Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1918-09-13

about twelve or fourteen feet high and
walk over the barriers one by one. As
a youngster l had acquired consider
able skill in stilt-walking and l have
nc doubt that with the proper equip
ment it would have been quite feas-
ible to have walked out of Belgium
as easily as possible in that way, but
whether or not l was going to have a
chance to construct the necessary
stills remained to be seen.
There were a good many bicycles in
use by the German soldiers in Belgium
and it had often occurred to me that
if 1 could have stolen one, the tires
would have made excellent gloves and
insulated coverings for my feet in
case it was necessary for me to at
tempt to climb over the electric fence
bodily. But as 1 had never been able
to steal a bicycle this avenue Of es-
cape was closed to me.
1 decided to wait until I arrived at
the barrier and then make up my mind
how to proceed.
To find a decent place to sleep that
night, l crawled under a barbed wire
fence, thinking it led into some field.
AS 1 passed under, one of the barbs
caught in my coat and in trying to
pull myself from it 1 shook the fence
for several yards.
Instantly there came out of the night
the n-erve-racking command: Halt !"
Again 1 feared 1 was done for. /
crouched close down on the ground in
the darkness, not knowing whether to
take to my legs and trust to the Huns
missing me in the darkness if he fired,
or stay where l was. 1t was foggy
as we'll as dark, and although l knew
the sentry was only a few feet away
from me l decided to stand, or rather
lie, pat. 1 think my heart made almost
as much noise as the rafting of the
wire in the first place, and it was a
tense few moments to me.
1 heard the German say a few words
to himself, but didn't understand them,
of course, and then he made a sound
as if to call a dog, and l realized that
his theory of the noise he had heard
was that a dog had made it's way
through the fence.
For perhaps five minutes I didn't
stir, and then figuring that the German
had probably continued on his beat l
crept quietly under the wire again,
this time being mighty careful to hug
the ground so close that l wouldn't
touch the wire, and made off in a diff
ferent direction. Evidently the barbed
wire fence had been thrown around an
ammunition depot or something of the
kind, and it was not a field at all that
1 had tried to get into.
1 figured that other sentries were
probably in the neighborhood and ]
proceeded very gingerly.
After I had got about a mile away
from this spot 1 came to al humble
Belgian house and 1 knocked at the
door and applied for food in my usual
way, pointing to my mouth to indi-
cate l was hungry and to my ears and
mouth to imply that 1 was deaf and
dumb. The Belgian woman who lived
in the house brought me a piece of
bread and two cold potatoes and as /
sat there eating them she eyed me
very keenly.
1 udNGu Tie SlISllISSl QOuUI ina
she realized I was a fugitive. She lived
so near the border that it was more
for that reason, 1 appreciated more
fully the extent of the risk she ran, for
no doubt the Germans were constantly
watching the conduct of these Bel
gians who lived near the line.
My theory that she realized that |
was not a Belgian at all, but prob
ably some English fugitive, was con-
firmed a moment later, when, as l
made ready to go, she touched me on
the arm and indicated that / was to
wait a moment. She went to a bureau
and brought out two pieces of fancy
Belgian lace which she insisted upon
my taking away, although at that par
ticular moment I had as much use for
Belgian lace as an elephant for a
safety razor, but I was touched with
her thoughtfulness and pressed her
hand to show my gratitude. She would
not accept the money 1 offered her.
1 carried the lace through my SUBJ
sequent experiences, feeling that 1t
would be q fine souvenir for my
mother, as d matter OIL TACT IL
1 had known that it was going to de-
lay my final escape for even a single
moment, as it did, 1 I'M quite sure
she would rather l had not seen it.
On one piece of lace was the Elem
ish word "Charite" and on the other
the word "Esperage." AT the time I
took these words to mean CHARITY"
and Experience" and all l hoped was
that 1 would get as much of the one
as 1 was getting of the other before /
finally got through. l learned subse-
quently that what the words really
stood for were Charity" and "Hope,"
and then 1 was sure that my kind Bel
gian friend had indeed realized my
plight and that her thoughtful sou-
venir was intended to encourage me in
rho trials she must have known Weye