Free trader-journal. (Ottawa, Ill.) 1916-1920, 1918-08-26
in HUN PRISON
Three YEARS
Doctor BeIand, Once Canada's
Postmaster General, Cannot
See Dying Wife.
EXCHANGED after DELAY
Says Kaiser Envies Hindenburu pop.
uIarity and Tries to Appropriate
His vIctories-saw Cap.
ture of Antwerp.

An Atlantic POrt.-After being kent
in German prison for three years DR..
Henri SEVERN Beland postmaster gen
erdl of Canada under Premier Wilfrid
I.aurier. and who lives al Beauce in
the province of Quebec, arrived here,
accompanied by his daughter. Miss
Jeanette. who was held in Belgium by
the Germans while her father was in
Germany. Added to the SufTerngs Of
his Imprisonment was the death OF
his wife in Belgium after he had been
locked up for IS months.
His jallers refused to allow him to
go from Berlin to see her when She
was dying. The news of his wifes
death was withheld from him for II
days, and he was only given the date
after he had begged to be allowed 10
90 10 her funeral, to show that it was
too late.
Doctor Beland was only postmaster
general for two months in 1911 when
the Laurier administration was de-
feated over the reciprocity question.
II was because he had held this pollti-
cal appointment that the Huns would
not permit him to leave Germany two
years ago when arrangements were
made between that country and Great
Britain for the exchange Of civilian
prisoners more than f0rty-five years
old
During the three years ne lost %
pounds in weight, and his luXuriant
black hair became thin and turned
gray. The only occupations he had
We're to attend the prisoners and
the officials of the prison when they
were i'll and to learn to speak read,
and write German f1uently He was
finally released in exchange for the
brother Of Prince Won Bulow. who was
the head of the Krupp Gun company in
London before the war.
The doctor was in northern France
in August, 1914. and his wife was stop
ping at their estate in Cappellen, near
Antwerp. He promptly offered his
services rs surgeon TO the Belgian
army and was with them in the fight
ing at Liege. From that city he went
to Antwerp and was there when the
British expedition sent ont by Winston
Churchill arrived in October Of that
year He saw the city captured by
the Huns in October. Doctor Beland
continued to live with his wife at Cap
pellen until she converted the house
into Red Cross hospital and trained
herself as a nurse.
The doctor talked slowly and stop
ped occasionally to think of his
words, He explained that, like the
majority Of tho prisoners he had met
he was suffering from loss of memory
caused by his long imprisonment
which had interfered with the recep
tivoness of the organs in the brain.
"rp to May -, 1915" the doctor
said, II practiced medicine among the
poor in Antwerp and my wife carried
on the Red Cross hospital at Capped
len. Then the German commandan
, sent an officer to tell me that | wa!
l to be informed. When | pointed GU
that physicians practcing as civilians
officer replied that | was not rcceivin!
fees from my patients. was arrest
| ed ana taken to the Grand hotel which
t was used as a military headOuarter
and residence of the staff officers il
Antwerp. After three days I was sen
to Berlin and locked up in the Stadt
vogel prison.
"TThe prison fare was rough. con
siSting chiefly of black bread greas
soup and potatoes. This did not trou
). bic me as | received parcels of foot
and supplies weekly from London. TIL
+, treatment was about as good as it gen
: orally is in places of that kind.
:. "Whcn, after two years confinement
?. was allowed to walk in the park OF
posite Garden straSse In Berlin, | wa
p not allowed tn speak to any person
!, One afternoon ! took my escort 4
a luncheon Mt the Hotel Bristol on tn
Inter den Linden. which has no
changed it's name The Piccadilly res
taurant, noticed had been convorte,
into the Naterand Another time
saw crowd running and, looking II
their direction | saw an autOmohil
60 by containing Hindcnburg an
: his staff officer. He IS the ido
Of the German people and more popu
II lar thnn the kaiser. Ludcndorff i
y regarded as a strong man all owe
Germany, but never takes the troubl
e. to make himself popular. He does no
y care what the people think about htr
III so long as they do as they are told.
n "The kaiser envies IIindenhurg'
e' popularity, and whenever the Hun
q gain victory he hurres to tn
side of the marshal and issues bullt
tins and sends kilograms to the ka
scrn, so that the people believe
n Is the kaiser who has gained n victory
y All this time my daughter .Icannett
was in Belgium living with the famil
IA of my late wife at Cappelcn, an,
Sc three times | tried to reach her. frs
le through the United States minister a
N Brussels and after America entere,
" The war through the Spanish minister
A II was no use. She was not molested
IN however, but WIS allowed TO Join M
=, In Holland nftpr | WINS frnnu