Rogue River courier. (Grants Pass, Or.) 19??-1918, 1918-08-14

I'LL kinus OF Things ana all mixed W.
80 we gave them ~rlppcrary'' and
Pack Up Your Troubles" and
showed them how 10 sing. Our guards
had no ear for music and tried TO stop
US. but though they knocked several
men down. we did not stop until we
had finished the song. Then. after we
had admitted 10 each other that we
were not downhenrted. we shut up.
We would have done so. anyway. be-
cnuse by this time We were on the out
skirts of the town. and we needed all
the breath we had. The rond we were
on was Just one long sheet OF Ice. and
we could hardly walk more than four
steps without slipping and falling. My
shoes had wooden solcs. and II was
just one bang after another. with the
Ice and myself trying to see which
could hit the hardest. Every time we
foll--smash came rife over the
back.
was getting pretty tired. no I said
10 some OF the fellows TINT was go.
Ing 10 sit down and rest. and they sald
they would also. so we dropped out
and waited until the guards behlnd
had just about caught up with US. and
then we would 40 on. We did this
several times until they got on to US.
and we could not do II any more.
Up the road piece fell again. and
this time | did not care what hap
pened. 80 ! just sat there In the
middle OF the road until Fritz came up.
Instead OF giving me the bnyonet. he
made me take on my shoes--that Is.
he took them on Of me with a knife
through the strlngs--and had to walk
the rest OF the wny In my bare feet.
II was about four miles altogether
from the station TO the camp.
When we got near the camp. all the
boys came out of the barracks and
lined w along the bnrbed wire, and
yelled us a welcome. We asked them
II they were downheartcd. and they
said no, and we snid we were not eth
er. We could hardly see them. but
they began yelling again when we got
nearer and nsked us. rs there anyone
there from Queenstown and then
Hull. and Portsmouth, aud Dover, and
Toronto and lot OF other places.
did not pay much attention until
heard, "Any Americans therer and
! yelled back. "Yes. where are your"
Barracks Or. Grippe B."
"Where fromi" yelled.
"Boston. Where're you from3'
"The u. s. A. and Atlantic ports.
See you later"
so. the next morning, I went over to
his barracks and asked for the Yank.
They pointed him out to me. where he
was lying on the floor. went over
aud laid down with him. and we had
quite talk. l Will not give his name
here for certain reasons.
He had received several wounds nj
the time he was taken prisoner. He
had been In the Canadian service for
two years. We used to talk about
New York and Boston and the differ
cnt places we knew in both towns. and
we also talked lot about the rotten
treatment we were receiving, and tried
to cook up some plan Of escape. But
every one we could think Of had been
used by some one else. and either had
failed, or the Huns had fixed II so the
plan could not be tried again. We
doped out some pretty Wild schemes at
that. Altogether. we became great
pals, and were together ns much as
possible at Dulmen. The day 1 left
the camp, he gave me u ring made
from shell, and told me to get II safely
back to the States, but some one stole
It at Brandenburg.
One day while was In his barracks
an Englishman stepped out Of the door
for some reason or other. and though
he did not say word to Fritz. In two
minutes he was dead, In cold blood.
We never knew why they killed him.
At Swinemunde and Neustrelitz, ]
must admit that the Germans had us
pretty badly buffaloed, but at Dulmen
the prisoners were entirely different
Dulmen was the receiving camp for
! the whole western front, and the pris.
oners there got to be pretty tough
eggs. as far as Fritz was concerned,
before they had been In camp many
days. They thought nothing Of pick.
ing fight with a sentry and giving
him good battle, even though he was
armed with rifle and bayonet. We
soon learned that unless his pals are
! around a German will not stand by his
!. arguments with his fists. In other
: words, II he can outtalk you, he will
beat you up, but II he cannot, 1t is a
case Of Here comes Heinie going
back" q
. The Russian prisoners at Dulmen
were certainly miserable looking
bunch. They spent most Of their time
wandering around the Russian bar
racks, hunting for rotten potato peel
ings and other garbage, which they