The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1919-01-16

racket they made. Somehow q Ger
man cannot do anything shipshape
and neatly, but always has to have
lot of noise, and running around, and
general confusion. Four-footed swine
are more orderly in their habits than
the Huns.
when they came up, we We're rOust-
ed from the cars and drilled up the
road to the camp. When we got near
the German barracks we were halted
and counted again, and made to stand
there for at least an hour after they
had finished counting us, shivering
like leaves. At last they placed us in
barracks, and those who could went
to sleep.
There were about forty barracks in
the Limey group at Neustrelitz and
two large Zeppelin sheds. The bar
racks were just about like those at
Swinemunde-at least, they were no
better. Along the sides of the rooms
were long shelves or benches, and
every three feet were boards set in
grooves. The shelves were what we
had to sleep on, and the boards in the
grooves divided them up so that only
a certain number Of men could use
each bench.
The following morning we nearly
dropped dead when the Huns pulled
in large wagon full of clothing. We
thought we never would have any
thing to wear but our underclothes.
They issued to each man a pair of
trousers, thin model, thin coat
about like the seersucker coats some
people wear in the summer, an over
cont about as warm as if it had been
made Of cigarette papers. n skull cap
and a pair of shoes, which were a
days labor to carry around. Not one
OF us received socks, shirts or under
wear.
The toe was cut from the right shoe
OF the pair I received, and as my
wounds were in the right thigh and
my leg had stiffened up considerably
and got very sore, got pretty anx-
ious, because there was nothing but
slush underfOot, and 1 was afraid l
might lose my leg. So thought that
if went to the commander and made
kick might get good shoe. hest
tated about it at first, but finally made
up my mind and went to see him.
told him that it was slushy outside,
and that the water ran through the
hole in my shoe and made it bad for
my whole leg, which was wounded
He examined the shoe, and looked at
the open toe for some time, and I
thought he was going to put up an
argument, but would give in finally.
Then he asked me what wanted. I
thought that was plain enough to see,
but said just as easily as I could
that I wanted shoe without a hole
in the toe.
$50 the water runs into it, does it?''
he said. swell, my advice to you is to
get knife, cut hole in the heel and
let the water out" All the other
swine in the room laughed very loud
at this, and guess this Fritz thought
he was great comedian. But some
how or other, it did not strike me so
funny that 1 just had to laugh, and I
was able, after quite struggle. to
keep from even snickering. 1t was a
harder struggle than that to keep
from doing something else, though!
Our meals We're just about the same
rs at Swinemunde-the bread was
just as muddy, the barley coffee just
as rank, and the soup just Us cab
bageless. The second morning after
i we had had our barley coffee, one of
the seatries came to our barracks.
which was number 7-B, and gave each
Of us an envelope and sheet of writ
ing paper. Then he told us to write