DELIVERANCE

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 09, Issue 07, 18 September 1945, Page 2

DELIVERANCE

J HOLLAND UNDER THE NAZIS EXTRACTS FROM LETTER The following extract comes from a letter written in Holland to Mr and Mrs J. Pearson of Wairere Street, Whakatane by a friend with whom thej 7 stayed in that country while on their world tour just prior to the outbreak of the present war. The letter states :— "We are glad to be freed from the yoke of bondage at last. It has been a time of intense suffering to many hundreds of thousands and the awful strain on ones nerves cannot be imagined unless one knows by experience. "A piece of a British bomber fell in our backyard and the windows were blown out of houses on both sides of us and across the road. God has kept us calm and marvellously preserved lis for which we give Him thanks. "The food has been so scarce — no milk very poor bread, hardly any meat ) no fruit, very few vegetables no gas, no electric light, no kerosene no fuel no soap and no ■5 J salt and many more things were unprocurable. "Things were terrible in Amsterdam; the town has been stripped of everything and people died by thousands' in {act at one time there were .301)0 corpses in one church lying waiting for burial for three weeks —there were no coffins and no men to bury them. ''You can safely believe, that t.hc Huns committed the most awful atrocities. We have heard from eyewitnesses both in Holland and men and women returning from Germany. They seemed as though they were demons possessed. "You can imagine what a thrill it gave us to see British* Tommies in the streets. When at lii'st peace was declared, everybody was running about congratulating everybody else —Oh it was a wonderful day. "We have not seen our boys for live years —they have been in an Austrian internment camp. "1 have lost 30lbs in weight but am now leeling stionger. Many have got so weak that it will take a long time for them to recover. "Many men who were deported into Germany have died there or returned with ruined health. This is indeed. a very sad country with bitter memories. "Oh how grateful we. indeed are for our deliverance."