Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1918-09-20

Aiat .IilOuSStl4o bAes SN-A''
;tores of munitions and supplies.
The eyultation of the Germans over
he triumph Of their armies IN Italy
knew no bounds. While it was at its
height I had an interview with the kal-
ser which will ever remain one OF the
most vivid in my memory.
1t was about three-thirty one SUNDAY
morning when l was aroused by maid
who, in an awe-stricken tone OF voice.
announced that the Ncue Palais, the
kaiser's palace at Potsdam, was on the
nhcne. | went to the telephone ano
was Informed that the kaiser was SUI
fcring from bad toothache ana Wouii
send his auto for ME within an hour OF
so.
I got up at once and packed my IL.
strur,ents, and st siI-thirty the car, g
big gray Mercedes Limousine, arrived
Tas;des the chauffeur there was a.
outrider carrying the bugle whose as
tinctive notes only the kaiser may use
While the Shell room and other state
rooms were accessible to visitors De-
fore the war, no one was ever permit
ted to visit the private apartments OF
the kaiser upstairs.
On this occasion, however, l was
guided right through the Shell room,
lnrrrgh n door opening on the left ana
~, . wide staircase to the kalsers
-aydnrcDe, or dressing room
T;iere I IuunJ breakfast ready It!
mo. It consisted of real coffee, fe'i
! h:Se bread, batter, nlaiTaaiade, sugar.
.rs,;,, and cold meats. 1t was the uraf
u Of lie Kind ! had eaten In some
&c ard practically no one In Ger
any outside the royal family and the
mixers was any better off than l II
:: respect.
lille | was breakfaSting, the kaiser
- dressing. His valet entered sew
times, noticed, to take out arti-
| &c Gf clothing from the massive
:tlr;.acs which lined the room. had
s completed my meal when l re-
we'd word that my patient was ready
'2veiVa ne.
- entered the kaiser's bedroom
n';.S standing in the center Of the
ia. fully attired in an army gray
.:;co9!n, hut without his sword. lie
I'D more haggard than had ever
,cn him, except once in 1915. Lack
zsr@p and physical pain were two
':..& with which he had had very
title experience, and they certainly
howci their effects very plainly.
70 didn't seem to be in the best Of
.::Icac hut greeted me cordially enough
ia Snc1:i hands.
''Tu ail ny lie, Davis" he said, Il
have nsye% suffered so much pain
I expressed my sorrow and started
to improvise a dental chair out Of al
upholstered armchair on which !
placed some pillows and, as the kaiser
sat down, he laughingly remarked:
"Look here, Davis, you've got to d"
something for me. / can't fight the
whole world, you know, and have s
toothache!'
When I was through and his pain
| was relieved, his spirits seemed to re-
vive appreciably, and he explained why
| it was he was so anxious to have his
tooth trouble removed as quickly az
| possible.
81 must go down to Italy, Davis,
he said, "to see what my noble troops
have accomplished. My gracious,
| what we have done to them down
there! Our offensive at Riga was just
feint. We had advertised our in
tended offensive in Italy Sc thoroughly
that the Italians thought we couldn't
possibly intend to carry it through
For three months it was common tall
in Germany, you remember, that tho
great offensive would start in October,
and so the Italians believed it was all
a bluff and when we advanced on Riga
they were sure Of it. They thought we
were so occupied there that we could
pay no attention to them, and so we
caught them napping!"
The kaiser's face. fairly Eeaned a.
he dwelt OF the strategy Of his gen
erals and the successful outcome OF
their Italian campaign.
"Eor months Italy had been engaged
in planting her big guns on the noun
tain-tops ara gathering mountains cl
ammunition and supplies ard food ard
hospital supplies in the valleys below,
IL preparation for their twelfth lscnzo
offensive.
1--WE let them sc ahead and waited
patiently fer the right moment. IEey
thought that their contemplated often
sive must inevitably bring our weaker
neighbor to her knees and force her to
make a separate peace" BY our
weaker neighbor' the kaiser, Of course,
referred to Austria, and how accurate
vas his information regarding Italys
expectations and how easily they
might have been realized were subSe-
quently revealed by the publication of
that famous letter from Kaiser Karl
to Prince SeXtus.
"And then" the kaiser went on.
when their great offensive was within
a week Of being launched we broke
through their lines Cn slope $3.50
feet high, covered with snow, where
they couldn't bring up their reserves
or new guns, and we surrounded
them
"yEe took practically everything they
possessed-fCoG enough to feed our
entire army without calling upon our
OWL supplies at ali. Never before had
our armies seen such eli accumulation
Of ammunition. I must certainly go