The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1918-11-07
Copyright 1o1S, by the Mcclure Newspa-
per Syndicate1


Copyright. 1918. by the Mcclure Newspa-
per syndicatel
CHAPTER XVI.
Germany In Wartime.
While the German people have al
ways been in thorough accord with the
kaiser's ambitious project which Is SO
significantly described by the popular
slogan: Deutschland uber allies -
when the great war, which was to
achieve Germany's aims, commenced,
It came almost as much as q surprise
to the Germans as It was to the rest ot
the world They knew 1t was inevi-
table and they looked forward eagerly
to der Tag" but when 1t arrived the
hustle and excitement, not to say
panic, which developed throughout
Germany was so pronounced that In
some cases it approached the ludicrous.
Obviously the people were kept In
ignorance of the plans Of their war
barons in order that hostilities might
come as a complete surprise to them
and give color to the governments
contention that the war was forced
upon Germany.
So little thought did we give to the
complexities of the political situation
that ON Friday, July 81, 1914. my wife
and I started of on a motor trip. We
had heard so many rum0rs of war
within the previous ten years that we
aaw no reason why an amicable solur
hon should not again be found as It
had always been before.
On our way out the Charlottenburger
Chaussee we passed the kaiser and the
kaiserin driving to Berlin from Pots
dam at about, sixty miles an hour, and
there were other indications Of &C
tivity, but we attached little impor.
lance to them.
When we reached Potsdam, how
ever, and saw thousands Of tons Of
coal heaped up between the railroad
tracks which were ordinarily kept
clear, we realized that preparations for
wal were being made in earnest and
we stopped to consider whether 1t
would not be better after all to return
home. Such was our ignorance Of war
that we decided that, even though It
were not advisable to motor in Bel
GUM and France, where we were
bound, we might safely plan q tour in
the Black forest in Germany.
We had left Berlin Late in the after
noon. In the evening, when we arrived
at Gotha, we found that the younger
walters in the restaurants and hotels
had already left and that the older re-
serves expected a general call the next
day.
The next morning we started for
Frankfort. AS we passed through vii
lage after village, war preparations be-
came more and more evident. Measures
were being taken everywhere to arouse
enthusiasm-young men gathered on
school steps were singing patriotic
songs, students were marching and
speeches were being made in the mar
ket places.
About five o'clock that afternoon we
arrived in Frankfort. The whole place
was in a fever of excitement over the
mobilization posters and their resent
ment against the French was. being
aroused by "~extras," which were
handed out without charge, announc-
ing that the French had. already
dropped bombs on the railroad at
Nurnberg and that French officers IN
autos had oyer-ridden the borders.
The ridiculous statements about
French flyers dropping bombs on the
railroad at Nurnberg had not the
slightest foundation, Of course.
The older people who had lived.
through the al Of 1870 had interested
audiences for once while they related
past experiences and gave advice as to
what preparations to make. A posi-
bility of food shortage seemed to be
uppermost in all minds, and the gro
ceries were stormed with eager buy
err. Salt suddenly jumped to Is cents
q pound and other things In proper.
ti0n.
On Sunday, August 2, all the gaso-
line in the country was commapdeered,
and we heard Of many American tour
lists being put out Of their car In the
cities and ven on country roads, no
matter how inaccessible to trains they
might be. We accordingly decided to
stow our car away in an old wagon
shed attached to q hotel and sought to
return to Berlin BY train. y
AZ the railway station there was
such q tremendous crowd that 1t was
quite impossible to get anywhere near
the ticket Office, and anyway no prom
ise could be given as to trains to Ber.
In. i'#3
Trunks and bags were piled high In
every available space and It was
months before that enormous pile Of
baggage was finally sorted out.
We decided to defer I'M effort to
reach Berlin until Monday, since there
seemed no hope Of getting away that