Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1915-02-14
SWISS UNDERTAKE
TREMENDOUS TASK
They Are Keeping Prisoners of
Warning Nations in Touch
With Families.
100000 LETTERS DAILY
Great Stacks of Mail Bags Pass
Through Transit Post"
at Berne.

Especial Cable TO The Times Dispatch. ]
BERNIE. SWITZERLAND. February
l3.-1t was with "a feeling of personal
interest that ! watched the sorting OF
n portion Of the $50, 900 communications
which. on an average, pass through
the Swiss transit post In Il single
day for the prisoners Of war In France
and Germany. AT one time | was cut
Oft also by war from the outside world
Tor four long months and | rccollect
vel! the arrival of the first batch of
mail bags, the Impotence with which
VIC awaited the sorting of their con-
tents. and the handing over OF our
little bundles OF letters.
recollect, too. the shock when /
noticed black -bordered letter peep
ing out from my bundle. On. the num-
Der Of lack-bordcrcd envelopes now
passing through this well-lntentioned
Swiss go-between office of the prison
ers Of war and their relatives. oh {.
the number OF letters which. instead
Of bringing JOY TO the recipients, Will
be received in the encampments in
France and Germany with tenrs and
sadness
ENABLED TO KEEP
IN TOUCH WITH FAMILIES
The Swiss government has generous
ly made itself the gratuitous inter-
mediary for enabling prisoners to keep
In touch with their relatives: IT,
amongst the thousands of money or
ders. small parcels of Comforts" and
welcome letters IL forwards daily into
both countries. there is an nil too
terrible proportion OF black bordered
envelopes, il does not detract from the
humanitarian character of the enter
prise.
The first department visited was
that which deals with the transfer OF
money to the prisoners. In both
France and Germany money orders on
large sized distinctive colorcd cards
are issued for the payment OF money
to prisoners OF war. These are not
Enclosed in envelopes but are not
dressed to the transit post" at Berne
Here they are replaced by Swiss or
der for payment OH yellow card,
which Is honored by the postal author!-
ties In France and Germany respective
ly. No fewer than forty girl clerks
are employed in the work OF transfer
ring the details OF the original order,
rench or German. whichever IL may
be. 10 the neutral Swiss order. and.
aiNhouGu IN frequently a deI1N
OF twelve or ffteen days in the arrival
of the order from the town Of origin
into the Berne Office, there is never a
delay exceeding three days in the
Berne transit post.
Out Of curiosity | turned over a nile
OF French and German orders. 1 found
some for such small amounts as 80
centimes and mark, 10 and 90 cents.
hut the n ha nh
81. From September ! TO the end OF
the year the transit post at Bcrne
had been the medium through which
22i.6S7 money orders, representing
100000. were transmitted to French
prisoners in Germany, and 81 .O45 money
orders. representing $4,000. to Ger
man prisoners in France. Since De-
cember l the same organization is un-
dertaking the transfer of money to
Russian prisoners in, Austro-Hungary
and to Austro- Hungarian prisoners in
Russia. AS the neutral Swiss order
has to be returned TO Berne for the
purpose of settlement of the sums paid
out to prisoners OF the respective gov
crnments. it has become valuable
document. indicating the fate of
prisoners. Often it has been the
means of knowing whether n missing
Is alive or dead.
SWISS HAVE UNDERTAKEN
WORK GRATUITOUSI.Y
The postal department for the ex-
petition of letters. rs postcards. and
small parcels to prisoners OF war is
not less Interesting. II is run. also
gratuitously, by the Swiss military
postal department., with the aid of n
few specially qualified bi-lingual sort
ers. Neither the French nor German
postal authorities take the trouble TO
sort the prisoners of war correspond
encc with their relatives IL the letter
comes from prisoner 1t is stamped
approved" by the camp commandant
in France or Germany; if it Is ad-
dressed to n prisoner it bears the
censor's stamp from the place OF origin.
and has to be read again on arrival
at destination before delivery. On an
ordinary day. 20 bags of unsorted let
tiers, collected at Pontalier and Frank
fort respectively. are received in the
office OF the Berne transit post"
The staff which deals with iIlcgible
or wrong addresses has met with many
puzzles. Some people had only heard
by word Of mouth that their relatives
were prisoners at n place they had
never heard of before. and which they
transcribed phonetically.
Scores of letters are arriving from
France addressed to Siberia, They
are destined for prisoners in camp
in Silesia. Ii Is evident that numbers
OF people are being told that their
relatives were prisoners OF war in
Silesia mistook 1t for Siberia.