The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-06-26
WHAT YOU SEE IN POLAND
BY Frank NJ. America.


The glare of our headlights show
ed a man who stepped OF the road
and disappeared behind some trees.
We stopped our car and called to
him and inquired where he was 60
ing and he stood, mere wreck of
man. with his hat in his hand, and re-
piled in a feeble voice that he was
going to try to get something to eat.
He was fifteen miles from the near
est habitation.
We passed two women barefooted
with heavy packs going along this
road. and 1t was a days walk to
the next town in the direction they
were headed. We passed many others.
1t was too cold for them TO sleep
at night with their poor covering. so
they walked until it was daylight
and they could then sleep by the
roadside in the warmth of the sun.
The only living things we passed be-
sides these unfortunate people were
five wildcats. seen at different times
along this road.
We were travelling in that immense
stretch OF territory east of the River
Bug which is probably the most desc
late country in the world today. Most
people heard of 1t for the first time
during the war when it's towns, rivers
and marshes were fought over and
were mentioned in the official COM
muniques. 1t is a country of lakes,
forest and marsh. about 90 900 square
miles in area where 5000, 900 people
are absolutely helpless.
The highways were full of wan
derers and the towns and villa ges
were pictures of desolation. hunger
and disease. The wanderers were
refugees going in opposite directions,
east and west-westward from all
parts of Russia and eastward from
Germany. Some had been on the way
FOR months. All they possessed they
carried on their backs All were
homeward bound.
AT dawn we came upon a group
of eight men with long, shaggy boards.
who were seated by the roadside
They had built a fire and were cook
ing their morning meal OF grass and
treebark, They said they were WORK
ing their way back from Germany.
We noticed that the roadsides We're
strewn with the bones of animals
cows, horses and dogs, which had
been there long enough to be parch-
ed white. The barren fields were full
of earrion crows. None of US had
ever before seen so many of these
vultures.
We next came to "A small village
matched rooted huts and it looked
very desolate, We got out of our car
and walked down the village street
in search of signs OF life. We found
one poor crying woman who was
holding in her arms her baby, The
child was dying from lack OF nourish-
ment Another woman who had
child with her complained that she
| had visited the authorities of a near
by town begging assistance but each
F.. day had passed her on to the next
with the result that she did not re-
ceive anything.
We visited scores of cities towns
and villages, from big towns. like
, Brest Litovsk and Bielostok. and to
| the smaller villages like kanlien-
| kaszyrski. where there wasn't a single
! doctor for 5000 inha bitants and not
a house where at least one was not
| down with typhus. tuberculosis or
| smallpox. The people were subsisting
| on a sort of bread, an awful black
suStance made of bark from oak trees,
| acorns, chaff and heather but contain
/ ing not a particle of -four. In some
| villages this so-called bread was made
! A. little more paiatable with potato
| peelings.
We passed from village to village
| and everywhere found famine and
disease. Many villages were absolute
| ~ uninhabted. There was not a liv-
! ing thing in them, except the inevi-
| table carrion crow and we wondered
why he lowered there 1t was as il
-, blight had passed over these places.
] Where the roads in this marsh land
| would not take .our motor car we
! Travelled on horseback and in dog
carts furnished by the military, In
| whole days travel we did not see
| a cow nor did we pass a horse or a
dos. The peasant refugees who did
have a cart full OF meagre household
| goods hauled it themselves. On one
/ stretch Of road we saw an unusually
large number OF refugees barefooted,
and then we noticed that they were
| carrying their boots under their arms.
| They were saving them for the colder