Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1916-1918, 1917-10-05
'HORRORSOF KAISER'S
MILlTARISM VISITED
ON AMERICAN WOMAN
Marie Bonini Brown, Target Of Hate
in Hostile Berlin, Describes
Difficulties She Encountered
in Quitting Germany
RED TAPE AND GOLD BRAID
BY MARIE BONINI BROWN.
Exclusive publication rights obtained otumwa coue
Copyright 1917, BY the Pittsburgh PressD

mini BROWN.
aimed by The ottumwa courier.)
he Pittsburgh Press.)
rested or at the very least have to start
all over again to get my passports.
had to pay the kommandatore three
marks for stamping my passport. l
was nervous with crying when went
to. pay it and my hands shook when
counting out the marks. The money
there OF course was paper. | had nine
marks together and I laid down three
on the table while ]. folded up the rest
to put In my purse. The kommanda-
tore flew at me again.
"Pick them up and hand them to me
right" he said. How dare you treat a
German officer in this way? How dare
you throw that money on the table?
I'll teach you how you should behave"
EXPECT INDEMNITY FROM U. s.
When the kommandatore had stamp
ed my papers as allowing me to leave
from Friday to Monday, i begged and
begged him to make it Wednesday,
the same day / was in his office, or
Thursday. But he would not, although
it would have been as easy for him to
do that as not. But they try to hurnil-
late an American in every way posi-.
BILE just to show their authority. From
5 a. m. until noon Friday | stood in
line for my passports-then / got
them. hurried directly to the Span
ish embassy and received my money
$500 in American money. Then went
to the Deutcher bank to get the money
changed into German money, for in
Germany only the banks will touch
American money. But this bank would
not do it.
I'VE do not want American money
now-we'I get enough of it after the
war; he sneered.
AWAIT AMERICAN TRIBUTE.
They all think, over there, that when
Germany wins, America will be com
PEELED to give stupendous indemnity.
You can'hear even the children talk of
the mone5' they will get from America
when America is beaten.
!. They know this country is rich and,
if ever such astorr,ble thing should.
hoppen as that Germany would beat
US, America will be bled white to sat
isfy the hatred and revengeful spirit of
the Germans | believe would want
to die if America is beaten in this war,
for we simply would not to use COM
mon expression, have the life of a
dog" here. Germany would make our
lives hundred times more wretched
than 1t has made even Belgium.
After they had refused to change my
money at the Deutcher bank, went to
the main bank Of Berlin, the Reich
nh o~,A
not treat me so badly. had to leave
my money and come back for the other
money and, as that would have been
after the bank was closed for the day,
they gave. me a piece of paper which
admitted me to the bank about p. m.
Invent back at that time and got my
money, receiving only marks on the
dollar. That is low rate. In Sweden
an American dollar is given I marks.
STARTS FOR HOME.
They gave me 1000 marks and seal
ed the rest of the money SO could not
open 1t until was beyond the frontier.
That seemed another silly thing for
them to debut they did It.
I paid my rent, bought my tickets
and got everything ready to leave the
next morning, Saturday. packed my
trunk but of course. had to leave it
there. They kept it two weeks, going
over everything in it, then sent 1t on to
Christiania, Norway have not
received It yet They had to
read every bit of writing in 1t, look
over all my music and stamp every
thing. for If, at the frontier. one thing
would be found not stamped officially,
no hot 10
whole trunk would be confiscated.
Ny bag was treated the same way
everything examined and stamped.
had a couple of fiction books wanted
to read on the way and I had great
deal of trouble getting them out. They
were looked over thoroughly, so to be
sure they did not contain mysterious
messages or maps or something like
that. Even my prayer book was stamp
ed.
PASSING THE FRONTIER.
Then really started. had to travel
second class, in stuffy little COM
partment without any comforts. but ]
did not mind that. / travelled on the
train from to IL a. m. Saturday and
then reached the frontier. When / had
applied for my passports. had o give
the kommandatore three pictures OF
myself. One he pasted on the passport,
the other two he sent on to the from
tier
When I got to Warnemunde, the
frontier town. handed over my pass
ports and was given a slip Of paper
with a number on it in return.
Then / was taken into room where
woman stripped and examined me
from head to foot. She took down my
hair looked In my shoes, In the waist
bands of my clothes and the hens She
worked like lightning, but she certain
ly was thorough. Finally she said l
could pass. Then ! received my pass
ports and my bag-which had been put
through as gruelling an examination as
had, and | was out OF Germany
OUT OF GERMANYI
The. very air seemed different on the
other side Of the border.
Then took the boat to Copenhagen,
Denmark, and from there prepared to
go to Christiania. Norway, when
would really be on my way home.
l spent from Sunday to Monday IN
Copenhagen and here l met Can't