then OF course we take
action" He thereupon pointed to the
batteries Of artillery posted on ele-
waited platforms at various points Of
vantage 7 also saw lookout towers in
which sentries were stationed who
commanded clear view OF each pen
BY the time we had reached the sixth
pen We found the men getting their
MONDAY meal The food is prepared
and cooked by the prisoners The chief
meal Of the day is at nOon- and consists
Of a big tin bowl Of meat and potato
soup and piece Of black bread j
tasted the soup and it seemed very
palatable. For breakfast ] was told the
prisoners receive coffee with sugar and
bread; and in the evening bread with
sometimes potatoes or other vegetables
each man
Each Pen Has n Store.
Each pen has a store which IS
open at stated hours A printed price
list OF the artlcleS SOlQ hangs IN 'front.'
OF the booth. Soap. brushes. shirts.
towels German dictionaries. and
French English German grammars are
the chief items No food, chocolate. OF
tobacco is sold. but the purchase of
German grammars is encouraged, and
the prices charged are ridiculously low.
believe 6 cents
You see, We want the English and
French to learn our language, 10 under
stand US better" my escort remarked
to me
In one OF the buildings I came upon
group OF British soldiers. Guardsmen,
tall. splendid fellows, far excelling In
the physique and bearing Of all the
other prisoners Except that they were
unshaven-I believe they are not al
lowed to shave oftener than once
fortniEht-they seemed remarkab bly, fit.
and only complained that it was hard
TO pass the time. but otherwise they
were well treated Questioned about
4rrf- tod fHay- said wac good hut