REPATRIATED MEN

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 7, Issue 26, 23 November 1943, Page 6

REPATRIATED MEN

PRISONERS FROM POLAND

GRAPHIC STOIJIHS TOLD

On Oclober 2."). n transport wilb ,%()() repatriated prisoners of war from Germany arived at the Port " of Leit-h,, in Scotland. * Tlie great majority ol' tliein trav- * cllcd straight from Poland, whe.ro s they had spent years in German prison camps, and thanks lo the. cour- . te.sy ol" the Britisli military authorities. a Polish special correspondent wps. able lo fon I act some 50 of the repatriated men. Here are his imprcs,sion.s, as forwarded by the Polish Agency Telegraph, Loudon: — The spirit among the returning prisoners is excellent. They are full of unshaken faith in linal victory and the. difficult conditions of their imprisonment have not broken their morale. They speak most warmly of the generous treatment accorded, to them by the Poles, of their kindness and the. splendid morale of the Polish people. They have all learnt a little Polish, some more than' others. Nearly everyone 'knows some every-day terms. One of them said in perfect Polish,, '"Polacy todobry narod" (Poles are, good, people). Another declared in English, "B'vc brought you fresh news from Poland." Brought Back Souvenii-s They showed, me a quantity of things they had brought back with them from Poland. One who had left a camp near Cracow only three weeks ago took an onion out of his pocket, and said 'with a smile. "Just look! This is a Polish onion from Cracow. 1 got it in exchange; for a British cigarette." Another showed me a piece of black bread from Poland. the last ration doled out to him in camp near Torun. Handing me the. piece of black bread with one. hand and a piece of British white bread which he had received on arrival, with tlie other, he said: "Look at the difference." 1 was also shown a box of matches and a packet of cigarettes from Poland, as well as photographs taken in camps with British, and Polish war prisoners together,, standing side by side with their arms around one another's necks, smiling broadly. Repatriated men have no words to express their admiration for the Polish people, whose, kindness and cordiality towards British prisoners ,of war dates from the early autumn ; of 1 !)-10. After the fall of France, numerous drafts of British prisoners arrived in Poland. They were scattered among various camps together with Polish prisoners, who,,, it is well known, were later released only to be seized as civilians for forced labour. The memory of that meeting with Polish Avar prisoners and their contacts witii Polish people 1 have left an indelible impression on the minds of the British t>ris.oners, and they relate their experiences with enthusiasm and gratitude. "Long Live Britain" t Polish prisoners greeted new Brit.» ( isb arrivals, with cries of "Long Live x Great Britain!'" and sang Polish j songs for them. They shared their f scanty rations and eigettes,, elc.,

•with them, and food and other necessary articles were also thrown in to the British prisoners by civilians through tlie barbed wire. When the German authorities increased tlie severity of the camp rules. adult Poles, were no longer allowed near the camps. Then Polish children used to crawl under the wire and throw food to the British prisoners, thus exposing themselves to the. danger of a blow from a rifle butt or a kick from a German guard's boot.

Tliis cordial, generous and kindly attitude of the Poli.sli peoiile toAvards them remained to the lust. A British X.C..0. told me: '"On leaving Poland we threw our tins' ol' food and. cigarettes, etc., out ol' Hie train windows to our Polish friends., 1 hey helped us in our misfortune, so we tried to show our gratitifde and repay their kindness us well as we could." ,/! hoy hud come I'rotu all parts of Poland—Poniorze, Poznan, Kileslu, round Cracow, and near Lodz, in Gengovno, and elsewhere—but Ave re unanimous in declaring that the morale of the Poles at home was wonderful, and, that despite the severity of economic conditions and ••xerman oppression, of which they had ample evidence, the Poles' spirit is unbreakable, and their faith in victory unshaken. "What were, your last impressions on leaving Poland?" I asked. A man replied: "We came across the. Polish-German frontier. The train stopped. There were some Polish women on the platform. They 'opk v:l round to make sure there • , v., no Genua is looking, and then >''y made the V sign." (Continued in next column)