TEMPTED PRISONERS

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 258, 19 July 1918, Page 5

TEMPTED PRISONERS

:—«- LIFE IN GERMAN GUN FACTORY HOW CAPTIVES ARE TREATED The following story of life in a munition factory at Cnssel (reprinted from the London'"Times"), was furnished by a prisoner of war. The story is given in his own words:— Hennchel's steel factory before tho war was a steel-producing (Siemens' process and crucible furnace) and tool and machinery works. Sinco the outbreak of war it has naturally turned its wholo resources to the production of munitions. Approximately '.'O.ftOfl people wero employed in this factory in tho latter part of 1915, among these 'being 2000 prisoners of war, who had been sent thero not knowing until they arrived tho nature of the work they were to perform. The majority of tho prisoners of war, immediately they'realise they are at a munition factors', re-fuse to work, but either by force, persuasion, or guile they subsequently remained there.. This factory is situated, much like an English steel or machine works. It has different departments—i.e., molting furnaces, electric-powerhouses, steam plant, gas-producing' plant, fitters' ond turncra shops, steam-hammer . forges, smiths forges, sheet mills, wiro mills, an import and export department, and its own rolling stock. ' ,1 i « ' The method-or different raethods-of finally compelling a prisoner of war to work in one of those factories is rather peculiar. On arrival at the works prisoners are given a very good meal, with a fow bottles of beer and things to smoke. They are then interviewed by the firm s interpreter, a very, very clever linguist, and it is this gentleman's duty to impress upon prisoners' of war that it is not a munition factory. No, they only malto bicycles, pen-nibs, .pocket-knives, razors, etc. Tho field and siego gnus, ■ machine-guns, and thousands ot shells that you seo stacked in every spare.foot of the yard-well, they paint those. Of course, whether voir arc British, French, Russian, or Belgian, and though vou were employed in your pre-war days as a barber or bacon-curer, you realise that this fellow is "pulling your leg. Because, surely (von think to yourself) it does not require furnaces, boilers, electric cranes, and turning lathes to paint guns and shells, 1 or to produce pen- . nibs; and, besides, you cannot see any paint at all. ■The Tempter's Methods.

' Well, jou flatly refuse to start wok, and our before-mentioned linguist, who is emits a. gentleman, leaves you witn your sentries for a time.. He reappears shortly, accompanied by a German officer of high rank, who, he informs you, 1b in charge of the works-and also ot vrisonen of war, and that ho is invested with supreme power over every employee. He can, if he wishes, sentence you to death and to various other you again refuse to work, and immediately you are surrounded by about 20 -ra&ie, who playfully tick e you under tho ear'with tho butt of their rifles or the end of a bayonet, and you icgain *n S oiln°4s to find yourself in ar.underground cell, quite close to the ex hauit pipe* of various machine* and you soon realise you are neither m Kow Gardens nor the Crystal Palace. You stick this for what seems to you !t lifetime (it is usually three, four, oi 'five days); then suddenly your smoolh?onW interpreter pops up like -the ■ devil out of hell, and asks, Will you work now " Should you answer in- die negative the devil disappears and you are left to your own reflections for anotha thrce'to five days. Should you tell him you are thirsty and would like a drink of water, or .hungry, having had nothing to eat for from three to five days, le informs you that if you mil consent to work you will have, Mything in reason that you desire \\e\ J°r are beat, and realise that it is better Mt an opportunity of enabling you to get back to your lager which, m the distances, seems heaven compared with the shop where they pam g.ins and shells and.make pcn-nibs. . bo jou ac company tho slave-driver on a tolii ot takes you to the employees' dining hall, and as you have not had S water/light, or recreation for from tlSee to five days you do justice to the really good food given to you Then when you are given a few bottles of lager beer and a cigar you begin to regard this devil opposite you not as a devil but as your guardian angel, the over the drinks he unfolds to you a wonderful tale. I will give you the conversation which actually took place bctweon the interpreter 'and myeeli.

Pay and Prospects. Ho said: "if you will work for us at your trado (crucible steel ameltiiig; w« will pay you 25 marks (255.) a day on of which you must pay 10 marks ior food and lodging. You snail live in a house in town with civilians and be allowed to wear civilian clothes. When your work is finished you may' go auywnerc you wish, provided you are accompanied by tho German in whose house you are lodginK. You can have any girl you wish, provided she is willing, and there is no reason why you should not be very comfortable and have a lot of money saved by tho timo the war is oyor. lon will only be required to work six days a week, but if at any time you workmen Sundays you will receive double pay. "A very alluring prospect/ I remarked, and then asked if 1 could have the remainder of tho week to myself (two days), and also go into tho furnace to become accustomed to the German method of work, which I though might be different from ours. Tho interprcte readily complied with' the request, and •asked mo .to sign a paper. 11ns 1 received rather diplomatically, saying Id sign it on completion of tho first weeks 17 Well, my next two days were spent in looking around rho shops, the only peculiarity I noticed was the truth of the interpreter's remarks concerning women. In every branch of the works where a prisoner was employed, ho bad women and girls as neighbours ilie drilling, boring, slotting and turning machines had, without exception, if operated by a prisoner, a machine oh the immediate right* and left operated by. a woman or a girl. I questioned different Frenchmen concerning what I d heen told about tho women, and learnt that it was quite true. As many as 500 prisoners of war were living with women, and were allowed as much freedom of movement after working hours as. the Germans themselves. Mark you, don't censure these men; they didn't voluntarily go to this work of" painting guns; they were forced, and aro not to be blamed, but pitied. And I do hope that some day they will receive recognition for tho hopeless and futile resistance they put up before they finally succumbed to the gentle persuasive methods employed by those blasted German slave traders. Food Rations. Tho food at these works is generally very good during tho first month. Then you aro dieted as follows:-Breakfast-Coffee and 300 grammes (about lOJoz.) of bread. Dirinor.-Soup, very watery. Tea time.-Coffee, potatoes. Suppor.-Soup or-coffee and potatoes. Tho living accommodation is exactly as in'the lager-ouo largo room, holding m or 300 persons. You have a bed sack filled with straw, and two blankets. Your straw sack is quite close up to your right and left neighbours. You cat. sleep, ami drink in these barracks, The latrines are also inside, as you are only allowed out under escort. But if you have «uccumbed to tho charms of a Fraulein and aro a skilled workman and willing, then, as I've pointed out, you may live together. , , , , I think I havo slated all the outstanding features of interest at such a factory. Before concluding, let me impress upon anyono who may read thifj story that it is alisolutely true, with this exception, that I'm doubtful whethor the naino of tho firm is Honso.hall's or Ilcuschol's, but it was an ammunition factory in Cassel. "My informant (states "The rimes Amsterdam correspondent) adds that ho managed to get out of this inferno without doing one second's work, but how is another story." Homo Rule for Ireland was first mooted bj en organised association in 1870.