El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1919-07-26

two a couple Of spooning lovers, 4
'German-Swiss boy was making love
10 a French-Swiss girl on the BANK
From what we saw Of the land OF
cheese and milk chocolate en- route
to Germany that night we decided
that It was inhabited mostly by dogs.
Nearly every mile We were greeted
by mammoth St Bernards and great
Danes, who came bouncing out to
greet US as though we were maraud-
ers-
By two In the morning we had
completed our semicircular swing
around Basic from France through
Switzerland to the German border.
At the place where we first came to
the Rhine we encountered the low
ers. From them we gathered the in
formation that II we walked mile
farther down stream in the direction
OF Basic we would find bridge which
we could cross without difficulty be-
cause both banks OF the Rhine in that
vicinity happened to be Swiss soil
Heading for Germany.
Once over the river we struck of
which we were sure must go in the
direction OF Germany In doing this
we made what a few minutes later
proved to be a fatal mistake-al-
though in the end It turned out to Be
a fortunate one II we had gone OH
across the fields We might have been
in Baden before sunrise
After walking along the road for a
half hour we came to the German
frontier and were Just about TO steD
across when a soldier on the Swiss
border halooed Us and turning We
found ourselves facing a Browning
Our captor escorted US over to the
border patrol headquarters. and
looked US over carefully Both OF Us
were too weary to care what hap
pened and with an air of Indifference
and nonchalance due entirely to our
fatigue we showed him what papers
we had and told him a yarn which
must have convinced him that we
were either Russian Bolsheviks OF
German spies homeward bound He
called his chief in Basic on the long
distance. but evidently that dfgnitary
on the other end OF the wire was
awakened from a sound slumber and
took no interest over persons foolish
enough to be trying 70 get into a
foodless country like Germany
Our Swiss guard then marched US
back to Basic, but we kept kidding
him as we walked along and when
We reached the outskirts Of The city
he was in such a good humor that he
turned US loose with a warning not
to try running the frontier again
along his patrol He wasn't quite
sure whether we were smugglers,
spies. or merely American adventur-
ers.
Each Side DOdginE.
When we regained consciousness
we called on some of the leading mill
tary authorities and told them who
we were and why we wanted TO get
into Germany. We said nothing
about our encounter with the guard
on the border the night before and
although they did not refer to it
either It was evident that they were
lodging any discussion OF II because
they were as anxious to avoid max
ing trouble for US after We had salts
fled them that We were what we
claimed TO be as we were anxious to
KEEP out Of entanglements ourselves
Without mentioning the names OF
these gentlemen or describing the de-
tails OF what happened. suffice 1t to
say that our stay in Switzerland was
anything but unpleasant. From the
standpoint OF international law we
could have been informed or deported
back to France At that time there
was a law in Switzerland forhidding
anyone from taking more than a
qurter OF a pound OF chocolate. four
cigars. or any tea or coffee, or food
out OF the country. But in spite OF
that day later we found ourselves
across the frontier in Germany with
two boxes OF cigars saveral pounds
OF English tea. two bottles OF matted
milk tablets. and about 50 pounds Of
chocolate between US Our friends
in Switzerland had been very kind
TO US because they said that once we
were in Germany we would be able
to get practically nothing but ini-
tation foods
Had the inhabitants Of Germany
known what We were carrying in our
kit bags they would have mobbed US.
am sure We found that by the
time we reached Prussia our supply
Of tobacco. tea and chocolate was
worth its weight in gold and We
could have sold Il at any price. Most
OF the people had not seen anv real
tea or chocolate for three years But
instead OF selling our bars OF choco-
late for one hundred marks. about
$50 pound, we gave a large part Of
Il away TO poor families in Munich
the day before Christmas and a small
part OF IL 10 persons who tried to
facilitate our movements
German Likes Our Chocolate.
In Berlin the run7or got around
that there were two Yankees in town
with a supply Of English tea and
chocolate and we were nearly buried
under a deluge OF invitations from
society women inviting US to call
When we got across the frontier
We walked a few miles to the village
OF Wilhelmshohe. where We boarded
train for Freiburg The train was
journeyed into Germany the later the
trains ran
A rotund. red faced butcher sat
down opposite US in our third class
compartment His curiosity got the
best OF him and after ScrutiniZing US
IN erruDr edlv for a half hour he
asked US who we were. In the course
OF conversation we asked him what
he thought OF the revolution, the
kaiser and the crown prince. He
- Trraf ..
all right provided the communists
didn't try TO take his butcher shop
away from him. In reference to the
kaiser he held his nose expressively
Bv The Noted