Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1917-11-29
Lieutenant O'Brien, Taken
by Germans, Leaps From
Speeding Train.
MAKES WAY THRU
GERMANY TO LONDON
Wanders About For Seventy-two Days
Fugitive From the German Author.
tiles, and Narrowly Escapes Death by
Electrocution When Safety Is Near
-Reported Missing Last August anc
Believed Dead by Comrades.

London, Nov. 29.-Lieut. Patrick
O'Brien. OF Momence. H.: south OF
Chicago, the first American member
Of the American British flying corps
in London.
OBrien eluded his captors by jump
ing from a speeding train. He then
became fugitive for seventy-two
days and as his goal was in sight he
narrowly escaped electrocution on the
charged wires on the Holland from.
tier.
After cabling his aged mother at
Momence, to expect to see him soon.
Lieutenant O'Brien called on Ambas-
sador Page to seek aa~.ce regarding
his desire to be transferred to the
American flying corps. Last night
O'Brien was dined by a group OF ad-
miring flyers, who like score OF
friends along the front. had believed
he had been killed when he was re-
ported missing on Aug. II last.
Joins Canadian Army.
O'Brien, who, Is a strudy young man
of 27. was flying In the American avia-
ton squadron at San Diego. Cal.
| when he went to Victoria, B. G., and
obtained commission In the Canadian
army Going to France the next year
he distinguished himself by his great
daring over the German lines. On the
morning Of Aug. II enemy gunners
forced him to descend. but fortuntely
he landed behind his own lines.
Late afternoon OF the next day saw
him go up again over the German lines.
There were twenty German machines
against six British and O'Brien was
engaged with six enemy craft. He
brought down one enemy machine, but
was shot thru the upper lip and fell
with his damaged machine from a
height Of 5000 feet.
O'Brien Aays he can not explain
why he was not killed. When ne re-
gained consciousness he was in Ger
| man hospital.
Leaps { .om Moving Train.
Later he spent three weeks at
prison camp at Court al before he was
| started for the interior of Germany.
There were three other prisoners under
| n strong guard in his compartment
when O'Bricn, as a ruse, had the VIM
dow opened by complaining OF tho
smoke. !ie escaped by jumping from
the tram.
! The train was now sixty miles in
side Germany and travelling at thirty
miles an hour. but O'Brien decided to
| take q desperate chance. He jumped
skinning the whole side of his face, re-
opening the wound in his lip, and los
| ing consciousness. 1t was about
o'clock in the morning and the dark
ness shielded him. When he recovered
he was lying in field q.
| Then for seventy-two days he was q
! fugitive, travelling only at night. He
trudged thru fields and swan rivers
and canals in Germany, LuXemburg
t and Belgium before he reached the
Dutch frontier. At the time OF his
flight he had n piece Of sausage on
which he subsistcd for several days
after which his sole subsi stance con-
sisted of turnips and other vegetables
found in fields.
! Aided by Friendly Belgian.
| O'Brien did not know the German
language but used little French on
kindly Belgian who sheltered him
for several days The Belgian then
gave him old clothes to cover his uni
! form and directed him to the nearest
route to the frontier. O'Brlen swan
the river Meuse near Namur and the
next day was challenged by German
sentries who decided he was a peasant.
But his narrow escape was reserved
for his last day as a fugitive. when he
could see Dutch territory To circum-
vent the charged wires O'Brien built a
bridge in a nearby wood and threw II
across the wires, but 1t broke under his
weigh. and he received a shock which
| he says he can still feel. When he re-
covered he dug with his bare hands a
tunnel under the wires, and altho 1t
was slow progress, after several hours
had a hole bis enough to crawl
thru. Even then he was not sure he
was in Dutch territory so he concealed
himself In a barn until next morning.
When daylight came the first thing
he saw was people making wooden
shoes. He walked into the open and
| sought a British consul who arranged