Elko independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 1915-current, 1917-10-27
FRENCH GIRL TELLS
GRUESOME ST 0 R Y

The following letter from a repdtri-
ated French girl. published by the
Matin paris, France) gives vivid
idea OF the sufferi1gs endured by the
Inhabitants in the invaded districts OF
France:
"Breteuil. "a Aout, 1917.
Monsieur have the honor 10 adj
.Tess the following letter to you in
order that you may be cognizant OF
that has been going on in the occC-
pied region OF Franca. 20 which : am
returning after passing five months in
Belgium. lived with my mother and
my two sisters at (Aisne). On
o9hpber IL. 1916, the German authori-
ties announced that all girls and all
married women without children
should present themselves in the
square OF the Marie at five o'clock
next day. went there; German po-
licemen classified us. penned US up
and proceeded to sort us out. They
chose twenty girls and women at ran
dom, without telling us what the OBJ
ject was. When they had finished
this sorting out, which was carried on
amid tears, they told those who had
been chosen that they must be at the
station next day at ten o'clock with
their packages, without giving their
relations any chance of raising any
opposition or even of knowing where
they were going.
Three young girls from
who had been selected. refused. They
had to give way to the policemen. who
came to their homes to fetch them;
they were taken away next day and
treated in the meantime life refrac-
tory persons. The mother of one Of
them. seeing her daughter of ninteen
years of age about to be taken from
her. resisted the policeman. After
having been harshly spoken to shH
was sent to prison for a fortnight and
her daughter was taken away all the
same. From October Is, the relations
of the young girls went on ceasClcssly
demanding their return. On December
the kommandur at then ur.
der the direction of X, decided that
they should come back and that 9TH
ers should replace them. Fresh tears
and fresh sufferings! On December Z
notice was given to the mayors that
they we're to furnish an exact list of
young girls and Of married women
without children, with no distinction
as to responsibility, rank or charac.
ter. At A., eight young girls were
selected by the Germans. so nj ~, q
at b., Is at D., and so on in all the
other communes which had not sent
girls In October. | and one of my
sisters were selected to go. Ny
mother, who was very i'll, begged that
one OF the two might be left to her
and remained on the list with orders
10 be at the station on the following
evening. We were then Joined by
more than $50 others from the kom
mandatur. A roll call took place in
the court OF the hotel next day a
midday.
I'VE set out without our parents
knowing where we were being taken
or why We travelled to ", where
we arrived ut o'clock on "A cold ever
ing; soldiers were waiting for us. W.
were sorted out according to our com
munes and sent TO the little villages
round about. ] was hoisted into q
military wagon with my luggage TO
gether with four girls from NJ. and
three from A., in the middle Of tn,
uight, without even knowing where
we were going. We arrived nj S. A.
l o'clock in the morning: a village
with eighty.flve inhabitants. There
we were taken to an empty house, In
which soldiers had been CHARTERED, 4
perfect hovel, without food or mean:
OF warming ourselves; in this way WI
passed the night and the next day
the nine OF us tried to install ourselves
in this melancholy abode.
Two days later we received orders
to go to work, and from December s
till the month OF March we were
obliged to work under German au.
thority, commanded by soldiers, at
mems work; cartIng manure and sort.
ing potatoes; We we're Obliged TO re.
make the mattresses of the civilians.
and empty and refill the German sol.
diers' straw mattresses. We suffered
from cold, but above all from hunger.
We were forbidden to touch the pota.
toes, but sometimes some OF the more
humane among the soldiers let rs
take some. Most cruel of all was tho
OF correspondence with
our families. Ny mother. like the