Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-12-22
By Lieut.. J. HARVEY DOUGLAS
"A IL I,urhC Canada
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Copyright 1917. bp the Pubic Ledger ComranvJ

before and since. but that hard bench
and the pillow seemed like a feather bed
to me. and when 1t was my turn to lie
down | always felt that Wells Just
twisted the hands of his watch around
and woke me UP.
In the morning the Gentry produced
greasy'looking parcel from which he
extracted IA chunk of black bread, bit
of cheese and piece of sausage With
the assistance of clasp knife and a
great deal of unnecessary noise, he
breakfasted. After this interesting per-
formance he proceeded to fumigate the
compartment with the smoke from one
of his cigars. We enjoyed IL all with
the exception OF the Imitation of a gas
attack
We also were given breakfast. consist
ing of "A piece of the now familiar black
/ bread and cup of acorn coffee.
This was handed into the compart-
ment and we concluded the dining car
had failed to make connections with our
train.
After breakfast the sentry left us and
| his place was taken by the Red Cross
orderly. He was quite pleasant and told
| us that we were to detraiu at Aachen
tAiX-la-Chapelle) where we would be put
in hospitals. He gave US a German news
paper to read which We did our best to
puzzle out, but finally gave it up.
ORDERLY WAS TERRIFIED
Not long after lunch, which was the
same as breakfast. with the addition OF
bean soup, we arrived at Aachen. A
German medical officer came on board
the train. He saw the Red Cross orderly
in the compartment with us and roared
some unntelligible German at the top Of
his voice. Our little friend looked ter
rifled and jumped off the train. Shortly
after | saw him standing as stiff as a
poker while the officer told him off se-
verely. probably for being so kind to
| us. We never saw him again except in
his official capacity
Evidently the German officer didn't
like our looks. for We were told that
we could not get Off there, and shortly
afterward Aachen was left behind We
were horribly disappointed, but decided
that we couldn't learn to love that OFF,
Ger and perhaps It would be better for
| us elsewhere.
The next news ] got was that we
were going to Coin. / was not aware
that this was the German for Cologne
After long conversation with the SEN
try I learned that 1t was a beautiful
city on the Rhine with a Dom (cathe-
draD. | didn't know what Dom meant
He kept repeating the word SO often
that thought him very profane.
While ] was talking to the sentry q
fast train overlook and passed us like
a, flash. Swelling out his chest, he in
formed me that this train was going
more than 100 kilometers an hour, and
that many trains In Germany did that
knew one particular train that didn't
and wished to God 1t would hurry or
hot hnu Iat .fS to n, o..
while.
CHILDREN WE'RE NAUGHTY
We passed several groups Of children
who threw kisses toward the forward
end of the train. We wondered why,
and poked our heads out Of the window
to fnd out. We saw that the cars ahead
were loaded with German wounded
When the children saw US they cooked
up their chins and drew their hands
across their necks. indicating the pleas
ant end we would have II they could
get at us with knife.
We saw Russian and French prison
ers working in the fields. waved to
them and received a CHEEKY response.
| About n. m. We drew into Cologne
crawled across one of the huge bridges
over the Rhine and into a station. The
tracks were some distance above the
street. where an interested crowd soon
gathered TO look up at the British pris-
oners and probably curse England.
We looked right through them and
quietly cursed Germany and all the Ger
| mans
On the platform were numerous Red
| CIoss orderlies who took charge of us.
We were led to a waiting room, where
we spent another half hour. and were
then taken outside and loaded into two
small tram-cars handled by women. We
we're so crowded that half OF US had
to stand up and hang on to the straps
The platforms were hlled with vicious
| looking sentries with fixed bayonets,
who looked as though they wished one
Of US would try to escape so that they
could have a good excuse for using the
business end Of the rife. At that par
ticular moment we didn't want TO es-
cape all we wanted was to sit down
somewhere, anywhere.
GIVING THE PEOPLE A TREAT
The trans carried us back across the
bridge and wound their tortuous way
through the main streets of Cologne.
think the drivers had instructions TO
show us of TO the people because / now
know that we could have come a much
shorter way than we did. Everything
came to q standstiil as we went by. The
crowds stared. A few people hissed
and booed, but there was no violent
demonstration Of any sort.
We turned into a side street, where
the trans stopped In front of q stone
building set back about twenty feet from
the other buildings, and with an iron
fence across the front. At the gate
stood q sentry.
Tho doors Of the building were nune
open. Men In uniform and others in
long white coats came rushing OUT
There was much excitement and SHOUT
ing OF orders.
with bsyonsts lowered at a con-
venisnt angle the sentries conducted US
past crowd OF awe-struek children
and through the safe, We had arrived
= 'a'' tcoNrINurp MONDAY,