Baxter Springs news., 1918-09-06

been called tea they wouldn't nave relt
80 badly about II, perhaps, but II was
adding Insult to injury to Gull that
stun "tea," which with them IL almost
u national Institution.
Sometimes with this meal they give
us butter instead Of jam, and once In
a while we had some kind Of canned
ment.
This comprised the usual run Of eat
ables for the day. can eat more than
that for breakfast In the days that
were to come I learned that ] was to
fare considerably worse.
We were allowed to send out and
buy a few things. but as most OF the
prisoners were without funds this was
but an empty privilege. Once I took
advantage of the privilege to send my
shoes to q Belgian shoemaker to be
half.soled. They charged me ~
marks-$6i ..
Once In q while q Belgian Ladies'
Relief society visited the prison and
brought us handkerchiefs, American
soap-whlch sells at about $1.oO q
bar in Observation-Disclosures ana
other little articles. all Of which were
American made. but whether they
were supplied by the American re-
lief committee or not don't know.
At any rate, these gifts were mighty
useful and were very much appre-
ciated.
One day I offered a button or my
uniform to one of these Belgian ladies'
as q souvenir. but a German guard
saw me and I was never allowed to
20 near the visitors afterwards.
The sanitary conditions In this
prison camp were excellent as a gen.
eral proposition. One night, however,
I discovered that I had been cap
tured by "cOOties."
This was a novel experience to me
and one that l would have been very
willing to have missed, because In
the flying corps our airdromes are a
number of miles back Of the lines and
we have good billets and our acQuaint-
ance with such things as "cooties" and
other unwelcome visitors Is very lin
/ lted.
When l discovered my condition,
made a hOller and reused the guard
and right then got another example
Of German efficiency.
This guard seemed to be even more
perturbed about my complaint than
myself, evidently fearing that he would
be blamed for my condition.
The commandant was summoned
and could see that he was very an
Rry. Someone undoubtedly got a Sc
we're reprimand for 1t.
I was taken out Of my cell by
guard with a rife and conducted abou
q quarter of a mile from the pris0I
to an old factory building which hat
been converted into an elaborate fumi
eating plant. There / was given
pickle bath in some kind Of solution
and while / was absorbing 1t m!
clothes, bed clothes and whatever els
had been In my cell was being pu
through another fumigating process.
While / was waiting for my thing
to dry-it took perhaps half an hour
I had q chance to observe about on
hundred other victims of "cOoties"-
German soldiers who had become In
tested In the trenches. We were al
nude, of course, but apparently 1t wa
not difficult for them to recognize m
as a foreigner even without my UNI
form on, for none Of them made an
attempt to talk to me, although the
we're very busy talking about me.
could not understand what they wer
saying, but knew l was the butt O
most of their jokes and they made n
effort to conceal the fact that wa
the subject of conversation.
When got back to my cell I foun
, that 1t had been thoroughly fumigateC
| and from that time on / had no furthe
trouble with "coOties" or other Wis
tors of the same kind.
I As we were not allowed to writ
! anything but prison cards. writing wa
out of the question; and as we had n
| reading matter to sneak Of readin