Evening star., 1939-10-10
Baukhage Encounters
LOT Of Trouble in
Fleeing Europe
broudcuster Is Beset
By Passport Argument
And Money Problem

Baukhage of the radio is back from
the wars-back from Berlin after
various and sundry difficulties. going
and coming-back in Washington
free from visas and censorship.
Hilmar Robert Baukhage, who
used to write for The Star, left here
for Europe on August "a on a quick
trip of observation for the National
BroadcasJing Co. He planned to
visit Paris and London. He had no
visa tor Berlin. When he took the
clipper homeward a week ago to-
morrow, he had not been to London
and he had spent a lot of time in
Berlin. From there millions of
Americans heard his broadcasts,
opening:
"Baukhage talking"
Last night he sat calmly in his
apartment at 1735 New Hamp-
shire avenue NV. and recon-
structed his trip from Berlin
He left there by train on Sep
tember Is. During the night the
train was halted for two and half
hours-he has the exact time re-
corded i'll the vest-pocket diary
which he consulted-while (some-
thing he didn't know at the mo-
ment German troops from the
Polish front headed for the Sieg-
fried Line.
Argument Over Passport.
At length the train reached the
Swiss border at Basle. Mr.. Bauk-
hage showed Ibis passport, which
had been marked the previous day
by polios officials in Berlin.
This is no good the border
guard said to Mr.. Baukhage. Its
expired
You're crazy" said Mr.. Bauk-
hage. Il stood in line only yester-
day to get it checked"
But 1t reads 1887"
Sure enough, the Berlin police
officials '9" in the written 1889
resembled a a."
Il was scared, Mr.. Baukhage re-
calls now. In Germany-phony
passport. I got tough. used harsh
adjectlves. 1 pointed out to the
man that the stamped date showed
1899 clearly enough. In the midst
of the conversation an officer ar
rived He said:
1.-The gentleman is right. That
could have been a nine"
So Mr. Baukhage was in Basle.
He took the train for Spain, in
tending to go from there to Lisbon
ana get aboard the clipper. While
the train crossed France, the French
government ruled that nobody could
take more than 500 francs out of
France, about $40 When he reached
the Spanish border, he learned that
he would have to give up about 500.
He debated whether to Smuggle
his francs into Spain in his sock,
and decided against it. He feared
the Spanish might discover his act
and he was uncertain how closely
the Spanish and French officials
were working together. So he en-
tered Spain with $40 and found at
once that he had to submit to
search-a search which, it turned
out, amounted to only the revela-
ton of the contents of his billfold.
He boarded train at Irun, Spain,
for Lisbon, but when he was estab-
hshed in his second-class compart-
ment, he learned that the car he
was on was going to Madrid. Ahead
of him was a f1rst-class car which
later would be sent to Lisbon.
Reaches Portuguese Capital.
"All of Spain got in the compart-
ment with me-" Mr.. Baukhage re-
members. He grew more and more
concerned at the prospect of arriv-
ing in Madrid with scarcely any
money Yet he had so little money
then that he could not afford a
flrst-class passage. But he took the
chance and moved forward to the
Lisbond carriage. and at length he
arrived in the Portuguese capital.
There he caught the Clipper.
When it landed in Horta, the Azores.
81 persons were waiting to take
passage on it for the United States.
There were only four seats. Mr..
Baukhage arrived in New York
Friday.
The future of events in Europe
he would not predict. He is sure
the Bremen is in Murmansk. He
met with considerable censorship in
Berlin. but he found censorship in
France, too, where it was forbidden
to describe the scenes of anguish at
the stations. Mothers, sisters, wives
and lovers screamed and cried as
their men left for the front, but
their walls were not reported.