Elko independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 1915-current, 1916-02-14
81 Pae. and Intr New. servIee.

ny Pae. and Inti News Service.
VIENNA. Feb. 16.-The well known
Austrian actress Miss Greil Horn has
just described ner surferings as a
prisoner OF war in Russia. After sew
enteen months OF hardships she was
liberated and sent to Rumania. From
Bucharest she returned home by the
way OF Budapest. She said:
I'VE were playing at the Comedy
Theatre in Riga when the war between
Austria and Serbia broke out. We
took passage on steamer which was
about to sail for Sweden. Ten minutes
before the boat left police officials
boarded her and we were ordered to
return to our hotel. What became OF
the members of our company do not
know. because they all disappeared
within few days.
Il was permitted to stay at Riga for
mouth, but the police kept me under
constant surveillance as a supposed
spy. When l received post card from
ficer, l was arrested and ordered to
Kologriew in the province of Kokkro-
ma. l had to pay for the railroad
ticket. My journey took eight days
and l was continually insulted and
threatened by Russian travellers and
soldiers. Only my knowledge of the
Russian language saved me from
serious harm
when arrived at Kologriew was
almost without means, but the au-
thorities informed me that / would
have TO support myself. After much
trouble | succeeded in persuading a
farmer to rent me a small room of his
hut. During sixteen long months
supported myself by cooking, washing
and sewing for my fellow prisoners
We all had to go hungry most of the
time, as provisions were scarce and
very dear.
Three months after my arrival at
Kologriew We were allowed to write
letters to our loved ones at home, but
we mad to use the Russian language
Even the letters written in French or
English were destroyed by the Of
ficials. The mail which arrived for
us we never say. Although my mother
sent dozens of letters to me / only
received three postal cards.
almost daily more prisoners ar
rived. Many of them were men,
women and children who had been
dragged from Eastern Prussia by the
Russians. The condition of these I'M
fortunates was pitiful. They possessed
nothing but the clothing on their
backs and we had to divide our al
ready short rations with them.
IF we left our houses we were gen.
orally attacked and ill-treated by the
Russians. Sometimes the police and
the. soldiers INTERVIEWED, but in these
cases we were invariably arrested and
locked up for dis lrbing the peace. l
was sentenced to two weeks imprison-
ment with water and bread diet, be-
cause had given a few cigarettes to
a captured Austrian soldier who was
transported to Siberia with several
hundred other prisoners. had to
share my cell wit htwo Russian crimi-
nails during the entire term of my
Imprisonment
After the pogrom of Moscow our
lives were in danger for many weeks.
Hundreds of Russian recruits who did
not want to go to war fled to the i'm
mense forests, where they formed
robber bands. Somehow these desert
ers had gotten the idea that they
would escape punishment If they
killed as many Germans and Austrians
as possible before their capture. One
OF the bands had its hiding place in a
forest near Kologriew and made re-
peated attacks on the parts Of the
town Inhabited by the prisoners. We
barTicaded our houses and our men
armed themselves as best they could.
The police were powerless against the
marauders and made no serious effort
to capture them, but the German and
Austrian prisoners defeated them re.
peatedly in pitched battles. spent
many sleepless nights. sitting on my
bed with a big kitchen knife and re.
solved to- sell my life as dearly as
possible.