The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1918-09-20
The Kaiser as | Knew | lin
for Fourteen Years
c~1
By ARTHUR N. DAVIS. D. D. S.


one OF the SuDterfugeS reSOrted to,
by some of the war profiteers to con-
ceal the extent of their gains and es-
cape taxation was to invest their sur
plus earnings in works of art and other
expensive luxuries. AS the tax assess
ments were based principally upon the
y Individuals bank deposits and the tax.
( y collecting machinery was very much
Z out of gear 1t was comparatively easy
4 to evade the law by careful manipula-
ton of ones bank account, and by dis
bursting profits received without hav-
Ing them go through the bank A Ger
man WHOM knew told me that he had
"a disposed Of an oil painting which had
cost him $500 for no less thar $50. 600,
the price of works of art and antiques
having increased to remarkable ex-
tent because OF the demand for them
from tax dodgers.
Y Under the stress Of the changed
food conditions the hungry German
u soon replaced the honest German. Ger
mans had always had n reputation for
honesty, but their claims to such dis
"A tinction disappeared with the food sup
4 ply. Necessity soon brought out all
that was worst in the German char
"a acter.
AituouSH tHe government uecreeQ a
:, high fine and Imprisonment as pun
n 1shment for buying or selling anything
n which had been commandeered specu-
lators sprang up on every side and
: people Dragged openly of what they
q. had stored away.
6 The worst deprivation was In the
:. lack OF fats. The people showed it
y very plainly. One seldom saw a fat
man or fat woman, although before
the war fatness was almost character
istic Of the German physique. Indeed,
saw n rather stout woman being fol-
'ocawed by at least twenty boys who
Whwere Jeering at her and making slur-
u ring rem, IS about the manner In
q which she had retained her avoirdu-
pois. fat person in Germany today
is regarded with suspicion.
Naturally the weakened condition of
the people makes them all easily sus.
& ceptible to disease, Epidemics spread
- rapidly and 1 am inclined to believe
: that little care was taken by the au-
thorities to protect the older people
. from Infection. 4 know that my sec
: retary's zmnthar fell ard broke both
her legs last summer {1917) and was
taken to the accident ward Of a hos
allNcrippled. Ten OF the inmates of
that Inward died in a single day from
8 dysentery, and the following day the
= death list was Increased by twelve,
the" old lady with the broken legs be-
Ing one Of them. Twenty-Five more
bread cards saved mt the expense of
twenty-five useless women in one hos
pital alone-n fair record for two
days! / have no proof that these un-
fortunate victims of disease were de-
liberately infected by the hospital au-
thorities, but the mere fuct that twen-
ty-twO patients In an accident ward
: died from dysentery in two days is
- certainly evidence of gross careless
ness II nothing worse. .S
To buy new clothes II Is necessary
to secure certificate from the gov
ernment to the effect that you are abb
tSs soiutely in need of clothing, and, even
then, you are compe. to give up the
suit you are gdiscardng.
Branch offices for Investigating the
necessity of replenishing ones ward
robe have been established all over
"a. the cities and they are always crowd
ed Women are In charge and they
seemed thoroughly to enjoy their au-
thority and their power to deny an
81 application for new clothing.
When left Berlin the law permit
q ted man just two shirts, two collars,
two pairs Of socks etc., year. Since
81 soap had disappeared from the mar
ket so many inadequate substitutes
mad been tried that ones laundry In
variably came home full of holes.
In November, 1917 paid 500 for a
suit of clothes which If II had been
made ont OF cloth of good quality
would have been worth about S35. AS
1t was. the tailor frankly admitted
that the goods was made of re-worked
yarn, and because of.the lack of cotton
thread, the seams were worked with
material which looked like paper
string.
This paper string was in general use
at that time, the department stores all
displaying notices warning customers
not to carry their parcels by the string.
y Many purchases were no LONGER
wrapped'to save paper, and no pur-
chase amounting to less than S5 was
delivered ~
: Before left Berlin, artificial silk
wase principal fabric obtainable for
; ladies' wearing apparel. Almost every
woman In the hand, princess or maid,
was attired In art taffeta. 1t sold for
$40 yard. Ia normal times 1t would
fve been worth from 20 cents to 81.
In the fall OF 1917. cloth suit was un-