Bisbee daily review., 1919-04-08
HORRORS OF GERMAN
PRISON CAMP TOLD
BY ROLPH ELLINWOOD
American Farmers Wouldn'
Feed Hogs Food Given
Captives

American farmers wouldn't feed
the food we were given to their hogs
according to Ralph E. Ellinwood, vet
eran of the German war who has re-
turned to Bisbee after an absence Of
nearly two years.
1T consisted OF black bread about
two inches in diameter and alleged
soup made out of COW beets and cab
bage. Oh. it was lovely menu He
was speaking of the ration issued TO
prisoners il German prison camps.
We owe our health and our lives
TO the American Red Cross workers. -
ne continued Each month they would
send us 80 pounds OF food per man.
We didn't have any trouble in getting
the food that was sent to us but over
in the prison camp in Cassel, Ger
many, the men diGn't fare as well and
there were many reports of food sent
them being stolen by the German
guards.
In the Observation-Disclosures sector
where l was taken prisoner 1900 Bri-
fish Tommies were captured and they
We're put to work behind the German
lines building roads and working on
ammunition dumps. The poor fellows
were so undernourished that six
months later only 1S7 of them still
lived and they were moved into one OF
the prison camps in the interior OF
Germany.
"Seventy-five of them died the first
ten days. They were in a pitiful
plight. American doctors who examin-
ed them said that none of the re
mainder would live more than two
years longer due to undernourishment
and hard labor. A sad looking lot
were those Tommies.
Sail in June, 1917
Mr. Ellinwood sailed, for France in
Jane. 1917, and served four months
on an ammunition truck On October
he joined the American army ambu-
lance corps and was attached to the
French army which was operating on
the Rheims front. Later on his COM
pany moved up to the scissors line
and it was during an engagement on
Nav IS, 1918, that the Chemin-des-
Daf line was shattered by the Huns
and he was taken prisoner. On jan
uary /. 1919, he was released.frOm the
Hun prison camp and entered the
American lines after spending eight
months in the prison.
When questioned concerning the Y.
NJ. c. 4 and the part it played with
the American expeditionary forces Mr..
Ellinwood said he believed they did
what they had contracted for with the
expeditionary forces.
Did Good Work
They did lot of good work. he
added, ''in simply having huts where
men could congregate and have rec
reation and write letters and have
their entertainments The organiza-
lions dearest to the heart of the dough
boy is the Red Cross and the Saliva
ton Army They performed extraor-
binary work"
According to Mr.. EllinwoOd the
German people accepted the terms OF
the armistice without any concern.
They were calm he said and seemed
TO have adopted themselves to the in
evitable fate which they knew was in
store for them when the French
turned them back at the Marine and at
Mons in 1914 when Won Kluck ham
mered his way right to the gates of
Paris only to be turned back by the
valient French and what the Germans
called "the contemplate little English
army
There is only one real country, he
said. in conclusion, land its right here
in my own United States. I'll say
I'm glad to get back. You bet. 1t
feels bully