Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1918-07-16
Continued from Last Issue)
CHAPTER wv
Observations in a Belgian City


Observations In a Belgian City
ONE night shortly before left
this city, our airmen raided
~ the place. | didn't venture
out of the house at the time, but the
next night l thought | would go out
and see what damage had been done.
When it became dark l left the
house accordingly and mixed with
the crowd, which consisted largely
of Germans. | went from one place
to another to see what our ''strafing'
had accomplished. Naturally |
avoided speaking to anyone. If a
man or woman appeared about to
speak to me. | just turned my head
and looked or walked away in some
other direction. | must have been
taken for an unsociable sort of in
dividual a good many times, and if
had encountered the same person
twice | suppose my conduct might
have aroused suspicion
had trst-class observation of
the damage that was really done by
our bombs. One bomb had landed
very near the main railroad station
and if it had been only thirty yards
nearer would have completely demol
ished it.. AS the station was I'M
dOubtedly our airmans objective l
was very much impressed with the
accuracy of his aim. 1t is by no
means an easy thing to hit build
ing from the air when you are going
at anywhere from fifty to one hun
dred miles an hour and are being
shot at from beneath from a dozen
different angles-unless. of course,
you are taking one of those desper-
ate chances and flying so low that
you cannot very we'll miss your mark
and the Huns can't very we'll miss
you either!'
walked to the station and min
gled with the crowds which stood in
the entrances. They paid no more
attention to me than they did to real
Belgians, and the fact that the lights
were all out in this city at night
made it impossible, anyway, for any
One'tO get so good a look at me as
If it had been light.
Tempted by German Flag
During the time that l was in this
city | suppose l wandered from one
end of it to the other In one place,
where the German staff had its head
quarters, a huge German flag hung
from the window, and l think I
would have given ten years of my life
to have stolen it. Even if ! could
have pulled it down, however, it
would have been impossible to me
TO have concealed it, and to have
carried 1t away with me as a souve-
mir, therefore, would have been out
of the question.
. AS l went along the street one
night lady standing on the corner
stopped me and spoke to me. My
first impulse, of course, was to an
swer her, explaining that could not
understand, but / stopped myself in
time, pointed to- my ears and mouth
and shook my head, indicating that
l was deaf and dumb, and she
nodded Incidents of that kind were
not. unusual, and l was always in fear
some inquisitive. and suspicious Ger
man would encounter me and not. be
so easily satisfied.
There are many things that i saw
in this city which, for various rea-
sons, it is impossible for me to relate
until after the war is over. Some of
them, think, will create more sur
prise than the incidents 1 am free to
reveal now.
It used to amuse me as | went
along the streets of this town, look
ing in the shop windows with Ger
man soldiers at my side looking at
the same things, to think how close
l was to them and they had no way
of knowing. l was quite convinced
that if | were. discovered my fate
would have been death, because l
not only had the forged passport on
me, but I had been so many days
behind the German lines after l had
escaped that they couldn't safely let
me live with the information l pos
sessed.
One night | walked boldly across
a park. l heard footsteps behind me
and turning around saw two Ger
man soldiers. / slowed up a trif1e to
let them get ahead of me 1t was
rather dark and l got a chance to see
what a wonderful uniform the Ger
man military authorities have picked
out The soldiers. had not gone more
than a few feet ahead of me when
they completely disappeared like one
of those melting pictures on the
moving picture screen.
AS / wandered through the streets
l frequently glanced in the cafe win
dows as | passed. German officers
were usually dining there, but they
didn't conduct themselves with any
thing like the light-heartedness
which characterized the allied Off
GERS in London and Paris. l was
rather surprised at this, because in