Part 4

"At the opening ceremonies there were speeches by Colonel Bogen, Mr. Harte, and Professor Stange, and then each speech was delivered in English and French by prisoners. These were followed by short speeches by French, English, and Belgian prisoners. Then came a concert by the camp orchestra and the camp singing society, followed by songs and recitations by various prisoners."

Dr. Ohnesorg reported further on April 22. At that time there were 6,577 prisoners, of whom 1,586 were British. He warmly commends the steam laundry, the steam disinfecting plant, and the hospital. "A spirit of contentment pervaded the camp. The British prisoners were well clothed. I tasted the evening meal, consisting of a vegetable soup, which was very palatable and, I should say, nourishing.... The citizens of Goettingen have taken a great interest in the camp, and some of them, notably Professor Stange, of the University, have given a great deal of their time to the welfare of prisoners and the formation of classes for study amongst them."

GERMAN HELP FOR PRISONERS.

The interest taken by prominent Germans in the welfare of prisoners of war is little recognised in this country. The Berlin Committee (of which more will be said later) has received considerable support. At the end of June, 1916, a meeting in support of its work was held at the house of Prince Lichnowsky, former Ambassador in London, who returned specially from the front to preside. The Bishop of Winchester, writing in the Times, tells us that many notable men and women were present, and that at the meeting a collection of 8,000 marks (about L400) was made.

COLOGNE.

Mr. Michelson visited in April, 1915, the three Cologne hospitals in which wounded British prisoners are lying. He reports as follows:

These institutions are so typical of large, modern, well ordered hospitals that little need be said of their employment or management. They are provided with all the machinery and paraphernalia usual to surgical work on a large scale, contain all standard and necessary conveniences and fittings, afford to patients a maximum of protection in the matter of sanitation, quiet and relief from preventable irritation, and are conducted in a thoroughly scientific, professional and humane way.

The names of the 49 wounded British prisoners are hereunto annexed. I personally spoke to every one of these men, and with many of them I conversed privately and without being overheard. With but one exception no English-speaking British prisoner had any complaint to make, and a number of the British prisoners eagerly expressed to me their appreciation for the care and attention given them.

The physical condition of the Indians is particularly good. Only 21 deaths have occurred among the 1,000 wounded cared for in hospital No. VI. since the war began, and the death rate in the other two hospitals is correspondingly low. The physicians in charge consider the rate to be somewhat remarkable in view of the many grave injuries treated.

In closing I may say that there is no discrimination or segregation among the patients and that certain French patients with whom I spoke expressed, likewise, their appreciation for the care and attention given them.

CREFELD.

At Crefeld Mr. Michelson visited the camp for interned officers. Of these interned 137 were British. The general statements of the Commandant "were afterwards independently confirmed by the one interned British medical officer, Captain Benjamin Johnson, who said that as a physician he had no complaints to make or improvements to suggest. He did, however, complain on the score of being held prisoner, but the Commandant and the German medical officer, and I with them, feel that the presence of a British medical officer in the barracks is desirable.

"The bath room which I saw has a floor space of about 1,500 square feet, one-half of which, drained in the centre, lies under some 20 shower nozzles. There are a couple of porcelain tubs in the other half, and in the centre there is a large stove. Hot and cold water is available. The British officers were enthusiastic in their praise of this room.

"As regards the sleeping rooms, wash rooms and latrines, and their equipment, the general German housing regulations are being fully complied with. I visited a great many sleeping rooms, and in none of them did I find overcrowding, uncleanliness, insufficient light, heat, or equipment.

"The orderlies are housed in stalls in one of the stables, and in their regard, too, the general German housing regulations are being fully complied with. Their quarters looked sufficiently comfortable and clean, and two or three of the orderlies with whom I spoke said that they had no complaints to make, and that they were happy to be interned with, and not apart from their officers. I visited the one building fenced off from the others--also a stable--in which German soldiers are quartered, and I found the accommodation and equipment there to be precisely that furnished to the orderlies. The comparison was, however, somewhat in favour of the orderlies, for the orderlies were fewer in number and less crowded than the soldiers. Although exercise is not compulsory, there is ample space in the central rectangle for out-door games of all sorts and for walking. No appropriate form of exercise, recreation, or amusement is denied the interned, and opportunities for distraction within the barracks lie largely in their own hands. Smoking is freely permitted, and English, French and Russian songs are sung without interference. The walls of one French officer's room were covered with good-natured caricature drawings. When I asked the Commandant if the interned might not be permitted to go out into the country under guard, he replied that the barracks were too near the frontier for that, and he mentioned that one officer had already escaped and succeeded in getting over the border."

