A TOUR IN THE ENEMY COUNTRY.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 5, Issue 199, 11 August 1916, Page 2 (Supplement)

A TOUR IN THE ENEMY COUNTRY.

HOW MEN AND WOMEN FARE IN A BELEAGUERED EMPIRE.

The- "Russkoe Slovo" publishes an account as to conditions in Germany from a neutral who has just returned from a business trip through Germany and Austria to Moscow. Having confirmed the statements made by other persons of the terrible ordeal which the travellers have to undergo on the frontier, he goes on to describe Bremen:— Bremen is the home of the JNoitli German Lloyd. Here are situated its head offices, chief warehouses, workshops, and numerous institutions which are connected with this great shipping company. Now this beautiful town is dead. It is like a vast churchyard. To see how the Germans amuse themselves during the war I selected the most fashionable music-hall ot the town. , ,„ + v.„ What surprised me most we.s the complete disappearance of accesses from the programme. It .appeared that women are now prohibited from acting in the music-halls. All therefore, are performed by men. They flic very bad. , . Aud it seems that no one goes to German music-halls to amuse himself, but solely to have alcoholic reheshments. 1 have never seen sue*> drunkenness as I saw during my shoit stay in Bremen. In peace time, too, one might meet in Germany people *ho were tipsy, or sometimes. noisy, but never drunk. The streets in the evenings are full of drunken people It is interesting to note, that French wines have a great sale in Germany Where do they get them from m such quantities? One thing is certain, that all the public-houses, restaurants, and cafes are overstocked with them ine prices also are quite normal. A bottle of champagne m a restaurant costs 20 marks, which* was the usual price before the war. Perhaps this is the spo taken from Belgium and «hs occupied French provinces. . The best place at which to dine lft Bremen has always been the Rathar.skeller." 1 went there to see how the Germans fare. I got fish, meat, vegetables, potatoes, even a roll, small and stale reminding one Q/t malt breaa But the prices had increased enormou*iv For a Weinerschmtzel one has to pay 2 marks 75 pfennigs, which is more than double the pre-war price. The war bread seems humanly uneatable, but perhaps it is good tor horses. It smells like hay or grass. !t is being baked most abominably, perhaps not without a purpose. So far as concerns the general ec.. nomic situation the war 'has left undeniable traces everywhere. Not only must Germany carry on the war and find gigantic sums to cover war expenses but she is already now spending much money for alleviating the ro suits of the war after peace is concluded. It is a mystery where she gets the money, for money is being spent most lavishly. HORSES FOR FUTURE USE For instance, Germany, foreseeing that after the war there, will be a tremendous lack of 'horses both for the Army and general work, is already buying up hors?s everywhere she can get them She completely disregards the fact that from neutral countries then export is impossible. I have witnessed how this business is transacted in Holland Probably in other neutral countries it is done in the same way. The Germans pay without bargaining and then make an agreement with the owner of the horse. Ha is to re ( eive certain upkeep money, and must keep the horse in good order; he also has the right to use it until the date when it will be possible to deliver >t to Germany. At the time of my stay in Holland already almost one halt ot •ill the available horses in Holland had been in that way sold to Germany. The same, if not greater, energy lft displayed by Germans in buying up foodstuffs and other goods. Ihe.Y are buving in Holland enormous quantities of Yoffee, cocoa, nee, groats leather and machinery. This is stocked. As according to Dutch law such goods can not be exported, and, on the other hand, their owner, if of foreign origifc has no right to keep them in stock more than three months, the Germans have hired in various parts ot Holland big warehouses, and. after the expiration of the term of three months, simply move the goods from one storing place to another. According to my information the quantity of goods thus stored by the Germans is enormous. It is certainly impossible to ascertain even approximate 1 y what Germany is spending for that purpose. But it is evident that after the war she will have enough horses and goods to go on with, while the neutral countries will lack both. , , ... -, All Holland is inundated with Germans. Spies are numberless. It you a theatre or cafe, a restaurant, or the street, vou will find immediately at your heels a crowd of these gentlemen. unmistakably "made in Germany Englishmen are especially spied attei, sind must invent ingenious devices to ■ rot rid of their watchers It has been noticed that in order tt. be able to watch better the British Embassy and everybody who went there the Germans hired a house opposite and went so far as to take actual snapshots of everybody entering the Embassy. Then'the Embassy hired the whole ot the opposite block of houses and forced all the Germans and other suspicious characters to leave. It is evident that, m consequence ot German purchases, life in Holland lias become extremely expensive. But mail expenses on wax aud on buying up ot stocks have natural'/ been a great drain on the German Exchequer. Their credit gone So far as I could ascertain, neither Holland nor the Tinted States now consents to b° paid by tho bonds of the German war loans. On mv return, during the search and interrogation at Benthe'm, I was suddenly told that I was an Englishman and that my passport was false. ••What : s'the reason for tins aceusa tiun?" !. asked.

• : \\Yli, didn't you have whisky and soda in the car tins morning? \Yhisky

:',nd coda are taken in the morning only liv Englishmen." " Tliis is an install?? 'if German spy-

On my journey I arrived in tierlm at Easter. T'he w.'ather was cxcclii'iit. 'I lie streets wore full of peop'e. But at Friedriehstrassc station I found only five old motor-curs and a f"\v old-fashionod talis drawn l>y old horses. .Motor-'buses have stopped running and are repined by horse trains. I have a- great number of friends \n Berlin, and I have seen many of them and had long talks. I was most definitely informal that all disorders which bad taken place in Berlin on account nt (learness of food 'had ben up to now dealt with without firing on the people, but disorders of tiie same kind in Leipzig and Dresden have resu'ted in a L'resit numhor of killed and wounded amongst th? rioters. All are anxiously waiting for peace, but it was emphasised by everybody with whom I bad an opportunity of speaking that as long as the militar,power >s fis .strong as it is now all ta'k of a speedy peace will be in vain.

In all conversations I had with Germans the leading motive was the surprise that nobody seems to take them as a victorious country. "How is that?" they would say. "We have here and there captured so-and-so many acres of territory, and our enemies do not admit that we are victorious." I noticed also that the circulation of silver coin has evidently not decreased at all. But the nickel coin is replaced by iron coin.