The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1918-06-03
Treat Prisoners Worse Than Did
the Red Savages of Pr
oneer Days.
IMPLICIT CRUEL PUNISHMENT
Americans Paraded Half : Starved
About Germany and Cheated of
Food Offerings From British
Prisoners by Swift
Removals.


dence obtained by the New York Times
correspondent, it is impossible to close
ones eyes to what is going on in the
hospitals and prisoners camps in Ger
many. It is a mistake to believe that
the treatment of prisoners n wound
ed in Germany has improved. On the
contrary, it is as bad as it ever was,
even worse.
The ~punishments inflicted are cruel
and inhuman. AS is well known, pris-
oners are absolutely dependent upon
parcels for food and clothing. A IA
vorite punishment is to withhold these
from a whole camp or from large bod
les Of prisoners. 1t has been estab-
lished beyond doubt that prisoners are
employed behind the front and are I'M
der shellfre, in defiance Of The Hague
agreement Of 1917.
Some prisoners never reach a camp
in Germany for six months, meanwhile
receiving no parcels of food. Their
condition on. arrival at camp, broken
down and starving, is pitiable.
Hawked About Country.
1uc Cf1OCuCS OOCSA LCAo ~ oAOW
that American prisoners are receiving
any preferential treatment. 1t is re-
ported that the first American prison
ers taken were hawked about the coun-
try, presumably to show them of to the
populace. At GiesSen, where, 1t would
seem, American prisoners were kept on
two separate occasions, they were pro-
any intercourse, even by sign
language, with other prisoners and
or gifts from them.
British prisoners at Giessen asked
If they could give parcels to Amer1-
cans and finally received permission
to do so the following day. But the
next day the American prisoners were
moved away early in the morning.
British prisoners were able to de-
tect Americans who had been captured
any length OF time by their appear
ance and by the state of their clothes
Until parcels for them arrived from
.erne their state vas d~eplorable.
A British noncommissioned officer
recently obtained the signatures OF
he first ten Americans captured and
.alked with them. These men signed
scrap Of paper in the hope that
some news Of them would reach the
world. They were in poor
health and somewhat de-
'pondent.
Some Of the Evidence.
A few recent examples from a large
Of sworn evidence follows:s
In February, 1918, 1000 men were
ent from a Westphalian camp to with
d thirty kilometers behind the front.
heir guards ran away to escape the
shrapnel fire.
The state Of prisoners coming from
he big Somme battle in the first week
Z the present month was deplOrable.
heir wounds had not been dressedafn
1any cases for more than ten days.
to the lack OF. dressing, British i
omrades bandaged their wounds with {
Id towels and shirts. ]
It was formerly announced by the {
authorities In Camp Bonn on
pril 13 last that two British soldiers, j
- and B. had been shot neaI t
linden for not stopping talking when ,
to do so. a +
In November, 1917, men were h
rought into the hospital at M con. r
having been wounded by
from behind the lines. ID
founded men lay for three or four 6
eeks unattended and grossly neg. e
cted. ~ I
Much Of the sworns evidence is SO :
,pugnant that it could not be pub $
shed. There has been talk of re a
'isals on American prisoners, and 4
zen foreigners born in America are !"
cluded in these threatened reprisals. o
1--WE Will hit America through the q
lies" one commandant stated. {