Food is provided to all officers at the rate of two marks daily. This absorbs the whole of a lieutenant's pay, and the Commandant recognised the difficulty. But "none of the officers want the present arrangement altered if alteration is to involve a decrease in the quality, quantity, or variety of the food furnished. All of them agree that the food is entirely satisfactory, under the circumstances, and that it is fully worth two marks a day.

"The officers told me that letters and packages were delivered to them with commendable rapidity, and that the Commandant was unfailingly obliging when, for important reasons, any officer needed to send off more than two letters a month."

GARDELEGEN, SALZWEDEL.

Dr. Ohnesorg, of the U.S. Navy, inspected Gardelegen and Salzwedel. Owing to typhus, the former was not completely inspected. Two hundred and twenty-eight British soldiers were interned here. Dr. Ohnesorg remarks that the situation is open, with natural drainage. There was a good and unstinted water supply. "I had a long talk alone with Captain Brown. He spoke well of the camp." "Work was being rushed on" for the complete eradication of the clothing louse which is the carrier of the infection. "It should be mentioned that the Russian prisoners, who are primarily responsible for the introduction of the disease, are quartered alone, ... but all the prisoners associate with one another in the compound." At Salzwedel, out of a total of 7,900 prisoners, only 49 were British. The supply of water was unstinted. Shower baths and hot water were available. Each man could have a bath every three days, and the baths were being added to. In the hospital "the English doctor informed me that the medicines and treatment accorded to the sick were good."

"The majority of the English prisoners complained of not getting enough food and the monotony of the diet. The black bread was another point of protest. I myself was given a sample of the mid-day meal as it came from the kettle. It consisted of a thick soup containing potatoes, beans, and small portions of fish. It was palatable, and I should say nourishing. The prisoners do not do heavy work, their work being police duties, etc. I must add that those whom I saw were well nourished, of good colour, and appeared to be in good physical condition. There were only a half-dozen on the sick list, and, with one exception, they were under treatment for wounds."

GUESTROW, MUENSTER (LAGER), SOLTAU, SCHEUEN, SCHLOSS CELLE.

Mr. Jackson reported on the first four of these. The Guestrow camp (Mecklenburg) contained about 6,000 prisoners, of whom 300 were British. It is situated in the pine woods, and consists of "solid, newly-built wooden barracks, lighted by electricity and heated." Washing and bathing facilities were good and the postal department well organised. "Clothing is furnished when required, if asked for."

"There are several workrooms, and most of the men who have trades can find something to do to occupy their time and can earn a little money.

"Most of the British soldiers spoke of harsh treatment immediately following their capture--at the beginning of the war--and while they were being transported to Germany, and several spoke of their having been handled roughly while in the tents. Others said frankly that most of those who had been treated badly since they came to the camp had done something to deserve it. In any event all admitted that their present treatment was good, and that there was now no discrimination against the British. British soldiers had never been called on to do more than their share of the dirty work about the camp. A party of Russians had always had charge of the latrines, voluntarily, in return for some small compensation. The spirits of the British prisoners seemed good."

The account of Muenster is almost precisely similar--"solidly-built barracks," "good bathing arrangements," "well-arranged hospital." Suggestive of the nervous strain of internment is the following: "Here the relations between the British and Belgians seemed cordial, and the former participated in the recent celebration of King Albert's birthday, which the French declined to do."

At Soltau there were about 30,000 prisoners, principally Belgian. Four hundred were British. German control was largely eliminated, but the results in this case do not seem to have been satisfactory.

"In this camp there seemed to be fewer German soldiers on duty than is the rule elsewhere, and practically the whole of its administration is in the hands of the Belgians, who have organised many courses of study (under Belgian professors) and who have a Catholic Church, a theatre, an orchestra, and a choir. The British complained that there is discrimination against them here (apparently more by the Belgians than by the Germans), and that they are not permitted to participate in the administration or to be represented in the kitchen or post office. Complaints were made about the food and the delivery of mail and parcels, and it was said that the Belgians objected to have them join in football games, etc. They also said that they were compelled to do much more than their share of fatigue work in connection with the latrines. All these complaints were brought to the attention of the officer in charge, who promised to investigate them, as apparently but little attention had been paid to such matters so long as there had been no trouble in the camp."

At Scheuen near Celle a similar difficulty existed. There were 118 British out of a total of 9,000 prisoners. "The British non-commissioned officers muster their men and exercise some general control over them, but the French or Belgian non-commissioned officers are in charge of the barracks and designate the men who are to do fatigue duty. In consequence, it is claimed, British soldiers are detailed to such work more frequently than those of other nationalities. On speaking of this to the Commandant, he promised at once to arrange so that a more fair division of work should be made in the future. Otherwise the men made no complaint with regard to any discrimination against them."