The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1919-01-02
On our way out the CharIotteno.rger

dam ut about sixty miles an hour, md
there were other Indications OF nc-
tivity. but we attached little impor-
lance to them.
When we reached Potsdam, how
ever. and saw thousands Of ton OF
coal heaped up between the railroad
tracks which were ordinarily Kept
clear. we realized that preparations for
war were being made In earnest aud
we stopped to consider whether 1t
would not be better after all to return
home. Such vas ignorance Of war
that we decided that. wen though It
we're not advisable to motor In Bel
gtum and France. where we were
bound. we might safely plan q tour In
the Black forest In Germany.
We had left Berlin late In the after
noon. In the evening. when we arrived
ut Gotha. we found that the younger
walters In the restaurants and hotels
had already left and that the older re-
serves expected u general call the next
| day.
The next morning we started for
no We nuSSNu thhOukh VII
lage nfter village, war preparations be-
came more and more evident. Measures
were being taken everywhere to arous
enthusiasm-young men gathered on
school steps were singing patriotic
songs. students were marching and
speeches were being made In the mar
ket places.
About Ave o'clock that afternoon we
arrived In Frankfort. The whole place
was In a fever Of excitement over the
mobilization posters and their resent
ment against the French was being
aroused by extras" which were
handed out without charge.
ing that the French had already
dropped bombs on the railroad at
Nurnberg and that French officers In
AUTOS had over-ridden the borders.
The ridiculous statements about
French flyers dropping bombs on the
.nilroad at Nurnberg had not the
slightest foundation, Of course.
The older people who had lived
through the war Of 1870 had Interested
audiences for once while they related
past experiences and gave advice as to
what preparations to make. A posi-
bility of food shortage seemed to be
uppermost In all minds, and the gro
ceries were stormed with eager buy
ers. Salt suddenly Jumped to IS cents
a pound and other things In proper.
ton.
On Sunday, August 2. a" the gaso-
line in the country was Communicated,
and we heard Of many American tour
lists being put out Of their cars In the
cities and even on country roads. nc
matter how Ina ccessible to trains they
might be. We accordingly decided t.
stow our a AWAY In an old Wagon
shed attached to a hotel and sought tt
return to Berlin by train.
At the railway station there wal
such a tremendous crowd that It wa
quite impossible to get anywhere neaI
the ticket Office. and anyway no prom
ise could be given as to trains to Ber
lin.
Trunks and bags were piled high II
every available space and II wa
, months before that enormous pile o.
baggage was finally sorted out.
We decided to defer u effort {,
reach Berlin until Monday, since Their,
seemed no hope of getting away tina
, day.
On Monday morning, the street
were filed with excited crowds de
stroying every sign with a FrencI
, word on 1t and looking for spies. Tn
papers had announced that the coun
try was full of French spies, womel
n as well as men. ! saw the crowd stol
> an automobile, take a woman out an
a literally tear her clothes to shreds be
fore the police succeeded In resculn
. her from the mob and took her to tn
police station. The general suppos
tlon vas that all the man spies wei
masquerading ms women and the frs
thing the mob did was to pull out hal
pins to see whether the hair was real.
On Monday evening, we managed I
edge our way into the last throug
train to Berlin. We were side-tracke
innumerable times to allow troo
a trains to pass through. and we were n
n quired to keep III windows closed q
r that no enemy passenger could dro
[" bombs on the bridges we crossed.
n was a hot August night and the lac
4 Of ventilation WINS most oppressive.
q Our compartment was crowded wit
officers on their way to join their reg
l. ments and very grand and importaI
v they felt In their new field-gray un
Ie forms which may have long been p,
away In moth balls for just this oppo
II tunity, but which took the German De
N pie as well as the allies completely /
surprise.
At Naumberg, which II about hal
II way between Frankfort and Berlin-
company OF soldiers boarded the ira
and guarded the corridors while a no
g commissioned officer questioned Il
ID passengers. (
My wife, who was asleep In a CO
,e ner Of the coupe 1. was the only wou