Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1918-09-20

jumping at conclusions.
/ had just turned off the road to go
back into some bushes when out of
the darkness / heard that dread Ger
man command:
"Haltl Haiti"
He didn't need to holler twice. I
heard and needed the first time. Then
1 heard another a come running up,
and there was considerable talking,
but whether they were Germans or
Hollanders I was still uncertain. He
evidently thought someone raj on the
other side of the fence.
Finally 1 heard one of them laugh
and saw him walk back to the sentry
station where the guard was billeted,
and / crawled a little nearer to try to
make out just what 1t meant. / had
begun to think 1t was all a night
mare.
Between myself and the light in the
sentry station, 1 then noticed the
STOPPING figure of a nan bending over
as If to conceal himself and on his
head was the spiked helmet of a Ger
man soldier!
I knew then what another narrow
escape l had had, for / am quite sure
he would have shot me without cere-
mony If 1 had foolishly made myself
known. I would have been buried at
once and no one would have been any
wiser, even though, technically speak
ing, / was on neutral territory and Inn
mune from capture or attack.
This new shock only served to be-
wilder me more. l was completely
lost. There seemed to be frontier be-
hind me and frontier in front of me.
Evidently, however, what had hap
pened was that I had lost my sense
of direction and had wandered in the
+ of a circle, returning to the same
fence that l had been so long in get
ting through. This solution Of the
mystery came to me suddenly and l at
once searched the landscape for some
thing in the way of a landmark to
guide me. For once my faithful
friend, the North Star. had failed me.
The sky vas pitch black and there
wasn't a star in the heavens.
In the distance, at about what ap-
peared to be about three miles away,
but which turned out to be six, 1 could
discern the lights of a village, and l
knew it must be a Dutch village, as
lights are not allowed in Belgium In
that indiscriminate way.
My course was now clear. / would
make a beeline for that village. Before
I had gone very far 1 found myself in
a marsh or swamp and / turned back
q little, hoping to find a better path.
Finding none, / retraced my steps
and kept straight ahead, determined
to reach hat village at all costs and
to swerve neither to the right or left
until i got there.
One moment / would be in water up
to my knees and the next l would sink
in mud clear up to my waist. I paid
no attention to my condition. 1t was
merely a repetition of what l had gone
through many times before, but this
time / had a definite goal and once ]
reached it 1 knew my troubles would
be over.
1t took me perhaps three hours to
reach firm ground. The path 1 struck
led to within half a mile of the village,
I shall never forget that path it was
almost as welcome to my feet as the
opposite bank Of the Mouse had
seemed
The first habitation I came to was q
little workshop with a bright light
shining outside. It must have been
after midnight. but the people inside
we're apparently just quitting work.
There were three men and two boys
engaged in making wooden shoes.
1t wasn't necessary for me to ex
plain to them that / was a refugee
ever If l had been able to speak their
language. 1 was caked with mud uI
to my shoulders and suppose my face
must have recorded some Of the ex
periences 1 had gone through that
memorable night.
81 want the British CONSUL" 1 told
them.
Apparently they didn't understand,
but one of them volunteered to con-
duct me to the village. They seemed
to be only too anxious to do all they
could for me; evidently they realized
/ was a British soldier.
1t was very late when my compan-
ion finally escorted me into the vii.
lage. but he aroused some people he
knew from their beds and they
dressed and came down to feed me.
The family consisted of an old lady
and her husband and a son, who was a
soldier In the Dutch army. The cold
shivers ran down my back while he sat
beside me, because every now and
again I caught a glimpse of his gray
uniform and it resembled very much
that of the German soldiers.
Some of the n~eighbors, aroused by
the commotion, got up to see what 1t