El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1916-05-02
Prisoners at Front Say PEG.
pie Starving and Want
Conflict Stopped.
ny VGGO TOEPFER.

DRITISH Headquarters in France,
* May En- a little village some
~ miles behind the fighting line, 1
came upon a batch Of prisoners
captured by the British two days be-
for. I asked to be allowed to speak
to them.
] found them deeply grateful to their
captors who, they said, had treated
them with the most touching kindness.
They were greatly relieved because
they would not have to go back into
the inferno to fight for a cause they
rever looked upon as their own. They
were from Danish-speaking Germany.
Not one of them was under 20 or yer
80, and they were tall, broadshouldered,
blue-eyed and ~fair-haired and quite
willing to talk when I addressed them
in their own language.
Don't Understand the War.
One of them, a man with a frank and
intelligent face. acting as spokesman,
said:
we all feel that the end is approach
ing. not so much because Germany is
short Of men-there are still plenty of
reserves, I believe - but because the
sufferings Of the people at home are
becoming unbearable and they do not
understand what we are fighting for.
1T is gradually beginning to dawn
upon them hat all our victories are to
count for nothing and that we must not
only give up what we have won, but
even more. i'm order to get the peace
the whole German people is signing
for"
Germans Ready TO Give In.
do you think the German people
are in a mood to give up any terri
tory in order to get peace | asked.
81 am quite sure that the people
would willingly give up not only every
inch of foreign territory now occupied
but Alsace lorraine as we'll"
But what about an indemnity
q do not see how Germany could
possibly pay an indemnity now. We.
are practically ruined and the intelli-
gent part of the population all know it,
Every letter I get from home speaks
of the misery people are enduring.
Our horses and cattle have been taken
away, We are short of seed corn and
food; eveR potatoes are very scarce.
That part Of Germany is a country Of
mourning and despair.
Best Men All Taken Away.
CAL our able-bodied men ave been
taken and from the beginning Of the
war we have always been sent to the
dangerous places. Our heavy
casualties prove this.
NO part Of Germany, / believe, has
as heavily as the part from
which I come. More than $4,000 of our
men, L am lOlu, nave ldleu-
Nothing can describe the misery at
home. but at least the Germans cannot
say of us that we lave not done our
duty"
How have you been treated while
in the army %" 1 asked. as it tr-e that
officers threaten to shoot you
down il you refuse to go forward?'
Treated Well.
"No. I cannot complain Of the wa
we have been treated. German Off
GERS have their own way of treating
their men,. They hardly look pom US
human beings. but think they have
been less brutal during the war than
in time of peace.
"They demand obedience and the man
who hesitates to obey orders knows
that he is liable to be shot down.
Nothing of the kind, however has ever
occurred in our regiment. We have
fought well. ] think. We have been
fed well. too, far better han our peo-
pie at home, and. as you see, our cloth
is not bad. our boots are excellent.
we really must not complain"
do you believe this war was forced
upon Germany
Was Not Forced on Germany.
NO intelligent person in Germany
really believes that he said with a
smile. we knew hat the war was
coming oon or later. We hav been
prepared for it for years and we