The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1918-03-02

Waterbury, Stamford, Danbury, New London Ansonia, Derby and Shelton. along the opposite bank of the river, cutting grass with an ordinary reap CT. He fingered over his work, and when he reached a spot opposite us, he stood for a while looking over the river. His eyes seemed to be fix ed on our bush, but after he had fin ished his dreaming he went on with his work, and gradually worked his way down the bank.
 During the whole of the day we were on tenter hooks. The worEers remained in the field until nightfall, and often they passed the bush, but without discovering us.
 As soon as night fell we resumed our journey, by swimming the river, on the banks of which we had rested all day. It proved to be a swiftly running stream, but we managed to negotiate it.
 Then followed another night of ad- .venturous trekking, during which we were almost caught six times. Leav- ing the open country for the main road, we were once shadowed by a ci- william, and it was only by a piece of strategy that we managed to shake him off.
 But our narrowest escape was when we almost ran slap bang into the arms of a sentry. On realizing our danger I flung myself flat on the ground un- der the cover of a hedge, dragging the Frenchman down with me. He was so scared that he wanted to get up and bolt but I practically got on top of him and kept him down. We did not know whether the sentry had heard us or not, and under such cir cumstances we feared the worst. The sentry stood still when he got within about six yards of us. The least sound would have given us away.
 If we had remained at the top of the bank the sentry would certainly have spotted us, so I told the French man to roll as gently as he could down into the thicket. He got down without making the least noise, and I followed. I landed plump into a blackberry bush, and had to lie among the prickIes. We had no soon- CT reached this more concealed place than the sentry practically, walked over the very spot where we had first "gone to earth" He stood with his back to us for a few seconds, and I felt as though I could have strangled the brave Frenchman because of his hard breathing.
 Over the Frontier
 The sentry looked round as though he was listening. He then stepped in- to the middle of the road and looked up and down. As he was doing this I decided to make a move, and trail ed myself, serpent-like on my stom- ach towards a safer thicket, my com rade following in the rear. On reach
 ing the brushwood we got on our feet and ran half-double towards a
 wood. When once covered by the
 trees we ran as fast as we could, and eventually got well inside the wood
 where we decided to take a rest. | This little experience cost us an-
 other day and night in Germany. Had
 we passed the sentry we should most
 certainly have reached the frontie!
 that night. However, after resting ir
 the wood throughout the day, we
 started on our journey again at night and despite many narrow escapes from capture, reached the last Ger
 man village. We entered it in oul stocking feet, and had to dodge into
 several side streets in order to outwit
 a few struggling pedestrians. Every
 thing went off nicely until we were
 within 50 yards or so of leaving the Il last house in the village, when we saw
 a gendarme passing a lighted lamT and coming in our direction. In an in. Cfnn0nnh
 Frenchman doing likewise We ther crawled to the opposite side of the
 street. where luckily we found an op
 ening off the main street. We hur.
 ried down this side street until wt
 came to a field, over which we raced
 under cover of a small thicket.
 We did a good bit of trekking after
 this, and after passing through anoth CT. wood we came upon the road wnicI led to the frontier.
 We worked cur way to the left, anG then passed through a very thick
 wood. AS we were leaving this woot I felt my foot touch a wire, which wa!
 no doubt rigged up for the purpose of giving alarm to the sentries when ever it was jerked. As soon as I fel the instep of my foot touch it, I grip : ped the wire with my hand to stop i from vibrating, and then told m, comrade to step over it.
 Though I was almost certain tha we had now crossed the frontier, took no risks, and kept to the wooded
 country as much as possible. l We then hit upon railroad, and on examining it, I was convinced tha we were we'll over the frontier. On reaching a river bank I saw number of sentries, and instead of m. allowing them to challenge US I chal ? lenged them, for I knew they were no I Germans.
 What happened later I am not per
 mitted to relate, but I must say tha
 during my stay in this friendly neutra country I had a good, rattling time which was only equalled by my recep t tion on reaching home.
 In conclusion I would like to stat for the benefit of all those who hay
 relatives captives in Germany tha k they are much better treated nov . than they were at first, although i l, behooves everyone to send as man U parcels as possible, as that is thei Ii only means of existence.
 T (The End.)