Evening star., 1916-01-09
Ford Party Will Form Board
to Carry Out Program
at The Hague.
GOES THROUGH GERMANY
ABOARD SPECIAL TRAIN
Many Evidences of War Witnessed
While on the Way-Members
Courteously Treated.

THE HAGUE. via London. January g..
5:25 p.m.--Five weeks after its de-
parture from New York the Ford peace
expedition reached The Hague today.
The members of the party plan to be-
gin Immediately the work of spreading
the peace propaganda.
The trip from Copenha gen in a spe-
cial train through Germany. touching
at Lubbock. Hamburg and Bremen, was
filled with impressive suggestions oI
war. At the important stations the
American peace advocates passed train
loads of soldiers bound for the front
and Red Cross nurses in hospital
Goa ches.
The progress of the expedition
through Germany was watched by ST.
lent crowds, except at one place where
German lieutenant lifted his helmet
The entire trip over German territory
was made after dark.
Arriving at the German port of War
nemuende in ferry boat from Dem
mark, the Americans. with the Norwe-
gian, Swedish and Danish delegates.
were met by a special train. The train,
which was provided by special permis-
sion of the military authorities, stood
Travel in Locked Cars.
As the peace advocates stood on the
platform in the dusk in a drizzling rain
they wire selected one by one. as their
names were called. and permitted to go
aboard the train. Then the train was
locked and started quickly for the trip
across northwestern Germany.
After a while the military guards on
the train relaxed the rules and per-
mitted the travellers to look out of the
windows. In the brilliantly lighted sta
tions at Lubbock. Hamburg and Bremen
the pilgrims caught their first glimpses
of military activity. Groups of Red
Cross nurses were seen on the plat
forms: soldiers were leaning out of the
windows of incoming and outgoing
trains: the familiar gray-coated Ger
man officers were pacing back and
forth and frequently a crowd of civil
ians. anticipating the passing of the
expedition, hurried for a closer inspec-
tion of the train.
Evidence of the war was not missing
from the train itself. Only one dining
car was provided for the 200 travellers.
The railroad authorities explained that
all the dining cars were being used to
transport wounded.
Directed to Eat Sparingly.
Posted in the cars were printed no.
tices calling upon the public to eat
sparingly and not waste food. One of
these notices gave ten rules. admonish-
ing the people to cook potatoes with
the skins on, save the scraps of bread
and abstain from meat.
Another notice was to the effect that
when the train was passing over
bridges OR through the tunnels the
windows and doors should be locked.
because spies on. occasion had thrown
bombs with the purpose of destroying
the railroad.
After leaving Hamburg. and while
approaching the western fighting zone,
the train was kept at its highest speed.
and the usual stops at the smaller sta
tions were omitted The crowds at
some of these stations indicated that
the people along the railroad had been
informed of the coming of the expedi-
ton. Yet the spectators everywhere
viewed the train silently.
One enlivening incident, however &C.
CURED at Bentheim near the Holland
frontier. There. near the end of the
trip through Germany. all the members
of the expedition were to have been
searched, but the authorities. through
the lieutenant in charge of the train.
announced that the searching had been
set aside.
Cheers and Speechmaking.
The travellers crowded into the little
station restaurant at 3 o'clock in the
morning and began cheering. The Rev.
Jenkin Lloyd Jones of Chicago there
upon mounted a chair and thanked the
German authorities. He explained. the
purpose of the peace expedition.
Cries came for a speech from the
German lieutenant. He finally mount
ed the chair. lifted his helmet and
said: Il hope that your project will
meet with success"
More cheering rang through the little
country station. Later the Holland
customs officer. who crossed the border
to meet the expedition. announced that
the Dutch government waived examina-
ha "a g nf he,
party to Holland. Long before daylight
the train crossed the border, and was
speeding toward The Hague.
Within a week the officials of the
peace mission expect to select the
members of the peace board that is to
remain at The Hague. The other mem
bers of the expedition will start on
their return to the United States Janu-