The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1917-10-23
M Four Years In Germany"
Ambassador Gerards Experiences at German Court
!, Until Entrance of the United States Into
81 the Great War


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I camps. there was some sort OF thick
soup given out or an apple, or an al
| most inflnitesimsl piece OF cheese OF
sausage.
in the war department at Berlin
there was n prisoners-of-w depart
ment in charge OF colonel, later Gen.
ernl Friedrich. This department. how
ever, did not seem 10 he In position
to issue orders to the corps command
ers commanding the army corps dis
tricts of Germany who had a absolute
control OF the prison camps within
their districts Colonel Friedrich.
however, and hts assistants endeavored
to standaTdize the treatment OF
prisoners Of war in the different corT~
districts, and were able to exert q
certain amount of pressure on the
corps comma nders. They determined
IN the general reprisals to he taken In
connection with prisoners of war.
COLONEL FTuEDRfCH's
SYSTEM OF REPRiSALs
For instance. when some or the
Germans who had been taken prison
ers by the English, and who were I'm
England, were sent by the English &c
work in the hHrhor OF Havre. the Ger
mans retatiated by sending about four
times the nuInh her of English prisoners
to work at Lihau in the part OF Russia
then occupied by the Germans. But
while the English permitted our en-
hAssy in Paris to inspect the prisoners
of war at Havre. the Germans for
months refused TO allow me permits
sion 10 send any one to inspect those
British prisoners at Libeu.
Cases came TO nv attention where
individual corps commanders on their
own initiative directed punitive meas
ures against tthe prisoners OF war in
their districts on account of the ru-
mors of the bad treatment OF German
citizens in England Thus the COM
mHnder in the district where the camp
q Doebritz was situated Issued an
order directing reprisals against pris-
oners under his command on account
Of what he claimed to he the bad
treatment of German women in Eng
land IL required constant vigilance
10 seek out instances of this kind ana
cause them 10 be remedied
DIVIDED AUTHORITY
WORKED BAD CONDITIONS
l did not find the Germans at all
efficient in the handling OF prisoners
of war The authority was SO divided
that IL was hard to find who was re
spons!ble for any given bad condi-
tons. For instance, for a long period
OF time / contended with the German
for better living conditions
AZ the civilian camp of Ruhleben.
was promised time and again by Colo
nei Friedrich. by the camp command
or, aud by the foreign office that these
conditions would be remedied. In
that camp men Of education men in
delicate health. were compelled to
sleep and live six In box stall or
SO closely that the beds touched each
other III haylofts. the outside walls
of which were only four feet high
-1ztr''y, afr1ToEf tniGspaTr. 7 wrote
identical personal letters, after having
exhausted all ordinary diplomatic
steps, to General Won Kessel COM
mander of the Mark OF Brandenberg.
20 the commander OF the corps dis
trfct in which the Ruhleben camp
was situated. and to the minister Of
war; the only result was that each
of the officers addressed claimed that
he had been personally insulted by
me because / had presumed to call
his attention TO the inhuulan condi-
uons under which the prisoners were
com PEELED to live In the Ruhleben
camp.
: The commander of this civilian
camp OF Ruhieben was a very hand
some old gentleman, named Count
Schwerin. His second in command
fSf ~ luivg time was a Baror Traube..
Both OF these officers had been long
retired from the army and were given
these prison commands at the com
mencement OF the war Both Of them
were naturally kind hearted, but Gu
riouslv sensitive. and not always OF
even temper. On the whole. think
that they synipathized with the pris-
oners. and did their best to obtain
Ii lettering Of the conditions OF their
confinement The prisoners organized
themselves in their various barracks,
each barrack having barrack cap
tain of the barraek. the captains elect
ing one NJ their number as a camp
captain or "obmaun.".
The man who finally appeared as
head man of the camp was an ex-
cinematograph proprietor. named
Powell In my mind, he assisted by
beaumont and other captains, con-
Quoted the affairs Of the camp-given
the difficulty of dealing with the pris-
oners on one hand and the prison
authorities on the other hand--as well
as possible Naturally, he was always
subject 10 opposition from many pris-
ouers. among whom those of aristo-
cratic tendencies objected to being
under the control of one, not OF the
highest caste in England, and there
were others who either envied him his
authority or desired his place. The
camp authorities allowed Powell to