LIFE IN GERMANY

Levin Daily Chronicle, 13 April 1918, Page 4

LIFE IN GERMANY

DUTCHMAN' S EXPERIENCE. "ENGLAND IS OUR RUIN." An account of the conditions in Germany by a Hague motor-driver who went to Germany to seek work owing to his failure to obtain it in Holland, has been furnished to the London Times by its correspondent at The Hague. After a four weeks' stay in Germany he declared that he was unable to hold out any longer. He was unprovided with funds except for the journey, but he smuggled three small pieces of soap across the frontier which he promptly sold to a soldier for 7s a piece. At the frontier station at Elten women regularly meet the trains, hoping to buy from Dutch workmen part of the 2%1b of bacon and 51b of bread which they are allowed to export from Holland.

At Duisburg he obtained work discharging coal, but after discharging 70 tons with four other Dutchmen he fouiul ho had only earned 4.50 marks (4s (id). When he had paid for his soup rations at the works canteen and his insurance nothing remained. He left Duisberg and went to Cologne, where he worked in the potteries, earning 10s daily, but stopped after four days from under nourishment and exhaustion. After this, with occasional spells of work, when he got enough food to work on, he existed chiefly by selling his outfit. He sold his good boots for 90s, his sec-ond-hand coat for 50s, a pair of ragged shoes for 15s, and Ms workman's patched blue shirt for 10s.

He described with gusto the journeyto Cologne in a fourth-class carriage, where the women guards came and danced whilst the rest of the travellers looked on with apathy. Throughout Kliineland anxiety regarding air Taids is continuous. All the windows are completely blued except for a narrow space at the bottom. The population is very anti-British, but the soldiers are less so, though they constantly exclaim, '' England is our ruin.''

In all the places where ne worned efficiency was enormously reduced. The workmen are accustomed to underfeeding, but they work apathetically and very slowly, and slight wounds, instead of healing, grow into sores, incapacitating from use hand or arm.

The popular idols are Kerensky and Lenin, who have apparently displaced Hindenburg and Ludendorff. The populace have high expectations of peace with Russia, but the soldiery is much less optimistic, and fears the western front. On December 31 he saw a troop train at a platform coming from the cast, and chalked across the carriages was "Auf nach Verdun." One soldier said. "I would prefer to go for two years to Ypres rather than for two weeks to Verdun." Another soldier offered his whole outfit for sale, but none dare buy. He explained that if could get rid of his outfit he would have a better chance to desert. The soldiers are held by the accustomed discipline and fear. "But," he said, "if half a general said it was time to quit the army would follow.''

Hatred of England is maintained still by lavish propaganda, but it is no longer effective in the army. As illustrating the apathy of the population my informant said that in one restaurant where "Gott strafe England" is scrawled across the wall he explained to some Germans present that they had to pray that because they could not "strafe" England themselves. A year ago there would have been an uproar for such a statement, but now they only laughed in indifference.

He saw many soldiers apparently selling postcards of the Kaiser along the streets. The majority seemed to be gunners, and were suffering from severe shock. He asserts also that in one cafe where some soldiers and a corporal were present he made a remark detrimental to the Kaiser, whereupon the corporal replied, "Oh, he's a pig dog; he must bo deposed.'' The soldiers also talked freely about the frequent cases of desertion, even referring to a report that 2000 men had deserted at one time at a certain place. They were much amused by the story that Germany would send grain to Holland. They scoffed at it and said, "When Germany is in need, Holland gets no bread."

On the homo journey the Dutchman passed through, flooded districts where enormous damage liad been done, especially on low-lying farms and in Cologne, where the lower part of the city was flooded.