Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1918-07-26

A(AA8 -
s~ileers, a fellow prisoner. 1t was for
20 francs and was made payable to
the order of Mr. Pat O'Brien, End
Lieut." Poor Jim forgot to scratch
out the London" and substitute
"Courtrai" on the date line, but its
value as a souvenir Is just as great.
When he gave it to me he had no idea
that I would have an opportunity so
soon afterward to cash it in person,
although I am quite sur that what
ever financial reverses 1 may be des-
tined to meet, my want will I've be
great enough to induce me to realize
on that check.
There was one subject that was
talked about in this prison whenever
conversation Jagged, and 1 suppose it
is the same in other prisons too. What
were the chances of escape
Every man seemed to have a differ
ent idea and one way, / suppose, was
about as impracticable as another.
None of us ever expected to get a
chance to put u ideas into execution,
but it was interesting speculation, and
anyway one can never tell what OPP
portunities might present themselves.
One suggestion was that we disguise
ourselves as women. "O'Brien would
stand a better chance disguised rs a
horse!' declared another, referring to
the fact that my height Il am six feet
two inches) would make me more con-
spicuous as a oma than as a man.
Another suggested that we steal a
German GOtha-a type of airplane
used for long-distance bombing. 1t is
these machines which are used for
bombing London. They are manned
by three men, one sitting in front with
a machine gun, the pilot sitting behind
him and an observer sitting in the rear
with another machine gun. We fig
ured that, at a pinch, perhaps, seven
or eight of us could make our escape
in a single machine. They have two
motors Of very high horse power, fly
very high and make wonderful speed.
But We had no chance to put this idea
to the test.
/ worked out another plan by which
I thought 1 might have q chance if l
could ever get into one of the German
airdromes. l would conceal myself in
one of the hangers, wait until one of
the German machines started out, and
as he TAXED along the ground l would
rush out, shout at the top of my voice
and point eXcitedly at his wheels. This,
l figured, would cause the pilot to stop
and get out to see what was wrong.
By that time 1 would be up to him, and
as he stopped over to inspect the ma
chine, l could knock him senseless,
jump into the machine and be over the
lines before the Huns could make up
their minds just what had happened.
1t was a fine dream, but my
chance was not to come that way.
There were dozens of other ways
which we considered. One man would
be for e~ndeavoring to make his way
right through the lines. Another
thought the safest plan would be to
swim some river that crossed the lines.
The idea of making ones way to
Holland, a neutral country, occurred
to everyone, but the one great obstacle
in that direction, we all realized, was
the great barrier of barbed and cleo
trically charged wire which guards ev-
cry foot of the frontier between Bel
GUM and Holland, and which is closely
watched by the German sentries.
This barrier was a three-fold affair.
1t consisted first of a barbed wire wall
six feet high. Six feet beyond that
was a nine-foot wall of wire power
fully charged with electricity. To
touch it meant electrocution. Beyond
that, at a distance of six feet, was
another wall Of barbed wire six feet
high.
Beyond the barrier lay Holland and
liberty, but how to get there was a
problem which non of US could solve
and few of US ever expected to have
a chance to try.
Mine came sooner than 1 expected.