PRISON CAMP LIFE

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 4, Issue 174, 31 October 1941, Page 3

PRISON CAMP LIFE

TARANAKI OFFICER'S STORY

Life in a Bavarian prison camp for officers is vividly described by a Taranaki member of the Second N.Z.E.F. in letters to relates after his capture in the Middle East. is at Oflag 5B at Biberaeh Riss. "We live in single storey roughcast blocks, each containing nine 'rooms," he says. "These hold from tAvo to 19 inhabitants in double storey beds. There are 85 in my block and I look after canteen issues, collecting the block issues, such as saccharine, cigarettes (Avhen available), and notebooks, and distribute them to the room leaders, •collecting payments. I also handle lemonade for them, beer (a pint bottle a month) and skim milk daily and collect the money for these." Army meals, cigarettes and beer arc missed by New Zealanders, but there are compensating physical ad. A r antages in going short of some tilings because "I've lost my morning cough—half a dozen cigarettes a day at most and often smokeless." NeA'ertheless, the letters indicated a longing for comforts from home, for "we've been here a month and are still eagerly aAvaiting cur first Red Cross parceL" The Daily Rations. Here is the German ration for a day: "Breakfast, mug of ersatz coffee; lunch, mug of soup, tAvo tablespoons cabbage; tea,, a fifth of a 3/oaf of bread (size of our (kl loaf), small piece of margarine, piece of 'meat paste about half a poloney in size. In addition Ave haA;e a mug ol skim milk, Avhieh avc buy, tAvo lots of tea - (made from Red Cross parcels), and a bottle of lemonade, which avc buy. We haA'e facilities six days a Aveek for cooking or heating our Red Cross food." Two Aveeks later the great day dawned. "In marvellous form. Yesterday, avc blessed the day, avc rcceiA'ed our first Red Cross parcel. Gosh, it Avas great! I ate all the chocolate (fid bar) straight away. Boli and I had a meat and vegetable steAv and carrots last night. Oh boy! Do I loa'c sweet things . . . We go fifty-fifty on tilings. Best Avay here. One person opens a tin one night and the other the next. Expect Red Gross tobacco issue soon. Parcels ore excellently thought out —a little bit of all sorts: just the things Ave need. Hurrah! Malt extract just arrived ." Later: "Feeling eA r er so much better phj'sically and therefore mentally since Red Cross food parcels arrived. Bob and I saA*e bread crusts, mix them Avith milk powder, cocoa, saccharine, raisins (if any), and skim milk and cook them. Very filling. HaA'e ordered a Bavarian beer mug—lovely things—and Bavarian pipe, long and drooping down vour chest. Want to take them home as souvenirs." News Concentration Educational classes and weekly concerts are mentioned by the Taranaki officer aalio to get the maximum amount of news on the one page allowed a AAeek adopts the ingenious device of Avriting small in print script in "telegraph English." Clothing appeared to be a problem in the earlier stages of captiArity—"want boots now, see my sock through sole"—but later, "Ncav Zealand House, London, Avant all our particulars. I thought Ncav Zealand would come to light. Aussies envious. Bound to do the same for them, though." There are scraps of gossip about camp life,"how British officers AA'ere envied because they began toi recei.ve letters from home, before the New Zealanders, and how an Englishman was "bflcked" by a cable announcing that he Avas a father.