Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1919-02-07


But week or so later the Spanish
ambassador and four German officers
and Swatts came to our barracks and
the ambassador told me / would be
released! 1t was all / could do to
keep from fainting again. Then Swatts
asked me in English If had anything
to say about the treatment in the
1t was a frame-up of some kind, SO all
Il said was, when will get out Of
here?" and he said, "Why, you will be
released tomorrow"
did not wait to hear any more, but
rushed into the barracks again, singing
and whistling and yelling as loud as
could. The boys told me my face was
very red and guess what little blood
/ had In my body had rushed to my
head, because could hardly walk for
a 1ew minutes.
Then the men began to think / was
crazy. and none of them believed
would really be released, but that /
was going to be sent to the mines, as
so many were. But I believed it, and
I just sat there on my bunk and be-
gan to dream of the food / would get
and what would eat first, and SO on.
did not sleep that night-just
walked from barracks to barracks I'M
till they chased me away, and then
walked up and down in my own bar
racks the rest of the night. When
got to the Russian barracks and told
the two doctors my news, they would
not believe me at all, although they
knew there had been some important
visitor at the camp.
But when walked out of their door
/ said, "Dobra vetshav," which means
"Good night" Then they must have
believed me, for they called me back,
and all the men gave me addresses of
people to write to in case should get
away.
They were all talking at once, and
one of the doctors got very excited and
got down on his knees with his hands
in the air. Albert" he said, 'if you
have the God-given luck to get out of
Germany not for my sake, but for
the sake Of US who are here In this
hell-hole. promise me you will tell all
the people wherever you go what they
are doing to us here. Tell them not to
send money. for we can't eat money,
and not meat-just bread, bread,
bread"
And when I looked around all the
men were sitting on their beds crying
and tearing their hair and saying,
dread, bread, bread" over and over
again. Then each tried to give me
something, as If to say that even if
they did not get out, perhaps their but
ton or belt or skull cap would get back
to civilization.
When / left their barracks / began
to cry, because 1t did not seem pos
sible that I was going away, and al
ready could see them starving slow.
~, just as / had been starving.
The next morning sentry came to
my barracks, called out my name and
took me to the commander Of the
camp. They searched me, and then
drilled me back to barracks again.
Then the men all thought they were
just playing joke on me, and they
said so.
The same thing happened the next
day, and when one Of the men said
that probably would be slammed up
against wall and shot. began to feel
shaky, can tell you.
But the third morning, after they
had searched me, the commander said,
"Well, you'll have to have a bath be-
fore you leave the country and
was so glad that / did not mind about
the bath, although remembered the
last one had, and 1t did not agree
very well with me. After the bath,
they drilled me out into the road.
There were four sentries with me,
but not Swatts, nor did see him
anywhere around, for which was sOr-
ry., But all the boys came down to
the barbed wire, or to the gate, and
some were crying, and others were
cheering, and all of them were very
much excited. But after a minute or
two they got together again and the
last thing heard was the song about
packing up your old kit bag, and then,
"Are we downhearted mol" They
were certainly game lads.
They did not take me straight to
the station, but took me through all
the streets they could find, and as us
ual, the women were there with the
bricks and spit. But did not mind:
I was used to it, and besides, it was
the last time. So just grinned at
them, and thought that / was better
off than they, because they had to stay
in the hole called Germany.
was still half naked, but / did not
mind the two-hour wait on the station
platform. I noticed little sign that
read, Berlin 25 miles north" and
that was the first time I had much of
an idea where Brandenburg was.
When we got into the compartment
and found that the windows were
not smashed I could not believe 1t at
first until remembered that this was
not prisoner train. We had forty
eight hour ride to Lindau, which is on
the Lake of Constance, and no food or
water in that time. But still did not
mind it much. At Lindau they drilled
me into little house and took away
all the addresses that had, and
then marched me- over to the little
boat which crosses the lake.
AS I started up the gangway the last
thing I received in Germany reached
me-a crack across the back with a
rife!
The women and children on the