ESCAPING FROM GERMANY

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXX, Issue 32, 24 September 1914, Page 3

ESCAPING FROM GERMANY

SOME EXPERIENCES OF THE MACKENZIES.

REFUGEES’ ROUGH TIME.

An interesting account of liis hurried exit from Germany on the outbreak of war is given by Mr Bruce Mackenzie son of the High Commissioner for New Zealand, in a letter to his brother, Dr. K. Mackenzie, of Auckland.

Writing on August -1, Mr Mackenzie says:—“l have just arrived after an awful rush back from Pforzheim. We left on Saturday at 12.15 in the morning. The train was crowded, and we had great difficulty in getting ourselves and our luggage on board. We at length came to rest on top of our luggage, and reached Karlshruhe in the same uncomfortable manner. At Karlshruhe we had the first of a long series of wearisome changes, and there, oi all people, wc met Nell (Miss Nellie Mackenzie) and Miss Brown, who are going back to Pforzheim. We speedily dispelled their ideas of returning, and they came on with us. The train was crowded all the way. The station staffs were short-handed and wrathful, and we had to carry our own luggage. We arrived at Rotterdam dead beat, having had no sleep for over 38 hours and only a miserable sandwich amt biscuit in 24 hours. The refreshment places were fleecing the refugees, and charged two marks (about 2s) for a sandwich. Everywhere along the line wore signs of feverish activity and rapid mobilisation. “We got a good dinner at Rotterdam, and then looked for our luggage, which was lost, We embarked foi Tilbury on the Batavia, which was filled with a pauperised crowd. Cabins and berths were out of the question, but fortunately the trip was calm and dry, or the deck might have been most unpleasant. All the way we could see British destroyers patrolling the North Sea—just moving, hut quite ready and alert. The North Sea had been mined, and we carried, a special naval officei to pilot us through the danger areas. At London we were put through a very strict examination as to nationality, and even Americans were not allowed to land. Money was very tight on the Continent, and we were paying heavily for everything. However, wo may consider ourselves extremely lucky, as the train we came by was the last to run, and out boat was almost certainly the last. Our German landlord was very good to us,” the letter concludes, “and we really owe it to his trouble that we are not- in .Germany now.”

The fears for the safety of Miss Mary Mackenzie, who was reported by cable to be misshig, proved to be groundless. Dr. Mackenzie was afterwards advised that his sister had returned safely to England. She was sketching in an out-of-the-way village in Belgium, and her relatives could not get into touch with her. The news of the outbreak of war was also late in reaching her, but she had no difficulty; in getting back to England.

Mr Bruce Mackenzie, at the time of writing,, had volunteered for service in a medical corps. “THIS WELTER OF BLOOD” BRIGHTER DAY WILL DAWN IN THE UNITY OF NATIONS ”

Speaking at a patriotic demonstration at Fitzroy (Melbourne) on Thursday last, M. A. N. Dabaza, Consul for Russia, said that the sufferings and untold wrongs of the Belgian martyrs cried to heaven for pity, justice, and revenge. “Already from this welter of blood,” he continued, “some good has come. The blood of our soldiers, the tears of the widows and orphans, are the magic cement that has welded together the hearts of the nations fighting for ci\ ilisation and liberty 1 against barbarism. (Cheers.) There is no such word in Australia as ‘foreigner’ since the war. I and other Consuls of nations fighting m the cause of right have felt as much at home in this Commonwealth as w<p would have been in our own countries. You have felt for our sufferings and victories. We have felt for yours. We are proud, and exult in the glorious victories of British arms on land and sea. (Cheers.) We hope that when this war is over a brighter day will dawn for humanity, in the unity—not only for a, few years, but forever—of all nations in one common bond of universal brotherhood.” (Loud cheers.)JOTTINGS. An interesting description of the A gonne is given by Hilaire Belloc in his book “The French Revolution.” The Argonne is a long nearly straight range of hills running from the south northward, a good deal to the west of north. - Their soil is clay and though the height of the hills is only 300 feet above the plain their escarpment or steep side is tori aids the east. They are densely wooded, from five to eight miles broad, '.ln* supply of water in them is bad, and in many parts undrinkable; habitation with its provision foi annies ajiO roads extremely rare. Mr Belloc says that it is necessary to insist t.V on all those details, because the greater part of civilian readers find it difficult to understand how formidable an obstacle so comparatively nnimpc fant a feature in the 'andscapo mn be to any army on the march. It ads quite impossible for the guns, v-ggons, and therefore the food and .‘.tt munition of the invading armv, to ffass through the forest over the drenched clay land of wet autumn, save where proper roads existed. These were only to be found wherever a sort of natural pass negotiated the range. Three of these passes alone existed, and to this day there is very little choice in the crossing of these hills.