New Britain herald., 1915-02-18
RUSSIAN SOLDIERS ! TOOK PEOPLES SHOES
Wife of New Britain Resident Tells Of Russian Invasion in CaIiCia.

A highly interesting account from the seat of the war zone in the east ern ampitheatre has been received from Germany by Mike Pardlow.of thls city who is employed at the Ian ders F'rary & Clark plant and who has consented to the use of the text Tn public print. MT. Pardlow came to this country some time ago from Austrian Poland, leaving his wife there to join him later. She is the author of the epistle.
 MT. Pardlow's wife fled from her nome in Galicia (Austria Hungary through the Russian lines to Ostrawa in Prussia, where she now is. How the letter was eyer passed by the censor is a mystery as, for one thing, it tells of the high price of food in the German province. 1,.
 The Herald presents this letter to it's readers with but one object. It supplies a highly interesting account of activities in the war zone. Although the feeling expressed is strongly pro- German, which of course is natural with these people, it is presented with the hope that the reader will accept it at it's face value and not an ex- pression of feeling of any sort. The communication which follows was written in Polish and translated by M. R. Malinowski
 Morawsl<a. Ostrawa
 s+ Jan. ', 1915. Dear Michael:-
 Am writing a few words to you and wish to know about your health and how you are getting along, for I, thanking God, am in the best Of health and Sophia is feeling fine, but about our home I know nothing be- cause mail is not delivered there. I wrote a letter to Wieckowa, to Fran kowa and to Bielcza to find out whether or not the Russians were there, but up to the present date, I have heard nothing. Only the sol- diers told us that around Brzeska everything is destroyed and Borzecin is burnt. The larger part of Szce- panow and the church in Szczepanow is also burnt, and the new churchs tower is torn off. All the villages around Crakow and Bochnia are de- stroyed.
 Battles Around Radlow.
 Around Radlow fierce battles are
 
 Radlow, Wierzch oslawice and Niwce, but the most suffering is in Radlow and Niwka Rudka is all burnt. When the Russians were returning they burnt Zdrochec, Marcinkowice and Przy bislawice, and they robbed all these places, because a soldier nas written here to Ostrawa to a friend of his, stating how everything there is destroyed and robbed. -e,s-
 May Have Died of Fright.
 Dear Michael, maybe you will l never see you mother again because l there is such a fierce war there that 1 she may have died from fright. It 1 is also the same with me, while I l have money I can remain here and l when my money is gone then I have 1 to go home. If only the potatoes 1 were ripe then a person could feed l en them because ali the grain food l and clothing has been taken away, and 1 even the boots and shoes were pulled ! off the peoples feet and taken away. 1 They also robbed our parish house.
 High Prices Obtain.
 If I had all my money I would not l go home, but at present everything is so dear In OStfaWa. In OkOcln the | brewery is all destroyed and they let the beer run down to the river. In Bochnia they robbed the factory of all the screws. They also robbed the salt mines. Dear Michael l 1 wouldn't go home, but if spent all my money nere than when I get home, I will probably need the money be- cause I know that if my house is not burnt we'll the cattle and pig is taken and so I will have to buy new ones. That's if we live. I have no hope for anything good this spring because in Galicia there was no w1u- ter whatsoever. It was rain all the time and warm sloppy weather. That will probably bring cholera and tnen will have to die from hunger, but God knows what he is doing. Let us pray to- Jesus so that our Emperor will win.
 Everything Ruined
 Write me about the work in Ameri- ca whether or not it picked up any. Dear Michael, write me with whom you board Now dear Michael pray